TPC-Journal-V3-Issue1

32 The Professional Counselor \Volume 3, Issue 1 ownership of the outcome of the course, if they see a strong link between course-content and outcomes that benefit them directly. Overall, students enjoyed the seminar structure of the course and PBL pedagogy. They found the classroom environment to be a comfortable, conversational process as opposed to a top-down lecture-based method. Through this structure and the PBL pedagogy, equal responsibility was placed on all classroom participants to facilitate the learning process rather than relying on the instructors to provide information. Despite this freedom and overall satisfaction, students wanted to know in greater detail what the instructors expected from each assignment. When PowerPoint mini-lectures were included, students reported feeling better able to predict the knowledge and skills the instructors expected them to obtain. Following the completion of the course an unsolicited email was received that described the impact of the course for a particular student. Although the statement’s generalizability is limited, it captures the instructors’ intention of teaching the course: I cannot express to you how valuable and impactful your course has already been on me in my professional journey as a counselor, but I want to try. Throughout the course of graduate school, I was on the very necessary track of opening my understanding and competence in new areas. Every time I took a class, I could envision myself doing that kind of work: children, families, assessments, adults, adolescents, career, substance abuse, you get the idea. What that gave me in the end was the feeling that I could do anything - I could accept any entry-level counseling job and be successful. What I was lacking, however, was direction. What was my passion in all of this - beyond my desire to be a helper, to be a counselor? Through the progression of Entrepreneurship in Clinical Settings, I was forced to think about not just what I could do, but what I wanted to do and that idea kept refining itself until I became very clear about the fact that I want to work with pregnant women and women parenting young children. Getting clear about this gave me energy and purpose in my job search. Instead of looking on job boards for what was being advertised, I was able to look for agencies that offered the services I wanted to provide. I was able to put out the message into the universe that this was the type of job I wanted. Three days after graduation I was offered a job as an in-home therapist. I am working with pregnant women and women who are parenting children under the age of five who are working with a caseworker on child development issues, but have also requested a therapist to work on their own mental health issues. Not only do I have a job, I can honestly say I have my dream job, and I credit your class. I still plan to start a counseling practice after licensure, but until then I am getting invaluable experience and training working with my ‘ideal clients.’ References Albanese, M. A., & Mitchell, S. (1993). Problem-based learning: A review of literature on its outcomes and implementation issues. Academic Medicine , 68 , 52–81. Retrieved from http://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/pages/default.aspx. Bouhuijs, P. A. J., & Gijselaers, W. H. (1993). Course construction in problem-based learning. In P. A. J. Bouhuijs, H. G. Schmidt & H. J. M. van Berkel (Eds.), Problem-based learning as an educational strategy (pp. 79–90). Maastricht: Network Publications. Brocato, K. (2009). Studio based learning: Proposing, critiquing, iterating our way to person-centeredness for better classroom management. Theory Into Practice , 48 , 138–146. doi:10.1080/00405840902776459 Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs. (2009). 2009 CACREP Standards. Retrieved from http://www. cacrep.org. Cummings, N. A., Cummings, J. L., & O’Donohue, W. (2009). We are not a healthcare business: Our inadvertent vow of poverty. Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy 39, 7–15. Gegax, T. (2007). The big book of small business: You don’t have to run your business by the seat of your pants. New York, NY: Harper Collins. Green, R. G., Baskind, F. R., Mustian, B. E., Reed, L. N., & Taylor, H. R. (2007). Professional education and private practice: Is there a disconnect? Social Work, 52 , 151–159. Grodzki, L. (2000). Building your ideal private practice . New York, NY: W. W. Norton. Katz, J. A., & Green II, R. P. (2011). Entrepreneurial small business (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Knaup, A., & Piazza, M. (2007). Business employment dynamics data: Survival and longevity, II. Monthly Labor Review , 130 , 3–10. Retrieved from http://stats.bls.gov/opub/mlr/mlrhome.htm.