AARP Online Community: Kalikat - Thoughts on Winning

Kalikat

AARP Member

Offline

Background

Gender: Female

Religion: Spiritual

Location:
SAN MARCOS, California
United States

Work:
Seeking my Dream Job as a Front Office Medical Assistant for a large healthcare system (Scripps is my No. 1 choice)or thriving Medical Practice in the North County of San Diego, CA

Hometown(s):
Born in Brooklyn, NY
lived in Northern California since early childhood and Relocated to Southern California in 2007

My Comments (4)

Thoughts on Winning

Winning the AARP “My Dream Job” Contest

Upon reading about the nationwide contest in the October 2007 edition of the AARP Bulletin, I decided to write an essay to see if there was a chance that it would get noticed.

The essay was about my recent experience being downsized in Silicon Valley, losing both my parents and how I was lead to pursue a new direction in life. I shared my new venture as a student at the Medical Academy of Vista Adult School, Regional Occupational Program and how it was going to lead me to my new dream job as a Medical Assistant.

Late in December, I received an email that I was a finalist in this contest, but still didn’t think that I would actually win. I was asked by the national headquarters of the AARP to sign many release documents to use my essay and my personal information, and I cooperated.

Then, early in January, I was notified that I was, in fact, one of 6 winners nationwide and that I would soon be receiving further instructions.

This was indeed, great news! One of the best prizes is professional career coaching to help me obtain this dream job, among other prizes.

The next step was to meet the other 5 winners and the AARP staff via teleconference.

We were each chosen in one of 6 categories. I was chosen in the “Downsized” category. We were told that we were selected out of ~7200 entries.

In February, we will be contacted by the representatives of the AARP in each of our respective states. We will also be shipped our new Laptops and our prize money.

In March, we will be journaling our experience on the AARP website, so that others in our situation may be encouraged by our journey.

In September, we will be given our travel accommodations to the Annual AARP Convention in Washington, D. C. There, we will be honored at a dinner and reception as well as be featured on a discussion panel.

I’d like to give most of the credit of this essay to my wonderful experience at school. There are always the usual myths in our later years about being “too old to learn” “not fitting in with the younger students”, “not being able to focus and retain”; all of which, I’ve proven to myself are false!

Being involved in a career that will be paying back to the community is indeed, exciting and I’m thankful that my training program and now winning this contest, will make my dream a success. THANK YOU TO AARP!

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Kalikat's Journals

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