Petrillo 1

Paige Petrillo

McLaughlin

English 12

5 October 2018

Career Interview

1. ​What schooling or training do you have? Was it necessary to obtain this position?
I attended Slippery Rock University and obtained my Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a
minor in Criminology. Having a degree was absolutely necessary for this position.

2. ​How did you get this job?

After completing college, I moved to Pittsburgh and saw at Discovery House was hiring for a
counselor position. I applied and with luck was offered the position.

3. ​How long have you worked here?

I have worked here for 13 years as of 10/ 3/18.

4. ​What qualifications do you need to work in this position? Personal qualities?

Qualifications include having a college degree, some experience is now required. Personal
qualifications include being flexible and able to adjust your approach with different patients.
Being able to effectively communicate is a must, able to show empathy and understanding of
the lifestyle, must be aware of your non-verbal cues when talking with patients, be familiar with
community resources and utilize referrals as needed. Must be able to handle difficult people and
most important...leave work at work. Don't bring home the stress of patients not succeeding or
feel like a failure. Never work harder than your patient.

5. ​Are there any other experiences, work or non-work-related, that has helped you be
successful in your career?
I have several personal experiences that have helped me understand the addict lifestyle and
what it all entails. I firmly believe that these experiences have helped me obtain the position that
I am currently in.

6. ​Would you choose the same career field/job if you were just starting out again?
I would still choose to be a counselor if I had to start over. No doubt.
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7. ​Is your job what you expected it to be? Why or why not?
This job changes on a regular basis. People, approaches, of course company policies and many
other things. Expectations are always changing.

8. ​What are the biggest challenges of your position?

Currently my biggest challenge is continuing to transition from a Counselor into Supervisor.
Keeping the employees happy while also working to develop respect from them. It can be pretty
stressful.

9.​What do you consider to be the best thing about your job?

Best thing about being a counselor is the self-satisfaction you get when you actually get through
to someone. You can see their progress and they thank you for your help and encouragement.
Best feeling ever!

10. ​Describe a typical day in your job.

Typical day,, no such thing. Something always comes up when you're least expecting it which is
why being flexible and able to adjust to change is so very important. However a day that would
go my way would include: patients show up as scheduled for individual counseling sessions,
attend groups as scheduled, address drug screens and complete paperwork as needed for each
pt. Attend meetings, return phone calls, actually eat my lunch without working through it and
have all treatment plans in place and up-to-date. (only in a perfect world)

11. ​What do you spend most of your time doing?

As a counselor, you spend the majority of your day in session and documenting the patient's
information. As a supervisor, you spend your day with problematic patients, helping assist your
counselors, conducting group and individual supervision with your employees and performing
chart audits.

12. ​Where could you progress to in this position?

Advancement would include Counselor to Supervisor to Director of the Facility.

13. ​How many employees work for this company?

There are fifteen employees at Discovery House in Clearfield. However, Acadia is a huge
company, mostly known in the UK.

14. ​Who do you work with and what is/are those relationships like?
I work closely with all the clinical staff, occasionally with medical staff and administration. The
relationships are positive for the most part. Again, COMMUNICATION is a must, not only with
the patients but also your staff.
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15. ​Is teamwork essential to this position? Explain.
Teamwork is MOST important in a field like this. We all have to work together, do jobs that
aren't really ours to do, pick up the pieces as they fall and help out as needed. We all have to be
on the same page and support each other no matter what, especially in regards to dealing with
patients.

16. ​How often do you work alone?

We all have our own office, so we do get alone time as needed.

17. ​How much of your work is self-directed or regulated by others?

We all regulate each other's work because we all depend on each other in order to do our own
responsibilities accurately.

18. ​Does your company take part in any volunteering or giving back to the community?
We utilize our community resources as much as possible to help the patients.

19. ​What is the beginning salary for someone in this job? Top salary?
As a counselor at Discovery House, starting pay is between 15-17 dollars an hour depending on
prior experience. Counselors are not salaried employees. Supervisors and Directors starting
pay could be anywhere from 45,000-65,000 a year, again all depending on experience in the
field and time with the company.

20. ​What advice can you give to me or someone else who is just starting out?
Go to college, get your Bachelor’s degree, get a Master’s degree, get your certifications as
needed and all the education you can get. Nowadays, a Bachelor's degree isn't going to be
enough, go all the way. Don't worry about the cost of school, everyone who goes to college is in
debt, it's the norm, trust me. You have your entire life to work and pay loans back. Be the best
you can be. Learn to love yourself, be proud of your accomplishments and even your failures
because overall, they shape you into the person you are and you wouldn't be you without it all.
Best of luck :-).

Interviewee Information​:
Melissa Gregori
Clinical Supervisor
Discovery House CTC of Acadia
814-768-7575 ext. 217
(No email listed because she was not sure if she could give out her work email as to not get in
trouble. Better to be safe than sorry, I guess.)