Running head: REFLECTIVE SELF ANALYSIS

Reflective Self Analysis

Kathleen M. Bell
Kent State University

REFLECTIVE SELF ANALYSIS

Power of Education
Even though my plans for an upcoming weekend have been set for over a year, I keep
double-checking the calendar. I am complete disbelief that Ill be graduating in this summer.
Like I said, these events are booked in advance, but seeing the horizon has brought a whole new
level of reality. Most of my shock just comes from my path to this point. With the obstacles and
challenges that Ive faced in recent years, it is certainly comforting to see the finish line.
One of my biggest obstacles started early on in my college career. I had the unique
opportunity to become a fulltime student at the University of Akron during my senior year of
high school. That year of post-secondary education taught me so much about myself, meeting
new people and independence. Unfortunately, I also walked away with a mentality about school
that I hadnt always had. Due to the nature of getting a head start, I suddenly wanted to
expedite the entire college experience. After finishing a freshman load of classes at UA my
senior year, I transferred my credits to Kent State and began working on a Zoology degree.
Two years went by within my path to a degree, and I was feeling completely
overwhelmed and under-accomplished. With the support of my family and friends, I decided to
take a break from school starting after the spring semester of 2012. During this time, I obtained a
job as a full time veterinary technician. For a while, I was absolutely enthralled in my new life. I
was learning new things, meeting new people and was making a decent amount of money. Just
two years had gone by and I was promoted to a senior veterinary technician role. When I heard
this news, I was surprised to find doubt accompanying my feeling of pride.
It became quite clear that this senior position was going to be a last step on my career
path in this field and for me, which was not enough. Again, with the support of the veterinary
practice, I returned to Kent State in the spring of 2014. This time around, I wanted to come back

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to something I would enjoy and that I was not going to just be tasked with finishing. The minute
I walked into the Communication Studies department for an advising appointment, I felt at home.
Passing professors were greeting their students on a first-name basis and I was greeted with a
similar warmth.
After sitting in an advising appointment for about an hour, I left with the happiest feeling
and was overwhelmed, but this time with opportunities. Due to having an interest in so many
different industries and wanting a wide set of skills, my advisor guided me to the Applied
concentration of Communication Studies. Since Ive made that decision, I have had the
opportunity to take traditional communication classes as well as journalism and visual design
classes. This roadmap has given me so many desirable tools to take to the workplace.
Coursework and Training
My first introduction into the Communication Studies curriculum was the Foundations of
Communication course and this was immensely helpful. It not only gave my affirmation of my
choice take the Applied concentration but also gave a wonderful synopsis of the job
opportunities within the field. This also became the class that would reintroduce me to writing.
My professor was so patient and I will forever be grateful for that guidance. The second
communication course that very helpful was High Impact Professional Speaking. Somewhat told
in the title, this course aims at improving presentation skills on a professional platform. For
example, we were required to do a public statement where we issued an apology on behalf of an
organization or individual. Again, this was another course where the skills you walked away with
are just priceless. The last communication course that I will forever remember is Communication
Technology and Human Interaction. This course opened the door to a social world that I had not
met yet. It was filled with new material and controversy. Not only did I walk away having a

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better awareness of the impact of technology, but I walked away with an interest that I will
always keep with me.
On the journalism side of courses, Fundamentals of Media Messages stands out as a
course that was very helpful. Again, this was another course where I was introduced to a new
form of writing, which was AP Style. AP Style opens your eyes to a whole new prospective. Due
to the inverted pyramid, it allows you to view subject material in a new light that I had never
found before. This course taught me to be more detail-oriented and allowed me to articulate my
thoughts and writing in a more efficient manner.
One of the biggest reasons I decided to take the Applied concentration track was because
of the visual design component. Out of the school of Visual Communication Design, my most
favorite course was Visual Design for Media. This is the course where I left with big resume
items, such as Photoshop and InDesign. In addition to walking away with noted skills, I really
enjoyed the structure of the course and the opportunity to have that creative outlet.
Work Experience
When I left school a few years back, I decided that I wanted to put some of my Zoology
coursework to good use and became a veterinary technician. Although I never received formal
training in veterinary technology or became registered, I really never felt unskilled in the area of
medicine we were in, which was integrative. Our practice provided acupuncture, chiropractic and
other alternative therapies in addition to traditional medicine. As one can imagine, this specialty
practice was quite small. However, what we lacked in size, we made up for in unique learning
opportunities. Due the intimate nature, all the technicians got to work very closely with both the
veterinarian and the practice manager and I took advantage of both opportunities.

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Through conversations with the veterinarian and continuing education opportunities in

the field, I learned an abundance of information about small animals and became a go-to person
for questions in the office. In addition to the hard skills that I had acquired, my practice manager
taught me all that I know about soft skills. She took me out of my comfort zone of just helping
the animals, to putting me on the phone and email where I would interact with clients. These
conversations were not always easy. More often than not, you spoke with owners on a daily basis
about pet loss or deterioration. Additionally, Ive had difficult conversations with clients about
scheduling and payments. Most days I left the office feeling very drained but certainly felt my
purpose.
After years of working in veterinary medicine and deciding to go back to school, I had
another wonderful opportunity come my way. The Applied concentration requires students to do
a internship or practicum. My criteria for the internship host were very clear. I wanted to learn
new things, work normal business hours and it needed to be paid. I found this criteria at Charles
Schwab. From the recruiting table at Kent States job and internship fair to coming up on my last
week of the program, I have had nothing but a wonderful experience. There is not enough that
can be said about the culture and people at Schwab and this environment allowed for remarkable
learning.
During my internship, we all participated in a high level program called the Intern
Academy. This program guided all 100 hundred interns across the country through the culture,
values and history of Schwab. The second tier of the internship was the Schwab business that I
worked for, which is Retirement Plan Services. In this tier, I have learned all about the retirement
industry, mostly focusing on the 401(k) recordkeeping industry. The final tier was my
department, which is Communication Consulting. In my department, I have had countless

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shadowing opportunities across the business, assisted Communication Specialists with order
fulfillments and workshop building and wrote mock custom pieces for the Communication
Manager team. To summarize, this summer I will walk away with presentation, logistical and
writing skills to name a few.
Abilities as a Communicator
With so many wonderful experiences in the last three years, it is hard to define what has
made the communicator I am today. In fact, I do not think there is any portion of my path that I
would take away. One area I can reflect on with pride is working fulltime and going to school
full time the last year and half. Besides for the skillset that I gained from my coursework,
workplace and internship, the challenge of balancing work, life and school was my greatest
learning experience. This obstacle gave me little time to waste. I had to learn quickly had to
communicate with the people around me, how to ask questions and how to give direction.