I have always had a passion for students. Taking it way back to when I was a child playing with my sister, I was always the teacher during our pretend play. I had toyed with the idea of going to school to be a teacher, but didn’t love the aspect of a room full of…
Category: Child Life Mentor
Practicing For Your Practicum
While the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) doesn’t currently require a practicum, completing one makes you a competitive candidate when applying for an internship. Some people even complete two practicums to make themselves that much more competitive of an applicant. For those of you that have already secured your practicum and are eager to…
Pet Pig Named Moana
Interviews are so nerve-wrecking. How do you remain yourself throughout the interview? How do you make sure that you’re not just a shell of a person answering all of the questions “correctly”? I’ve got the answer here!
Recipe to Becoming a Certified Child Life Specialist
After receiving multiple direct messages on my Instagram page from a variety of students in different walks of life, I realized everyone was asking for the same thing – DIRECTION. This one is for you! Where To Begin: Volunteering First and foremost, get into a volunteer position under a Certified Child Life Specialist at a local…
Going Psycho over the Psychosocial Development Stages
It’s so important for you to know your theories, especially Erikson’s Psychosocial Development stages prior to going into an interview. Study up on these and be able to recite them like you do your ABC’s! Thank me later!
Hey, Hey! Piaget!
Piaget’s Cognitive Development stages are such an important theory to know prior to going into interviews for internship. Study up on these and be able to recite them like you do your ABC’s! Thank me later!
Hot and Ready Interview Tips
Raise your hand if you’re someone who likes to be as prepared as possible prior to an interview. You have your flash cards, printed off documents, resources about the hospitals you’ve applied to, and a piece of paper that says something like “smile and be yourself,” because you NEED to crush this. I got you….
Tick-Tock, Let’s Make It Rock
Video submissions seem to be more common for a lot of larger hospitals as the first step in decreasing the amount of applicants they’ll need to sift through on paper. Here a few tips for how to make your submission stand out amongst the other applicants!
What Makes a Good Applicant?
When I think of an ideal candidate, I think of consistency. I want consistency in your work, volunteer efforts, and experiences. I want to know that you’ve made a difference in concrete places where people can vouch for you because they truly know you. I also want consistency in your application.
Get Organized For The Sake of Your References
If you want to be successful and keep your sanity (as well as the people you’re asking to be your references/recommendation letter writers) please do yourself a favor and put the bug in their ear EARLY.
For instance, if you’re applying for the September 5th application deadline, you should have already asked your people if they’d be a reference or write a letter of recommendation for you. If you haven’t – you need to ask them ASAP. With all that goes into it, it’s polite to give them at least a 2-3 month notice.
Get Organized & Get an Offer
Whether this is your first time applying for internships or your third, there are definitely mutual feelings of doubt and defeat that float around during this stressful time. When you think about all of the heavy lifting that happens behind the scenes, it can be overwhelming. Here are a few tips of mine to make…
Puzzled on Offer Day
It was a hot July morning the day we were to leave our AirBnb and fly back home after a beautiful honeymoon spent in a tiny town in California. My husband, Sam, and I both love adventure, but are homebodies and introverts at heart. We went to the nearest drug store and bought the biggest…
Child Life, Wild Life 