Practicum Experiences - Michigan State

University

Reese Havlatka, Class of 2011
Practicum Site: Ofce of Cultural and Academic Transitions
During the Spring 2010 semester, I worked as an intern with the Office of Cultural and Academic
Transitions I met !aggie Chen "ernande#, the office$s associate director and m% practicum
super&isor, during the functional area presentations in 'AD ()* Initiall%, I spoke with her a+out
some issues I had encountered in ad&ising m% hall$s ,lack Caucus, and we ended up chatting
for more than an hour Our first con&ersation a+out race relations on !S-$s campus pi.ued m%
interest in learning more a+out the e/periences of students of color and the indi&iduals who
work with them

!% practicum was uni.ue in that I did not ha&e re.uired hours in the office and was a+le to work
at m% own pace I attended staff meetings, met with different staff mem+ers, and &olunteered at
man% of the e&ents sponsored +% OCAT !% primar% responsi+ilit% was to inter&iew as man%
,lack Caucus ad&isors across campus as possi+le, in&estigating the ties +etween the caucuses
and the campus0wide ,lack Student Association organi#ation, as well as gauging the le&el of
in&ol&ement and interest in each hall$s caucus

1orking with OCAT tied in with m% assistantship and coursework +etter than I could ha&e
imagined OCAT works closel% with 2esidence 3ife, so it was +eneficial to understand the inner
workings of an institutional partner !% inter&iews with other caucus ad&isors also helped me to
incorporate some +est practices into m% own ad&ising role 4inall%, learning more a+out the
racial d%namics of !S- related closel% to the su+5ect matter in 'AD 678, a course I took that
semester on di&ersit% and e.uit% in higher education The readings on Critical 2ace Theor% lit a
fire in m% +rain that engulfed m% practicum pro5ect, ad&ising, and career aspirations

!% practicum with OCAT has helped to la% the foundation for the rest of m% time at !ichigan
State This semester I am continuing to research campus race relations and I still speak with
!aggie regularl% and use her as a resource in m% stud% Through man% fascinating
con&ersations with her, I ha&e come to a greater understanding of how !S- functions as an
organi#ation This information has pro&en in&alua+le in considering m% impending 5o+ search
and future career
Michael Zaborowski, Class of 2011
Practicum Site: Academic Advising - Criminal Justice

In the spring of 2010, I did a practicum in academic ad&ising with Shannon ,urton in the School
of Criminal 9ustice I had the most outstanding and rewarding e/perience during that time: it
made a world of difference in shaping m% future in higher education, student affairs, and more
specificall% academic ad&ising The e/perience helped me understand the transfera+le skills I
+rought from past e/periences and channel them into the work of an academic ad&isor I was
a+le to step outside of m% +oundaries to challenge m%self practicall% and academicall% and
de&elop tools for me to use during m% career

At the +eginning of the e/perience, m% super&isor wanted me to o+ser&e and understand a
&ariet% of approaches to academic ad&ising I met with academic ad&isors in the 'nglish
department, the College of 'ngineering, as well as career ad&isors in the 3ear Center 'ach
ad&isor had a uni.ue and interesting outlook on the work of ad&ising 3ooking at ad&ising from
these multiple perspecti&es allowed me to understand m% approach to ad&ising +etter

1hen I +egan seeing students I felt ner&ous, +ut it did not take long to get comforta+le 1ithin
weeks I felt at home and within a month I knew this is what I wanted to do with the rest of m%
life 'ach da% offered new challenges and opportunities and I was e/cited to see what was
coming m% wa% Specificall%, working directl% ad&ising students was e/tremel% rewarding and I
could see impro&ement in m% a+ilities on a dail% +asis

!% super&isor encouraged me to 5oin and +ecome acti&e nationall% and locall% in the ;ational
Academic Ad&ising Association <;ACADA= I had the opportunit% to go to m% first ;ACADA
conference, where I was a+le to present and continue to learn a+out the field and network with
practitioners from across the countr%

The most rewarding accomplishment during m% practicum e/perience was the de&elopment of a
personal academic ad&ising philosoph% ;ot onl% has this philosoph% assisted me in m% work
with students, it has helped me understand wh% I want to do this for the rest of m% life, leading
to m% decision to pursue an academic ad&isor position in the Department of "uman
De&elopment and 4amil% Studies


Charles, Stephens, Class of 2012
Practicum Site: Selection, Training, and Development -
Department of Residence Life

3ast summer I e/perienced the inner workings of 2esidence 3ife +% participating in a practicum
specificall% working with staff selection and training This e/perience ga&e me the fle/i+ilit% to
de&elop +oth as a professional and a student +% allowing me to take courses while gaining
&alua+le on0the05o+ e/perience 4rom da% one, I was gi&en the support I needed to +e
successful +% the end of the summer !% super&isor mentored me through the unfamiliar
territor% when needed and empowered me to +e successful through autonom% I was gi&en the
responsi+ilit% of completing some meaningful tasks, the freedom to e/plore different wa%s of
sol&ing pro+lems, and treated as a colleague rather than an intern It was a great opportunit%
for me to see the interdepartmental colla+oration we read a+out in class The most e/citing
thing, in addition to de&eloping genuine relationships with people whom I once considered
super&isors and now friends, was to see a process or a pro5ect that I spearheaded come to
fruition and +e implemented as standard procedure

Two concepts that reoccur as themes in our program> esta+lishing partnerships through
colla+oration and the fusion of theor% and practice In m% role I got to see first0hand how
partnerships with multiple departments come together to work on +ehalf of students to create an
inclusi&e and welcoming li&ing en&ironment !% practicum afforded me the opportunit% to test
m% professional identit% and philosoph% !% summer class held particular rele&ance to m%
summer practicum so I found m%self infusing the theories and concepts that I learned in the
classroom into m% pro5ects and I was a+le to use the concepts of m% first0%ear curriculum in
con&ersation helping to me esta+lish credi+ilit% among m% colleagues This e/perience
reaffirmed m% choice to +egin m% career as a student affairs professional in 2esidence 3ife
upon graduation and ga&e me perspecti&e on the degree in which learning takes place outside
of the classroom and how integral 2esidence 3ife is in that process