Letters from Alumni - Master's and CAS Programs | Division of Counseling Psychology

Letters from Master's and CAS Alumni

Jennifer D. La Fleche M.S., Rehabilitation Counseling, 1992

My experience in the Rehabilitation Counseling Program at SUNY-Albany was one defined by growth and change. The chance to challenge myself with the support of peers and faculty was an invaluable one. The program is small, which gave me the opportunity to make friends, some of whom I still work and socialize with. Also, the chance to participate in a research project helped me to better understand the role research plays in my experience as a professional. Overall, the academic environment at SUNY-Albany and the practical experience offered by my field placements gave me a well-rounded learning experience.

My practicum placement was at a sheltered workshop, and my internship was in a substance abuse outpatient unit in a local hospital. After graduating, I began working at Northeast Career Planning as a Rehabilitation Counselor. I am a counselor in the evaluation unit, where I complete assessments and formulate recommendations. For me, the structure of formal assessments and the short-term counseling involved in my position match my interests well. I also provide supervision for SUNY-Albany rehabilitation students who do their field placements at my site. I enjoy being part of a field that is continually evolving and working for an agency that has consistently responded to that change with new services and programs.

Elizabeth Lyons M.S., Community Counseling, 1997

Choosing the master's program at SUNY-Albany was a great decision in terms of preparing myself for employment. The program offered an excellent blend of challenging academics as well as practical counseling experiences.

My practicum took place in a hospital, where I worked directly with chronically ill individuals. This was a challenging setting, and I received a great deal of support from my practicum supervisor, a doctoral student. The weekly supervision afforded me the opportunity to express concerns and receive feedback from my peers and the Department faculty.

My internship took place in a community college, where I worked with students with disabilities. In addition to providing individual counseling, I assisted students in managing school responsibilities through a support group. Before graduating, I was offered a job at a different community college. I am sure my internship experience helped me to secure this position.

My experience at the University at Albany has prepared me for the work I am now involved in. The faculty encouraged critical thinking and constantly challenged the students to try harder. This type of environment influenced me greatly and has helped me as well as many other graduates find success in employment or advanced studies.

Gregory Masiello C.A.S. in School Counseling, 1994

My first assignment in the School Counseling program was to attend an informational meeting with my soon-to-be classmates led by a faculty member who was the Director of Master's Training. There I gathered with 9 other graduate students from literally all over the world, the most intriguing of whom touted a Swedish accent. Sitting in the conference room that afternoon amid the throes of anticipation and trepidation, a course was charted that brought us together in the most satisfying way. We banded together with our community and rehabilitation student colleagues and forged a sense of community that propelled us through the 18-month odyssey.

Pushed through the mall in a wheelchair as part of a class assignment, "lost at sea" as part of a team-building exercise, introducing another student to the class who later became my group co-therapist in the PhD program, weathering my own personal loss, counseling sexually and emotionally abused adolescents at my practicum site, calling Child Protective Services, passing my exams, meeting my future wife at my internship site (a local high school), all contributed to the vicissitudes that lay ahead. Although these experiences pale in comparison to the Cyclops and Sirens that Ulysses encountered in his Odyssey, they did shimmer with the words that my professor portended at that initial meeting: "Welcome to the field of counseling, the most satisfying career I could ever imagine."