Alyxandria Morgan is in her final year of the Extended Study Program for the MSSW Program and is obtaining a Trauma Treatment Certificate.
What would you like to do after you finish your degree?
After graduating I plan to obtain my licensure in order to continue my clinical work in mental health. I am a current military spouse and very passionate about the military community and hope to continue working with military affiliated and law enforcement affiliated individuals.
Did you always know you wanted to go into social work?
I stumbled upon social work almost by accident. I obtained my undergraduate degree in Psychology because I was interested in mental health, but unsure at what capacity. Upon graduating with my undergraduate degree, I worked as an outpatient care manager for two years where I became passionate about mental health treatment and met many LCSW who mentored me in my path to deciding to enroll in a graduate program.
Where is your field placement and what your favorite part?
My field placement is with a local non-profit out of Clarksville, Tennessee, called Soldiers and Families Embraced (SAFE). We provide 12 free sessions of brief solution focused therapy to active duty service members, veterans, law enforcement and their families. SAFE has been a wonderful experience where I have gained invaluable knowledge of working with this community. I was given the unique opportunity to complete both of my placements with SAFE and therefore have seen all sides of the services provided, including obtaining a case load and providing counseling services. The part I have enjoyed most is being able to serve a community that in many ways is underserved in the field of mental health. There are numerous challenges when working with military and law enforcement affiliated individuals including cultural differences, stigma, and resources to mental health treatment. Our program is unique in that being solely grant funded, we are able to provide services completely separate from the DOD, the city, and Veterans Administration, which helps individuals who are struggling with mental health concerns in active duty roles to receive treatment without repercussions, backlash or fear of judgement from peers.
If someone was thinking about majoring in Social Work at UT, what advice would you give them?
Social work is an incredibly rewarding field and is unique in that it has very few limitations. I started knowing I enjoyed helping others and was passionate about mental health treatment and from there the courses and experiences at UT have helped me to hone in on the areas within the field I am most interested in focusing. Many professions can benefit from the knowledge of social work education and therefore the possibilities are limitless to what one can do after graduation. One of the reasons I chose to attend UT over other universities was the ability to select your focus within the field through the EBIP or OIL tracks. This is unique in that not all universities offer the option to focus and receive education specifically focusing on your goal of working within the macro or micro levels of social work.