Today, I’m delighted to share the career journey of Michelle, who’s currently an advisor for Graduate Admissions. Michelle started her professional journey working in the student life office on her campus when she was just a student herself. You can stay updated with her blog posts and adventures on her blog ‘Fit is the New Poor’ where she shares her process of achieving financial freedom. She’s also on Twitter @fitisthenewpoor.
This story will take you back to the time when Michelle started working. Smiles cross her face as she thinks back, not because it’s a funny memory, but because she sees her past self in her intern, Dave, who’s presently filing paperwork. Working with Dave reminds her of her early days at the university.
She wasn’t always proactive like Dave though. When she began as a secretary in the Student Residence office, she found it quite challenging. Those who’ve spent time in student housing will easily relate to the raft of issues, including troublesome resident assistants, students breaking rules, and worried parents looking for their grown-up kids. Not the most peaceful work environment, you might think.
But, she found something engaging in listening to students’ complaints about their roommates and their lifestyles. Her patient and approachable ratings led her to a promotion where she acted as a liaison between current or future students resolving their various residence life dilemmas. This included resolving roommate issues, aiding students unable to find a roommate in time, or helping applicants decide their dormitory. Handling resident assistant selection processes, matchmaking roommates, or managing dorm room lotteries, she did it all, and she enjoyed every bit of it.
Throughout her work, she realized her potential in establishing connections with students. She enjoyed problem-solving, whether it was calming down a worried parent or helping a student choose a dorm room. She discovered that she’s good at resolving issues, no matter how long it took, ensuring the solutions were final and satisfactory.
After serving for two years in student residence, she moved to Student Activities. While she did feel it was a step down, she loved hanging out at the diner across her office and helping students with class registrations. Here, she realized that she’s excellent at promoting universities to prospective students.
Post-graduation, Michelle worked as a teacher for a few years before landing her current role as an admissions and academic adviser at a big university. She finds herself back in a university setting, advising both undergraduate and graduate students (and even private elementary and high school students).
Even today, she gets thrilled to listen to fresh student complaints which twist and turn with time with changing trends. It’s amusing for her to solve problems, big or small, school or housing. She’s even sure she’d still be laughing about students’ hilarious complaints as she approaches her retirement!
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