i called my brothers earlier this week just to say hi because i hadn't talked to them in awhile. one asked what was going and i told him about generally be stressed trying to figure out what to do with my life. as i started looking for more faculty positions, i started realizing that the ones i found most interesting were in departments that had physical therapy and/or athletic training programs. its great to realize where you interests lie, but it stops you in your tracks realizing that a couple more years of school might be the best option. you see, these programs follow standard curricula which are dictated by the governing boards of their profession. in order for a school to keep its accreditation, it is required to have a certain number of phd-level researchers who are also clinically certified. while i might be able to do research, the lack of clinical credentials poses a problem because i can't count towards accreditation for the programs.
one of the options i had been considering anyway for post school pursuits was to get athletic training certification. there are a handful of entry-level master's programs in the country, but one happens to be at hawaii. one of the admissions criteria for the program is 200 volunteer hours with athletic trainers. part of the reason for having this requirement is to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into before you commit the 2 years of time and money to pursuing said certification. so volunteering i am. i am participating in the directed observation program sponsored by the undergraduate athletic training program at ut. the next two weeks i'll get to observe the trainers working with soccer for a few hours. then i'll spend 2 weeks with the men's track team and then the last 2 weeks of the semester with the women's track team. i'm also starting to work with the high school that's just down the street from my house. next tuesday i start at a football tournament for middle schoolers. i won't be able to treat or work with athletes through any of this, just observe. however, i am hoping that the volunteer hours will give me a better sense of what athletic training is about (from the caretaker end as oppose to the care-receiving end which i have been on in the past) and whether or not i want to/should pursue the certification. sports medicine, particularly running and running-related injuries, is what sparked the interest that got me to where i currently am, so i anticipate this being a fun (although at times exhausting, i'm sure) experience.
the device i need for the last section of my dissertation is functional. we have to replace a couple parts so they can handle higher voltages and today i'll be working on getting the camera system to collect data that the device is outputting. i am amazed one has to become an electrical, mechanical and computer engineer of sorts to get one's phd in biomedical engineering. interdisciplinary research is great.
only one week to go until cactus rose 50-miler. the weather is still pretty warm here, but it looks like bandera is supposed to have cooler nights next weekend. this is a good thing because we're camping the night before the race. i'm excited to test the new tent! tapering is going well. i'm getting antsy to move and have noticed that i'm moving faster and feel smoother on my training runs. this is a good sign. one more week and i'll be ready to race.
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