I am a graduate of the University of Central Florida with a bachelor's degree of Psychology graduating class of 2013. It wasn't an easy journey to get there. I began my academics at Florida State University and planned to become a doctor. I declared my major as Biological Science and signed up for all the appropriate classes. It wasn't long after that I realized that science was not my forte and I decided I needed to pick a new career.
I loved the hospital and medical field in general. I knew I NEEDED to be there to help children. I just had no idea what that even was. I told people my plan was to work in the hospital to help children understand why they were in there. Side note -- I had 5 surgeries as a child and had a tour of the hospital by someone who looked like a nurse so in my naive mind I just thought there was a nursing position that was already created and I was just going to do it. Well, fortunately, I met an amazing girl at a daycare I was working at who explained to me what that role was, a child life specialist. So there I was, that night, reading up on what a child life specialist was and determined I needed to do everything possible to get there. I realized I needed to change majors because biological science wasn't going to cut it for child life.
I changed my major to psychology and started looking into local hospitals to acquire my volunteer hours. Around Tallahassee the closest children's hospital was in Pensacola. Well that's about 2 hours away and making a 4 hour trip on a college budget didn't seem like the logical thing to do. So I packed up after obtaining my Associate's degree and moved to Orlando where they had not only ONE, not only TWO but THREE children's hospitals. The mecca of volunteering. I dabbled a little in each of those hospitals, met amazing child life specialists and solidified my goal of becoming a child life specialist.
Once I completed my junior year at UCF I applied to all three local children's hospitals Fall of 2012 for internship, with the understanding that I would apply again Spring if I did not get those internships. I did not get offered any internship at that time. I was also taking the child life class Fall of 2012, which UCF happened to be one of the only universities offering the class without the child life major, that Fall. I learned a lot more about child life and what it would take to become a child life specialist. I decided to apply to FOURTEEN internship sites. I have no idea what the going number is these days but I'm pretty sure with the competitiveness of child life you all should apply to at least if not MORE sites to have the best chance of getting an internship. I interviewed with 5, got a second interview with 2 and was offered NONE. I was devastated. What was I going to do? I just applied to fourteen sites. I thought for sure I would get at least one. So I went to plan B that night and started looking into Summer internships that were offered to "independent" aka no longer in school interns.
Well fate would find that I was the third choice at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital and their first choice denied them. THANK YOU to whoever that was because I accepted the following day and completed my internship with an amazing hospital that has a lasting impression on me to this day.
That's my journey as a student but feel free to peruse the rest of my blog to learn about what happened following my student ventures and what I am up to these days. Also, please reach out if you have any questions about my journey or what the current recommendations are to become a CCLS. If I don't know the answer I will do my best to direct you to someone who does.