Big Decisions

Everyday we're faced with decisions. Big decisions, small decisions, and sometimes, life-changing decisions. Last night the first African American President of the United States of America was elected. Since I fell asleep at 10pm last night, I woke up with a sense of urgency and flipped on CNN. As the reporter casually mentioned "President Obama", a wave of anticipation passed over me and my skin became goose-pimpled. The USA has shown that they have overcome (at least the majority has) historic prejudice and shown that they are open-minded and ready for change. I was in awe, and I am very excited to see what comes next. I truly hope that Obama can be what the USA so direly needs right now- hope, change, and leadership.

On a smaller scale, I have been struggling with some decisions of my own. They range from the day-to-day decisions of what to make for dinner, what to wear to work... to which Universities to apply to, and for which programs. After mulling over the idea of Clinical Psychology, I have veered off of that course onto the path to Social Work. A 2 year Master's in Social Work will give me the credentials to become a practicing therapist and can lead to work in mental health facilities, or (hopefully one day) private practice. As I've read numerous mental health memoirs, watched programs such as "Intervention" or "Celebrity Rehab", taken numerous Psychology courses, and volunteered at Homewood, Guelph General Hospital, and Trellis, my interest in mental health has become stronger and stronger.

I plan to apply to Laurier in Waterloo for a Master's in Social Work, concentrating in individual, family, and group counselling. That is my #1 choice, as it would allow me to stay in Canada, stay near my boyfriend, family, and friends, and would probably be the most financially viable option. Oh, and it is a very good school for MSW. My second choice is Carleton in Ottawa, followed closely by University of Michigan and Florida State University. Going to school in the USA poses many complications and issues, but I plan on applying none-the-less, hoping that my Dual Citizenship will help me out in that regard.

I wrote (or I should say, typed, since it was computerized) the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) on Saturday in Hamilton at 12:15pm. That sure is one heck of an exam. After writing two essays in an hour and 15 minutes, I was faced with the most diverse and truly random vocabulary ("verbal") questions that I have ever encountered in any test. Regardless of studying over 500 common GRE words, I was stumped by words that I swear that I have never seen in my entire life. After the verbal portion, I mentally trudged into the Quantitative section, which I expected to fly through, as math is a strong suit of mine. Since this exam is adaptive, I found myself wading into deep, dark, scary waters after the first few easier questions. I had definitely gotten the first few correctly because that exam got difficult, quickly. As each question took longer than I had expected, I was rushed by the end and was forced to guess on several questions, wincing as I did so. My score turned out to be satisfactory with a 550 on verbal and 710 on quantitative (out of 800). It is a hard exam to measure because grades are relative, but it seems that I did "satisfactory". My analytical grade (from the essays) will be mailed to me once they have graded my essays, so I do not know how I did on that portion yet. At the end of the exam I let out a sigh and felt relief that I was finished, but a little sadness that I had not truly conquered this exam. I spent 5 months studying for the exam (almost every day at lunch for 30 minutes) and thought that I would truly stand out from the crowd. All I can say is that the GRE is one difficult exam.

Now that my GRE is over, I must completely focus on my Graduate School applications. I need to finalize my school choices and find one more reference. Applying to Graduate school is a very complicated process- each school requires a different number of transcripts, either sent directly to them, or sent from me, different formats of reference letters, different deadlines, additional supplementary information, essays, etcetera! Working a full-time job and doing this is nothing short of overwhelming. A little at a time and I will hopefully complete my applications before Christmas so that I can celebrate without the pressure of Grad school looming over me. The other MAJOR decision left to be made is whether to apply to Occupational Therapy or not. It is a well-paying and flexible job, but I just don't know if it is for me. I don't know if I will get the same career satisfaction out of OT as I would with Social Work. Ahh, decisions, decisions. Any input would always be welcome.

Now my only decision left is, what's for dinner?