As my year as a placement student comes to an end, it is time for me to reflect on what I have learned at HSR Psychology.

First and foremost, I have learned that going from university to the workplace is a big change, there is no amount of reading textbooks which will prepare you for it. However, once you shake off the shock, your workplace becomes a second home. And HSR Psychology became my second home. I even kept a stash of Earl Grey tea bags in the cupboard!

What did I learn on my placement here? Well – in this blog I have outlined my highlights from the year, my new skills and how I see my future.

My highlights

Here are a few of my highlights from the past year as a placement student at HSR Psychology:

Events and training

I have had the chance to go to quite a few events and training sessions including a CAMHS training on bereaved children, EY Foundations’ pitching skills workshop and Kidz to Adultz disabled living exhibition.

Not only have I attended training, I have also given some training – on blog writing.

Clinical work

One of the most interesting aspects of my year has been observing initial discussions. I sat in on a few initial discussions regarding different aspects of educational psychology, including autistic spectrum conditions (ASC) and dyslexia. Listening to the experiences of a parent or young person has really impacted my understanding of different circumstances and conditions, and how they affect an individual’s life. Observing discussions also gave me an insight into the clinical workings of an educational and child psychologist – which was very fascinating. For example, I was able to understand what questions the psychologists ask and why, and how they use these answers to draw conclusions.

Blogging

One element of this year which I have continuously enjoyed is writing blogs. Who knows, maybe I will leave university and just become a professional blogger! I was so accustomed to writing essays and reports that it was quite difficult to get into the swing of blogging. However, after a few practice tries, I would look forward to my next opportunity to write a blog. Although this will be my last blog for HSR Psychology, I doubt it will be my last blog overall.

Your workplace becomes a second home. And HSR Psychology became my second home.

Me

My new skills

After spending two years at college and two years at university, I thought I knew all (or at least most) of the tricks of the trade – apparently not! I have gained a few crucial skills during my year at HSR Psychology, and a couple of helpful pointers as well.

Here are just some of the skills I’ve gained:

• Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets – you would not believe how useful they can be!
• Public speaking – speaking publicly at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) certainly helped boost my public speaking skills.
• Workload prioritisation –  you hear this term a lot in education, now I know why!
• To-do lists – I tried using to-do lists during my first two years of university and it never stuck, but now I live by them.
• Social media guru – I don’t mean to blow my own trumpet, but I am definitely a guru.
• Teamwork – having weekly team meetings has naturally improved my team working abilities.

So I have a new set of skills – what do I do now?

What now?

My future is still blurry, I like to take life one day at a time. However, one thing I do know, is that I am well equipped for my final year at university, and I have 12 months experience under my belt. I have had a great deal of personal development over the past year, something which I will appreciate even more once I step onto my career ladder.

Thanks for reading!