Sociology students participate in successful practicum placements
This past winter, seven sociology students completed successful practicum placements. The students worked at Statistics Canada, Planned Parenthood Ottawa, Street Smarts, MediaSmarts, and the Digi60 Film Festival. All of the students reported that the practicums gave them great opportunities to put into action the critical thinking and research methods skills that they have been developing throughout their sociology courses. Read some of the students’ testimonials below.
Students interested in participating in the SOCI/ANTH practicum in winter 2021 should contact Matthew Hawkins at matthew.hawkins@carleton.ca.
“This winter, I was given the opportunity to act as a volunteer for the Street Smarts program in Ottawa. This provided me with a unique first-hand perspective on the homelessness emergency in the city and the extensive field of social work. It was an incredible, eye opening experience that had huge benefits for me and my future. I was part of the outreach team, providing emergency supplies and building meaningful relationships with the street community. As somebody who hopes to work in the social work, this presented a valuable opportunity for me gain experience in the field. Overall, I had a very positive experience, and had the opportunity to gain a lot of valuable skills. Upon the completion of my practicum, I volunteered to continue with Street Smarts and I will be walking every Wednesday night with my team. I’m proud of the organization I volunteer for, and I stand by their mission.”
– Alex Aikman
“During my practicum I did homeless outreach, which is so much more than handing out emergency supplies. It is creating connections and relationships and learning compassion and effective communication with those who are homeless and/or suffering from substance use disorders. Doing outreach provided me with the opportunity to learn about the things I learned through my sociology degree from those with firsthand lived experience and provide those with lived experience an opportunity to share their personal stories, just because they wanted to. I would also like to add that my supervisor was an incredible resource throughout this, always thinking of different stories to add. He taught me an incredible amount about substance use disorders and how devastating they can be in every aspect, but also that they can be overcome.”
– Ivana Stanic
“In my practicum, I was able to gain critical workplace skills as well as expand my knowledge of one of the ways which sociology is applied to organizations outside of academia. In particular, by working with Planned Parenthood Ottawa I learned interoffice communication tools, workplace conduct and was informed of the association’s targets/goals. Furthermore, I was allowed to work on analyzing current data in reference to women’s sexual and reproductive health, and through this I learned how to use tools for further data analysis projects I might conduct in the future.”
– Taylor Currier
“During my time with Digi60 Filmmaker’s Festival, I created a podcast and web series, Film Chats, to explore issues of representation in the film and media industry. Creating this series involved contacting guests, drafting a list of semi-structured interview questions, and editing the audio and video projects. On March 8th, International Women’s Day, I moderated a public panel for Digi60, Vision 2020: Womxn in Film and Media. It was an amazing experience to host an event where women creatives could come together and discuss how to establish themselves as filmmakers, audio mixer, editors, actors, and so much more. My time at Digi60 Filmmaker’s Festival merged a critical, feminist lens with my love for TV and film, and provided me an opportunity to network with other women and industry professionals.”
– Samphe Ballamingie