NACE: Career Readiness

Career and Self Development

Research is never done in isolation, and my work relies on my ability to build connections and create spaces where others feel comfortable sharing their stories. Early in my research, I recognized that I needed to strengthen my confidence in professional communication. So I proactively reached out to professors, even without certainty of a response to seek guidance in expanding my learning beyond the classroom. As my study progressed, I started conducting in-depth interviews which helped strengthen my ability to balance empathy with professionalism. Additionally, I have sought out interdisciplinary mentorship outside of my immediate field which had reinforced the importance of continual learning. These experiences reflect my ongoing commitment to personal and professional growth for future research opportunities.

Communication

Since my research is qualitative, I often present my work alongside quantitative or "hard science" fields where I have encountered skepticism about its rigor and validity. These moments have pushed my to clearly and confidently explain my methodology in a way that is understood by different audiences. By adapting my language and framing my explanations based on who I am speaking to, I am able to communicate the value of qualitative research in understanding lived experiences. Additionally, engaging in these questions and different perspective has strengthened my ability to listen actively and respond thoughtfully in a clear and organized manner.

Critical Thinking

Because my research used qualitative methodology, I had to critically evaluate how to best approach this complex and deeply personal topics such as identity and adoption. Instead of starting with a fixed hypothesis, I used grounded theory to allow themes to emerge from the data. This required my to carefully analyze participant responses and make decisions about how to interact with them. I worked to gather perspectives from multiple participants which also remaining aware of my position as an adoptee. This was so that I could make sure my interpretations were grounded in data rather than personal bias. Throughout the entire process, I made decisions about theme development while utilizing logical reasoning and recognizing the nuance in lived experiences. This approach strengthened my ability to analyze information critically in a way that is unique to complex human-centered data.

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