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Undergraduate Studies ePortfolio

Jennifer Elam AlcantarBachelors of Arts - Psychology,

2011

Personal Statement

I grew up in an abusive home and left when I was 17 years old. I had a hard time going through my childhood and just wanted someone that I could talk to and trust. With the help of psychologists and some close family members, I have grown from the past hurt of childhood to establish a sense of who I am and a more confident self-esteem. By getting help, I was able to focus on my own needs, learn what I wanted in life, how I could achieve goals and most importantly to become a productive and successful individual.

In my adult years I have become a listener and analyzer for my close friends and family. I spend much of my free time on email or phone calls trying to help my family and friends with issues they are going through. When I am a counselor, my personal experiences may help me to better understand what a person is going through, but at the same time, I understand the importance of staying unbiased in the treatment given.

I have always had jobs directly related to customer service and over the years I have built on those skills. Currently I am a property manager and I handle the operations of high-rise buildings and homeowner associations. Anyone can do the mechanics of this job, but the hard part is dealing with the different Board of Directors and Homeowners from the Associations. Every day I am solving someone’s problems and trying to help them resolve their issues. I am the neutral party that has to work through people’s personalities and problems to help them get along with others and move forward.

Whether it is personally or professionally, I enjoy working with people by giving a listening ear, not judging and at the same time giving them some type of guidance that they can use. I find this to be rewarding and it makes me feel good. I have been told I have good insight/intuition in recognizing and understanding their problems. Why do people do what they do, how can they change and make their life better? This has guided me towards interests with psychology/counseling in the workings of the human mind and how to get past the pre-set mind obstacles.

I have a strong motivation to be successful and to help other people that feel they do not have a voice or understand the problems in their lives. I already have an ability to listen and comprehend what people are saying either verbally or nonverbally. I need to learn the proper techniques in analyzing a client’s issues and what type of therapy treatment to use for them. I want to understand how their learned actions affected their lives through decisions they made and how they can alter problems to live a happy life.

I believe that Argosy University can help me achieve my dreams of being a licensed counselor. There are so many people in this world who are hurting and suffering on the inside that need professional help to work through their issues. I believe I have the skills and drive to be a successful licensed counselor and feel that all of the events of my life have led me to this moment. I would like to continue my educational journey with Argosy.

Resume

Community Association Manager, Hawaiiana Management, Honolulu, Hawaii, 2009 – 2011

Assist board of directors in running home owner associations

Inspect properties, provide report of findings

Attend meetings of homeowner associations

Handle expenses of the association/provide operating budget

 Community Association Manager, Certified Management, Honolulu, Hawaii, 2003-2009.

Assist daily with concerns from owners, renters, board members and vendors

Hire and supervise employees

Attend monthly board meetings with each association and record minutes

Provide yearly operating and capital expenditure budget

Inspect properties regularly and provide report of problem areas

Solicit proposals from vendors for various maintenance repairs

 Office Manager, Century 21 All Islands, Honolulu, Hawaii, 2002-2003.

Assisted buyers and sellers on daily basis

Maintained office supplies and file system

Processed paperwork in sale of a home

Posted transactions online with Board of Realtors

Showed open houses

 Education

Bachelor’s of Arts Degree Psychology (pending status), August 2011, Argosy University

Hawaii Real Estate License (Inactive status), July 2001, State of Hawaii

CMCA certificate (Certified Manager of Community Associations), December 2004, Hawaii Chapter Community Associations Institute Honolulu, Hawaii

AMS certificate (Association Management Specialist), May 2005, Hawaii Chapter Community Associations Institute, Honolulu, Hawaii

PCAM certificate (Professional Community Association Manager), June 2009, Hawaii Chapter Community Associations Institute, Honolulu, Hawaii

Associate in Liberal Arts, December 1998, University of Hawaii, Honolulu Hawaii

High School Diploma, June 1994, Daniel Boone High School, Gray, Tennessee

Reflection

Argosy has been a educational, physical and emotional journey over the last year and a half. I went to school for the purpose of getting into counseling (a passion of mine) and to change careers to do something I will enjoy. I have met so many great people through this program and learned about other’s lives as well as my own. What I didn’t expect was how this program would have a personal impact in my life. I thought I would learn concepts and how to apply it. I did not know that most classes would focus on me first then on others. I learned much about myself and most importantly how to empathize better with a person and communicate. My strengths lie with communication through written papers expressing my views and information as well as the oral communication between myself and students/instructors. I have always been a good communicator, which was a part of the reason I chose to do counseling. My weaknesses are researching issues (research papers) and knowledge of psychology concepts. I would like to do more papers to get better practice in researching from good sources and incorporating that into research papers. I also need to know more detailed information of psychology and concepts.

My Future in Learning

Learning will continue throughout my career. I hope to be a counselor one day and as I finish my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, I turn now to the Master’s program for Counseling. It will be another two years of learning with an internship at the end. There is always new theories or technology coming out and being discovered. As I enter into my career, I will have to continue to read up and attend classes and seminars. I want to make sure that I have the proper tools to help people to the fullest as a Counselor.

Contact Me

Thank you for viewing my ePortfolio.

For further information, please contact me at the e-

mail address below. c21jalcantar@hotmail.com