“Timing is everything” is a saying that, once again, has proven true for me. Over the past couple of weeks, I sent my CV (aka resume) to a variety of Universities in Maryland and Washington, D.C., inquiring about teaching positions in their Clinical Psychology, Forensic Psychology, and Criminal Justice programs. Last week, I was contacted by the Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Psychology at the University of Maryland (Go Terps!) asking if I might be interested in teaching a course in the Spring.
On Monday morning, I sat in on the current version of the class I would be teaching and then met with the woman who contacted me about teaching the class starting January 2018. After talking for 15 minutes, she looked at me and said, “So, do you think you might be interested in teaching the course? We would love to hire you as an Adjunct Professor to teach Adult Psychopathology in the Spring.” My response was, “Absolutely. I am actually thrilled! I really enjoy the subject matter and I am honored to accept the position.” I am pretty sure I danced my way out of her office and out of the building, I was so excited.
For the last few days, I have been filling out paperwork, getting my campus parking permit, talking to a slew of people that are helping me get situated, and figuring out how to best use my Teaching Assistant. It’s all part of the process for this new chapter in my life. I am getting more excited each day thinking about how I am going shape the course — I have ordered the book for the course through the University bookstore (I suspect many of the students will order the digital version), I have begun to craft my syllabus, and I have been thinking about people I know that would be awesome or, at least, what type of person I want to present as guest lecturers in the class.
Like most instructors, I want my class to be engaging and for the students to actually attend the lectures. I want them to understand and conceptualize adult psychological diagnoses — I want them to be able to identify them, understand their potential origins, and be familiar with “gold standard” treatments. And that, my friends, is the most current challenge I am adding to my list and my life.
