WELL DEVELOPED CRITICAL AND SYSTEMS THINKING.

As a volunteer Financial Counselor at the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society (NMCRS), I had the opportunity to be trained in financial literacy, budgeting, and planning.  I was then able to train others that chose to volunteer their time in the same organization. Beyond counseling and planning, I was authorized to award loans to families in need based on certain criteria set forth by NMCRS. 

This volunteer experience allowed me to consider unfortunate circumstances with an open mind and required me to use critical skills and systems thinking when approaching the problem and crafting potential solutions.  This was an experience for me to work one on one and face to face with members.  There were occasions when I was unable to provide assistance that was requested, which allowed me the opportunity to work through uncomfortable conversations and situations while trying to help the member, but also working within the mission and values of NMCRS.  It was in this experience that I was able to hone in on my skills to talk and work with individuals and provide guidance and plans for their best interest.

SKILLS GAINED: Written and oral communication, Creative problem-solving, Systems thinking

IMPACT: As mentioned above, this experience was my first to work face to face in a counseling capacity with others.  It was in this experience that I realized that I enjoyed this type of work and learned to appreciate differences in all people and their circumstances.  In this experience, I also had real-life examples that reminded me not to "judge a book by its cover" and consider everyone differently.

I completed an interview with a Financial Aid Counselor at Johnson & Wales University that allowed me to examine and consider current financial aid practices and challenges faced by the counselor, institution, and student.  Upon completion of the interview, I wrote a summary and analysis as well as provided some recommendations for improvement.  That interview analysis paper can be found below.