Welcome to “3 Questions with …”, a recurring feature on the Career Center blog. We’re asking alumni of all graduation years and career interests to share a bit of their experiences and advice.
Suzanne Corbett, ’03, Medical Social Worker
1. In just a few sentences, please tell us about your current job/graduate program/vocational endeavor.
I am a medical social worker for both a community hospital and a hospice agency. I work directly with individuals undergoing cancer treatment and individuals who are dying. I support people through provision of psychotherapy, education, and resource acquisition. One of the most rewarding parts of my job is partnering with individuals to bolster coping strategies and to work on restructuring thoughts which may be causing distress. The social work discipline focuses on promoting human well-being and equitable access to resources, considering biological, psychological, social and historical factors when assessing strengths and needs.
2. How did your time at Tufts influence your career journey?
When I arrived at Tufts, I eagerly began biology courses knowing I was pursuing a subject I loved in high school. A chance enrollment in a psychology course helped me realize that I felt most drawn to learning about human specific biology and how and why we function as we do. Stumbling upon the biopsychology major unwittingly set me up for success in my career. Ultimately, I realized I was interested in learning about people, connecting with people and helping people.
3. What advice would you offer to a student who wants to pursue a career path like yours?
My advice for students interested helping professions would be to consider social work! Connect with alumni and chat about what a social work education and career could look like. In a Master’s program, one learns techniques and evidenced based practices for psychotherapy, studies the biopsychosocial and person-in-environment lens, learns about systems and policies impacting individuals, and studies issues of diversity and oppression. It’s a degree with which one can be successful in many different types of positions and it’s a career in which one can feel incredibly rewarded through valuable, meaningful work.
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