Supervised Practice Experiences and Professional Preparation of Graduates from Student Affairs Master's Programs

The power of supervision in (re)socializing student affairs educators

“…For graduate students, supervisors should develop fieldwork experiences that center students' learning, professional development, and provide messages that are consistent with what students are learning in their courses. Although we have shared some examples of how following these suggestions can benefit students (Perez, 2017;Young, 2019), too many students report contrary experiences (Perez, 2017), which can negatively impact their desire to enter and ultimately remain in the field. Moreover, supervisors of minoritized graduate students should avoid reinforcing oppressive power structures by eschewing ostensibly identity and powerneutral messaging related to what constitutes an ideal worker (Acker, 1990) and good student affairs professional.…”

“…Although Young's (2019) work highlighted the benefits of supervised fieldwork during graduate school, it did not illuminate what supervisors did to foster graduate students' confidence. Perez's (2017Perez's ( , 2021 longitudinal study of student affairs graduate students added to the field's understanding of how supervisors act as agents of socialization and can contribute to the outcomes described by Young (2019). For instance, Perez (2017) found supervisors were pivotal in helping graduate students make sense of their dissonance when students encountered conflicting messages about if and how they should enact the espoused values of the field in their practice.…”

“…Scholars examining professional socialization in student affairs have broadly explored individuals' experiences in their graduate preparation programs (Liddell et al, 2014;Perez, 2017Perez, , 2021 and their subsequent transition to full time practice (Magolda & Carnaghi, 2004Renn & Hodges, 2007;Renn & Jessup-Anger, 2008). To a lesser degree, scholars have explicitly examined the role of supervision in shaping graduate students' understanding of the field (Alvim & Barnhart, 2017;Young, 2019), since there has been a strong emphasis on what individuals learn during their coursework. Although student affairs graduate preparation programs are designed to teach students about the nature of the field through coursework and fieldwork (Perez, 2016), the reality is that fieldwork experiences have a more significant impact on shaping graduate students' understandings of their field than their experiences in their courses (Liddell et al, 2014;Renn & Jessup-Anger, 2008).…”

“…That being said, fieldwork experiences and interactions with supervisors can contribute to or detract from the ideal outcomes of socialization in student affairs graduate preparation programs (Perez, 2016). For example, Young (2019) found that when supervised fieldwork experiences are designed to cultivate leadership skills, to provide opportunities to connect theory and practice, and to explore career opportunities, they can contribute to students' confidence in their abilities to work full-time in student affairs and perhaps to the likelihood that they remain in the field for an extended period of time. Although Young's (2019) work highlighted the benefits of supervised fieldwork during graduate school, it did not illuminate what supervisors did to foster graduate students' confidence.…”

“…For example, Young (2019) found that when supervised fieldwork experiences are designed to cultivate leadership skills, to provide opportunities to connect theory and practice, and to explore career opportunities, they can contribute to students' confidence in their abilities to work full-time in student affairs and perhaps to the likelihood that they remain in the field for an extended period of time. Although Young's (2019) work highlighted the benefits of supervised fieldwork during graduate school, it did not illuminate what supervisors did to foster graduate students' confidence. Perez's (2017Perez's ( , 2021 longitudinal study of student affairs graduate students added to the field's understanding of how supervisors act as agents of socialization and can contribute to the outcomes described by Young (2019).…”