Pre-Interview Impressions of a Counselor
In this paper, an interview with a licensed counselor will be developed and analyzed. The peculiar feature of this kind of work is the possibility to develop a personal attitude to a topic before an interview, learn a lot during the interviewing process, and develop conclusions and attitudes to this profession at the end.
Using different books and peer-reviewed articles, much information about the counseling profession could be found. For example, it is a well-known fact that the middle of the 20th century was the period when this profession emerged as the possibility to guide people in personal, vocational, and academic matters (Schweiger, Henderson, McCaslill, Clawson, & Collins, 2013). Therefore, I understand that licensed counselors usually involve in different types of activities and could help at personal, as well as academic or professional, levels.
Besides, I know that counselors may work in different disciplines like medicine, education, or business and follow the same endeavors because regardless of the fields and disciplines, there is one mutual goal, to empower an individual to accomplish personal goals and cope with emotional challenges (Scott, Royal, & Kissinger, 2014). I am not sure of the correctness of such an approach. Therefore, I want to believe that my further communication with a counselor could provide me with some answers and promote discussions about the role of counseling in human life.
This time, I would like to focus on school counseling and interview a school counselor, who explains to me the peculiarities of this profession and describes the path of becoming an expert of children’s souls.
I think that it is not enough to read books and booklets and consider the opinions of the experts to comprehend the value of this profession. Direct communication is one of the best methods to gather information and identify the strengths and weaknesses of being a counselor.
Counselor Interview
The interview occurs in a school, where the chosen counselor works at the moment. She is a too busy woman. Therefore, we agree to meet at 3 p.m. in her office that is a separate room in the school building with 2 large windows and several flowers in pots. There are also several pictures on the walls and two large bookcases. She meets me with a smile on her face and explains that she has about one hour for this interview. After nice greetings, we pass directly to the questions prepared beforehand.
Why did you choose counseling as your job? Did you have this profession as your goal when you were a school student?
When I was 10, I faced several deaths in my life. They were my close relatives, and I could not cope with the emotions and feelings. As was expected, I was directed to a local psychologist, who helped me to survive that period. With time, I started reading some books on Psychology. At the age of 16, I found several powerful Freud’s works. When the time to choose a degree came, I did not have any doubts. I wanted Psychology as my major.
Did your college choice was a personal decision or mutual (with your parents)?
My parents supported me a lot. They also believed that psychology was the field that helped people in their complicated lives. The University of Florida was the final choice. I was accepted, and I wanted to become a good student to get as many opportunities as possible.
Have you ever thought about your practice?
You know, it is not always easy to find patients in a short period. Besides, my management and leadership skills are not as good as my psychological knowledge. Therefore, at this time, I do not think about my independent project. I think that I could help many students at this school and enjoy the local beauties.
Are you satisfied with the working hours, conditions, and salary?
It is hard to achieve satisfaction at all points. Still, I am close to it. I have a good place to work at. I can establish my working hours on my own. However, I prefer to work the way this school works and follow the schedules defined by the manager. As a rule, I work 6-8 hours per day. Sometimes, I could work with 10 students per day, and sometimes, I have one or two meetings only. As for the salary, I think that everyone wants to earn more. I believe in my perspectives. As soon as I get the necessary experience and develop the required portion of skills, I will think about my financial opportunities.
What do you like about your job the most?
Communication and diversity! I cannot imagine a day without people asking me for help or a child wanting to cope with a new challenge. If I do not have meetings, I try to walk around the school and observe students’ behavior and relations. It is interesting to observe how children communicate, make decisions, and even move.
So, you like to work with children. There is a quote by Asa Don Brown that “all children should be taught to unconditionally accept, approve, admire, appreciated, forgive, trust, and ultimately, love their person” (Purushothaman, 2015). Do you support this thought?
I think that there are some of these actions that should be taken unconditionally. Still, not all of them. This quote seems to be an approval for all decisions and thoughts developed by students. However, it could happen that students, as well as adults, make mistakes. Therefore, it is not necessary to forgive or trust unconditionally. I think that a counselor’s job is to make students believe that everything is in their hands in case they can accept it and understand the environment and the changes around. In other words, it is too easy to take everything for granted. It is possible to challenge something and believe that everything could be changed in case personal confidence and knowledge are applied.
What are the main challenges in your work?
It is not always possible to understand if a student needs help. Besides, some students do not want to receive help. Sometimes, they are ready to demonstrate their aggressive behavior due to the necessity to follow certain rules. Therefore, the establishment of contact with students is the main challenge I have to deal with.
Do you believe that students and adult patients need the same help? In other words, are you ready to work with older patients?
I do not think that counseling should be the same for all ages. When a student addresses a counselor, the reasons may vary from personal instability or ordinary laziness. When an adult searches for a counselor, a certain type of help should be offered relying on personal knowledge and practice. I am not sure that I am ready to provide an old lady, who comes from her husband’s funerals and asks for what should be done next, with a high-quality idea being a single 27-year-old woman. This lady has a life that I could only dream of. I am afraid that I am just not ready to work with adult patients. Therefore, school counseling is what I am good at.
Finally, do you have any regrets or concerns about your profession? What do you expect from this line of work?
There are many interesting books written by Rosemary Thompson and Tamara Davis about the worth of school counseling and the methods of helping children. I am lucky to read those books and follow their suggestions. Still, the variety of counseling help is impressive indeed. I have so much work to deal with. I have never regretted the choices made. By the way, I enjoy each morning cherishing the thought that I am going to a school where children may need my help. I believe that in ten years, I would be able to open my practice and provide people with credible help in different directions.
Post-Interview Impressions of a Counselor
After the interview, the first thing I did was search for books by Thompson and Davis. These authors speculate about the importance of school counseling from different perspectives and help potential counselors to understand their power. Counselors should be the experts in human behavior (Thompson, 2013). Human behavior has several forms, and it is impossible to learn all of them at once. Years may be required to succeed in counseling.
Human behavior, as well as their needs and expectations, depend not on age only but also gender and even nationality. People ask licensed counselors for professional help and suggestions. Still, even the best experts do not know what to expect from a young 15-year-old White girl or a 46-year-old African American man. They might be challenged with the same problem or have to deal with absolutely different concerns. The interview also helps me to comprehend that counselors support the idea of life-long learning. It is impossible to know everything and use the same knowledge during the whole line of work. New sources, theories, and examples could be used regularly.
Finally, this communication with a school counselor shows that successful counselors should love their work to become successful and satisfied. Though it is possible to chase the dream and search for some new opportunities, it seems to be reasonable to choose one direction and follow it taking the best things from every moment.
Conclusions
In general, the interview with a counselor is a useful tool in discussing the peculiarities of the chosen kind of work. School counseling is an integral part of the existing educational system. The role of these people is to support the appropriate emotional, social, and academic development of students. Counselors understand students’ needs and help them to combine their abilities with their demands. There is no need for students to succeed in their academic life at the expense of their relations. Counselors guide students and their families, and their success depends on the level of professionalism and dedication to their work.
References
Purushothaman. (2015). Children’s quotes. Kerala, India: Centre for Human Perfection.
Schweiger, W.K., Henderson, D.A., McCaslill, K., Clawson, T.W., & Collins, D.R. (2013). Counselor preparation: Programs, faculty, trends (13th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
Scott, D.A., Royal, C.W., & Kissinger, D.B. (2014). Counselor as consultant. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Thompson, R.A. (2013). School counseling: Best practices for working in the schools. New York, NY: Routledge.