lot about how the offices are different and how they are similar. The main conclusion I have come to is that their differences are mainly due to the size of the institution where they operate. There is also a different power structure, which is also a symptom of the size differential.
All I can think about as I reflect about the differences is that no matter how enthusiastic I am about the work done in a disability
resource office, I want more than that. Accommodations and documentation review can be very repetitive and straightforward, but they shouldn’t be. Each student is different, each disability is different, and the way students develop with those disabilities is different. For me, being able to work in an office where I am doing more than disability resources, and helping students in other ways or other populations of students is very important to me. On the one hand I’m glad that this desire that I’ve had for a long time, is being reinforced with this experience. On the other hand I feel like I’m betraying my enthusiasm for disability resources because I want to do that AND something else in student affairs. I know that to find what I’m looking for in my career I will be working at a small to mid-sized institution, which is another thing I know I have wanted for a while, which is even more assuring.
As we finish our second to last semester of graduate work I am so fortunate to have had experiences which have consistently reinforced my interests as well as given me experiences to qualify me for positions and institutions which will match those interests.