So it begins!

It's time! I am about to take that giant leap from an SLP graduate student to a full blown clinical fellow in speech-language pathology! Gone are the days of clinical supervisor's holding my hand and going over every lesson plan and activity. The days of dreaming of independence are over, and it's a little terrifying! Granted as a CF, we still have support from our mentors and fellow CF's, not to mention the abundance of SLP bloggers online offering up great therapy ideas and advice! However, the learning curve is still STEEP and I have a feeling that the CF year will be just as (if not more) challenging as graduate school! 

As I am about to start my career, I can't help but look back at how I got here. Those anxious days of waiting to find out if I got into graduate school, sitting in on those first few classes, working with clients for the first time....it has all been leading up to this. But once graduate school is over and you finally have that degree in your hands, that's when the real work begins! You start stalking combing through job posting sites and applying like a mad-man. You perfect your resume, write individual cover letters, and try to make yourself stand out among all the other applicants. I think that is the worst part! Applying to countless jobs thinking that will be the one, only to never hear from them! If you are reading this and still in graduate school, this probably doesn't sound very encouraging! Stick with it, keep applying and don't be afraid to branch out. You may have it set in your mind which population you want to work with or which setting you want to work in, but explore other options. You never know what you will find! If your anything like me, you may find yourself going in a very different direction! 

Although nervous about finally becoming an SLP, I am also very excited! All those years of late night studying and writing papers has come to an end and it's time to put those skills to the test! If you are still uneasy about starting your CF and need some more encouragement from some seasoned SLP's, I encourage you to check out a post over at Sublime Speech on Preparing for Your CF Year! 

In honor of this big step I am having my first ever giveaway! I am giving away the newest product on my Teachers Pay Teachers store: Out of This World Articulation Challenger Sentences! This is a fun alien-themed activity that includes 32 tongue-twisting and silly sentences for /s/, /ch/, and /l/. It also includes a fun game that can be used with any activity! Enter in the Rafflecopter below! 

                                       

So...here's to taking that giant leap into the great unknown and hoping I grow wings on the way down! To anyone else starting their CF soon, we have been preparing for this for at least 2 years now! You may be new...but you're not alone! 

Adventure Awaits! 


a Rafflecopter giveaway