Goals & Learning

My current career goal is to become a Doctor of Occupational Therapy with a specialization in pediatrics. For graduate school, I plan to attend an OTD program, preferably at Indiana University of Indianapolis but I am exploring my options. I became interested in occupational therapy when I learned about its heartfelt impact on patients and the ability to enhance the quality of life by helping regain their independence. My passion for working and engaging with children led me to realize I wanted to specialize in pediatrics. I am committed to this field of rehabilitation and aiding young individuals in reclaiming their skills for daily activities. My interest continues to grow through my hands-on experiences and academic coursework. This year, I will be shadowing Occupational Therapists who work with children of various ages and different diagnoses to set my career goals. 

My experience at the Healthy Sleep for Kids Research Lab has reinforced my career plan for the future and it also has deepened my interest in working remotely with research data and analytics. While I still feel passionate for becoming an OTD, I am also eager to explore part time opportunities involving analysis and data findings related to clinical research. I feel confident in making career related decisions as I gain more knowledge in rehabilitation and research.  

Last spring I set many goals when applying for the LHSI program and I am proud to say that I have successfully achieved many of them while strengthen various skills. One of my main objectives was to finalize my career plan, which I have accomplished. I also aimed to gain an understanding of working with clinical research and data analysis to evaluate if it aligned with my interests. I am gratified to share that my experience in analyzing and studying data has confirmed my interest of this field. Additionally, I improved my communication skills by participating in team meetings and having one on one discussions with my coworkers and supervisors. Furthermore, I have strengthened my problem solving and critical thinking skills particularly when I worked independently. I am still committed to my goal of going to graduate school after graduation for OTD school. Lastly, I wanted to earn my BLS certification, which I successfully accomplished. This summer and for the remainder of my time at IU Indianapolis, I plan to continue working with my internship site through UROP, deepen my understanding about applying to OT school, attend informational sessions regarding the application process, and complete the remaining courses for my degree and certificate. 

Learning Goal #1: Develop strong communication skills enhancing written and verbal skills.

Relevance: This goal fits into my career journey because as an OTD, communication is crucial for being effective with patients and peers.

Action Plan: 1. Presenting study status at lab meetings, 2. Communicate (written or verbal) with team members about the study and any possible problems. 3. Record study information in redcap.

Progress: To achieve my goal of developing strong communication skills, I actively participated in lab meetings where I provided any updates I had towards my studies and projects. As a form of written communication, I regularly emailed my supervisors and coworkers asking questions or sharing updates. Although my work with RedCap, collects and stores research data, is limited right now, I have gained some experience using Excel such as cleaning and organizing data. I initially found Excel challenging since it was a new software for me but after some training, I was able to become proficient in my work. My next goal is to deepen my understanding of the use of RedCap which I am working towards as I start my upcoming sleep study.

Learning Goal #2: Develop time management skills with balancing coursework, jobs, and personal life.

Relevance: OTD demands lots of time when working with patients.

Action Plan: 1. Realistic to do list. 2. Keeping an updated calendar and reflects responsibilities. 3. Know when to prioritize personal work/life over school and professional work. 

Progress: Achieving this goal was a learning process. I had to establish a schedule that allowed me to have a balance between attending classes, completing all assignments, studying, going to work/internship, and making time for myself, family, and friends. I began creating weekly schedules that contained all meetings and deadlines for that week which helped me stay organized. I experienced some days where I had given myself too much to do and some other days where I didn't have enough planned. These moments allowed me to learn how to balance all my classwork and responsibilities out. I believe consistently using a planner and making daily schedules has helped me and will continue to help me stay well organized and balanced. 

Learning Goal #3: Building professional relationships with peers, professors, and professionals. 

Relevance: Having professional relationships provides more opportunities for yourself.

Action Plan: 1. Take advantage of LHSI networking opportunities. 2. Attend lab meetings.

Progress: I have successfully been able to build professional relationships with my supervisors and coworkers throughout my year. Attending weekly lab meetings led me to develop an understanding on what my colleagues are working on and achieving. I have not taken advantage of any LHSI networking opportunities, but I do plan on staying with this site through UROP, which I am in the works of applying to. In the future, I will have more opportunities to network with others and create professional relationships. 

A skill that I am using and more confident in is teamwork communication. I have reached out to either my coworkers or my supervisor for assistance and when I need help on a certain task. I also believe that our consistent meetings have helped me be more open to my group and share details and knowledge about my experience. Another skill I have become confident in is time management. Having a routine and balanced lifestyle, even if it's busy and chaotic, has kept me on track. I have been able to attend my classes, do coursework, go to work, and do my tasks that's given by my supervisor. Additionally, I have improved on integrating and application applying from previous information, concepts, and qualitative techniques. I started data cleaning on qualitative research using Excel where I had gained experience in categorizing and organizing data sets. I was able to identify common themes and patterns, enhancing the quality of the findings. Applying these skills ensured a efficient analysis of the data.

A skill I would like to continue to work on is the ability to be independent. This internship is a new experience for me so I have been relying on my supervisor to guide me through certain things. I believe the more I continue to work and gain knowledge on the study I am on, the more independent I will become. In order to grow on this skill, I will spend time on RedCap to get familiar with its set up and functions. Additionally, I would like to work on my data analysis and tech skills. I was introduced to Excel this semester and I had no experience and did not know how to work with it. It was all a new concept to me but with the guidance of my supervisor, I was able to figure things out. I want to be able to learn shortcuts on Excel to make the data cleaning process faster and I think it could benefit me in my future career. My plan is to stay with my site so I believe the more time I am given to work on Excel, the more confident I can become with my tech skills.

My internship has significantly deepened my understanding of my health science coursework/major. Being a part of a study on teens with insomnia, I have been able to apply concepts that I have learned in courses such as psychology, medical terminology, and research in healthcare. My studies on health and wellness have educated me on topics that I should know about as a research assistant. My internship has also shown me how the real world works when it comes to being employed and working with a team. Being a Health Science major, I know I will be using my degree to work with other health care providers and having that strong communication skill will be very critical.