Kory.Brown.302 Assignment

Based on the information provided in my case study I have chosen psychology as my major. There are many factors that influenced me to choose psychology as my focus. The main influence is the love I have for helping people. Nothing bothers me more than seeing someone in distress and not being able to assist or help them. For years, I have been that friend to talk to, to give advice and also mediate problems between co-workers. This is something I grew instinctively drawn too. I want to be able to make an impact in this world, and I honestly feel that psychology would lead me in that direction. Moreover, the bowling company that I run has been going in a positive direction for the last 10 years. The relationships between employees and owners are beneficial to the success of the company. Studying psychology will help my bowling business, by providing me with the knowledge and capabilities to learn how to manage situations, high stressful environments, and understanding and predicting the behaviors of individuals and groups. In addition to learning these skills and obtaining my degree, I can enhance my knowledge and skills as well as my company. Equally important is that there are many jobs that can be obtained with a baccalaureate degree in psychology. One career path to take is that of a Victim Advocate. The main duty of a victim advocate is to provide victims of spousal abuse with information regarding safe and confidential ways to seek assistance as well as their rights as Navy spouses, military and civilian orders for protection, and available civilian and military resources (Landrum, R.E. 2001). A second career that can be obtained with a baccalaureate degree in psychology is a Correctional Standards Review Specialist. The main duty of a correctional review specialist is to provide information to administrative staff; responsible for ensuring that the Inmate Grievance Resolution Program operates within the confines of its Directive; provides direct supervision to grievance staff in the assigned jail facility handling inmate grievance complaints by an inmate about the substance or application of any written or unwritten policy, regulation, rule or procedure of DOC or any of its programs, or the lack of a policy, regulation, rule or procedure, based on the impact of such policy or lack thereof on the inmate personally. The coordinator is charged with problem investigation and resolution (New York City, 2014). Lastly, another career hat can be obtained with a baccalaureate degree in psychology is Deputy Director Test and Measurement Specialist. The main duty of the deputy is to supervise a group of professional staff within the Bureau of Examinations. The selected candidate will be assigned to the Classification and Compensation Unit to supervise and assist in classifying NYC civil service job titles and in setting appropriate salaries. This career also involves the creation and modification of job descriptions, qualification requirements and salaries, and confers with the NYC Office of Labor Relations, Office of Management and Budget and user agencies, as well as with other DCAS staff regarding such matters. (New York City, 2014) Moreover, the role of professional organizations in psychology as they relate to my future career is very important to me. The main function for professional organizations in psychology is to support and help student affiliate with the discipline, and sometimes benefit from what is provided such as; career guidance, formal and informal networking (American Psychological Association, 2013). This type of assistance is vital to my success in this career that I have chosen. My career path is simply to become the director of human resources for my bowling association. By implementing hiring processes and being a liaison for employees and owners, it can benefit my company as well as me. There are many ways professional organizations can help psychology students. In my opinion the best way the organization helps students is by networking. In today’s society, the day old saying of “It’s not what you know but who you know” is alive and well. While studying psychology, students are eligible for membership in the American Psychological Association as student affiliates. In doing so, student affiliates can receive subscriptions to the American Psychologist and the Monitor on Psychology (American Psychological Association, 2013). As a student, you cannot possibly ask for anything more. Reading the work that is given to us by our professors and even taking tests is just a start. Also, being able to be on top of your discipline is important so that you can attain the highest knowledge possible. In addition, once you become a graduate, all student affiliates of APA are automatically members of the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students (APAGS) (American Psychological Association, 2013). When you automatically become a member of APAGS you avoid the small initial fee you would have been issued if you tried during your undergraduate term. You also gain access to thousands of dollars in grants and award opportunities (American Psychological Association, 2013). Finally, after entering in APAGS, students will have the ability to represent psychology in political and educational arenas and gain access to cutting edge science, practice, and public interest news. (American Psychological Association, 2013). Being able to do that as well as meet and greet at conventions and other areas of interest will be most beneficial for a student on the rise. The professional psychology organization that I would most be interested in would be the Association for Psychological Science. The association’s mission is to promote, protect, and advance the interest of scientifically oriented psychology in research, application, teaching, and the improvement of human welfare (American Psychological Association, 2013). This organization’s mission is exactly what I need to enhance my bowling company. Learning and enhancing my improvement of human welfare goes a long way with a bowling company. When you have an organization of over 2000 members such as me, you tend to have a lot of tension, a lot of misconceptions, and also negative feelings between co-workers or the company itself. By gaining the knowledge needed and the support needed by the association, I can confidently with a vast array of knowledge come to resolutions that can be of great help for my bowling association and all those that are employed. The coursework that I am taking in my baccalaureate degree in psychology allows me to for a strong foundation for graduate psychology studies because it gives me the basic fundamentals needed to earn my baccalaureate degree in psychology. The courses are structured to allow you an easy path to a graduate program if you choose to go that route. The one course I am looking forward to taking is called capstone. Capstone provides an opportunity for students to apply the knowledge and skills he or she has developed in this program. The goal of this course is to produce a Capstone Signature Assignment that demonstrates mastery of the program learning outcomes through application of psychology theory and principles students have mastered in their coursework (Touro worldwide, 2014-2015, catalog, pg33). By taking this class during my undergrad career, I will gain a clear understanding of how to apply the knowledge and skills that I developed in the program. Finally, by taking this class, I am asked to produce an assignment called the Capstone Signature Assignment. Producing this assignment and actually doing a good job on this assignment will demonstrate mastery of the program. This assignment will display what I have learned and mastered during my coursework through application of psychology theories and principles. I have already decided to pursue a graduate education in psychology. The graduate program I am going to study is called Industrial-Organizational Psychology. I-O psychology is primarily concerned with the relationships between people and their work environments. They may develop new ways to increase productivity or be involved in personnel selection. Industrial organizational psychologists are employed in businesses, government agencies, and academic settings ( Lloyd, M. A. and Dewey, R. A.1997, August 28). Making the decision to become educated in this specialty of psychology will improve my knowledge of people and their work environment which in turn can help push my company into an even better and more positive direction.

References
American Psychological Association. (2013). APA resources for students. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/careers/resources/guides/careers.aspx?item=6

American Psychological Association (2013). Maximizing engagement in the American Psychological Association and its affiliated professional associations: 2012 annual report of the Policy and Planning Board. American Psychologist, 68(5), 359-369.

Landrum, R. E. (2001). I’m getting my bachelor's degree in psychology- What can I do with it? Retrieved fromhttp://www.psichi.org/pubs/articles/article_50.aspx

Lloyd, M. A. and Dewey, R. A. (1997, August 28). Areas of specialization in psychology. [Online]. Available: http://www.psywww.com/careers/specialt.htm.
Touro worldwide, 2014-2015, catalog, pg33 Retrieved from http://www.tuw.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/TUW-Catalog.pdf
U.S., New York (2014) available at www.Nyc.gov