Masters Program Application -- Counseling

Masters Program Application -- Counseling Psychology

Reasons for Interest in the Advanced Counseling Psychology Degree

The advanced Counseling Psychology degree is the most natural academic area for me to pursue now that my work schedule and parenting responsibilities allow me to further my education the way I have always intended. In my current professional occupation, I have worked for 17 years as a Registered Nurse, much of that experience directly in the mental health area. Furthering my formal education has always been a long-term goal, but my commitment to my son required more time and availability on my part than would have been possible for me to fulfill during his infancy and early childhood. I credit my partner -- she is also an RN -- and my professional experience and undergraduate focus on Psychology, together with great fortune, with my having been blessed with a well-adjusted, mature and responsible teenager whose care is no longer incompatible with the necessary dedication to my academic efforts simultaneously.

Short-Term and Long-Term Goals

My short-term goals will be to apply my time-management skills and the latitude I have earned at work to reduce my schedule as necessary to establish the optimal use of my time while maintaining a particular quality of life for my family and myself. In the longer term, I would hope to focus on developing my counseling skills and clinical abilities in the direction of an advanced professional practice. It has been tremendously satisfying to apply my academic and clinical training in daily professional practice, both from the Nursing Science and the Psychology perspective. On the basis of that experience, I am expecting to meet the challenges of fulfilling the Alaska pacific University MSCP program and to develop an equally meaningful professional application of my education and professional training.

Intended Social and Community Contribution in Academic Area

Segments of the population in Alaska are plagued by high rates of alcoholism and other substance abuse, which also correspond to high fetal alcohol spectrum disorder rates. General family discord, child abuse, acute depression, and suicide are also high within the Native population, especially. In my current vocational capacity, I have had extensive experience with alcoholism and substance abuse issues, as well as with the other problems common to my local community. It is my hope to use my training and my credentials to help support and advocate for effective counseling programs where they are most needed. Ultimately, I hope to establish a counseling practice and to help advance awareness and treatment opportunities for patients and their families.

Balancing Graduate School Work and other Commitments