Psychology major interns for hometown hospice organization, confirms interest in social work
Jackson Smith ’25, a psychology major at The College of Wooster, completed an APEX Fellowship at the Welcome Home of Chattanooga hospice center in Chattanooga, Tennessee. During his internship, Smith dove into hospice and non-profit work, including grant writing and funding, assisting hospice-care patients, and admin work that included daily house tasks. Through this internship, Smith solidified his desire to continue his education in regard to social work and started thinking about career fields after graduate school.
“Both my internship site and APEX made my dreams possible, and it has only helped my future career’s possibilities and goals be all the more achievable.”
—Jackson Smith ’25
Q: How did you learn about the internship opportunity for your APEX Fellowship?
Smith: I learned about my internship through a mentor of mine who lives in the Chattanooga area. Two years ago, she told me that I should volunteer at my foundation because of their unique way of handling hospice. I volunteered at my internship site for 3 months and decided that it would be a great fit for me to come back because of the familiar environment, and to see the admin side of hospice. I was welcomed back with open arms and got to experience a vast variety of different things during my internship.
Q: What interests you most about the work you did?
Smith: The main reason I wanted to work at my internship site is because of my desire to help others. Whether I was doing admin work, talking with residents throughout the foundation, or helping with daily tasks around the houses, I felt like my work mattered, and what I was doing was important.
Q: Who was your fellowship mentor and how did they help you to succeed in this position?
Smith: Hilary Edgington, visiting assistant and professor of biology, was my mentor at the College. She was very helpful in regard to me processing my experiences at my internship. Her prompts towards my reflections were insightful and allowed me to process what I was doing at my internship properly.
Q: What are some skills you’ve learned that you see yourself carrying forward in your career?
Smith: The main skill I see myself taking into my future career is my ability to handle new situations. I faced a great deal of new situations that would have overwhelmed me prior to this experience, including completing admin work, seeing death happen before me, and being willing to step up to the plate and take responsibility whenever it came my way. I pushed myself every day, and I will take everything I learned during my internship with me into my professional career.
Q: How has the internship helped you to see what’s next for you?
Smith: I am still not quite certain what I want to do with my career after I get my master’s degree, but this internship has helped me narrow down what I want to do with my near-future work. I have decided with certainty that I want to pursue a master’s in social work after I graduate from Wooster, and from there I am interested in looking at possibly therapy, hospice, or other non-profit work as a career. My dream to help others has not shied away, and throughout this summer, my dreams have only been boosted during my internship. Both my internship site and APEX made my dreams possible, and it has only helped my future career’s possibilities and goals be all the more achievable.
Posted in Experiential Learning, Showcase Stories 2024 on August 10, 2024.
