Jessica Swope, Counselor Education Alumnus, Working as School Counselor in China
Jessica Swope, M.Ed.
School Counselor
QSI International School of
Chengdu in Chengdu, China
Jessica
Swope, a 2011 graduate of Educational Psychology's Counselor Education program,
recently separated from her native Texas roots to live and work as a school
counselor in Chengdu, China. While the bulk of her responsibilities focus on
preparing her secondary students for college, she serves both the primary and
secondary levels. Her work with the secondary students requires her to be
knowledgeable of post-secondary institutions of international prestige. As a
way to gear up her students for life outside of QSI, she offers interest
inventories so her students can gain insight on the types of careers in which
they could enjoy and succeed. She also administers standardized tests, such as
the PSAT, SAT, AP tests, and QSI’s annual progress test, MAP. Jessica’s duties
also include counseling activities with classrooms, small groups and
individuals.
Jessica’s unique opportunity to work in China has enormous personal experiential benefits. Working with students and faculty from all around the globe offers her ample opportunity to learn about new cultures. A sense of admiration for her students can be felt as she describes them, “These students are all so different. They are some of the most tolerant children and adolescents I have ever met. When a new student arrives everyone is truly interested in who they are and where they come from.”
As Jessica navigates her newly created position as a school counselor for the primary and secondary levels, she works hard to carve out the type of counseling role she believes her students need most. She learns daily about the varying university structures found throughout the world. She recommends that potential secondary school counselors get a head start on learning about colleges at the international level.
While Jessica will always be a Texan at heart, she thirsts to learn more about the world in which we live. She strongly believes that through embracing the diversity of the world, one can grow exponentially. “I have spent my whole life in Texas. When I meet people who lived in different parts of the country and the world they seemed to have a more mature outlook on the world. I wanted this. I wanted to experience how different cultures see the world.”
—Kelsey L. Poe
Related Sites:
Educational Psychology website