Graduate Student Profile
Kathy Daley’s Story

By Sarah Jio

Kathy Daley already has a great career. An apparel developer for a major outdoor retailer in the Northwest, Daley knew that a graduate degree wasn’t mandatory to succeed in her current field. But she says something in her heart told her it was the path she should take.

“About four years ago I began volunteering with hospitalized children; I found the experience so fulfilling I felt compelled to change careers,” says Daley, who as a teen experienced her own life-threatening illness.

Now in her second-year of SPU’s marriage and family therapy master’s degree program in the School of Psychology Family and Community, Daley is a part-time student who also maintains a 32-hour work week. She plans to graduate in 2005, specializing in play therapy after graduate school. A play therapist works with children using play – a child's natural way of learning, developing, communicating and expressing feelings – to help children heal and grow in therapy. Play therapy, says Daley, combines aspects of play and talk therapy ideal for the cognitive and emotional needs of developing children.

Daley, who has worked in the fashion design industry for more than 20 years, admits, “I do feel uneasy about making a career change in our economic times, but I know I can obtain work in my current profession as I ease myself into a new career situation – buffering the risks in making a career change.”

Her advice to other graduate students with one foot in the career world and another in academia? “Sometimes, working in a difficult or frustrating job can be more bearable when the job is balanced with goals for the future and fulfilling and interesting study,” she says. “I think being burned out in a job or working in a job with a poor fit is a great reason to consider graduate school, even though our economic times are slow.”

Daley, however, says she’s far from burned out. She attributes this to the support network she’s found at SPU. “Despite a full schedule, an unexpected bonus in attending graduate school is the cultivation of new friendships and support received from my cohort and faculty supporting me personally and professionally in my journey to change career directions,” she says. “The positive personal interactions I share with my colleagues each time I attend class helps me balance my responsibilities.”

She shrugs when asked about such a dramatic career change. “My work helping children get through difficult hospitalization experiences – similar to my own early experience – became more fulfilling to me than doing creative work,” says Daley. “Accidentally finding my way back to goals centered on helping children in need is an interesting and ironic twist in my life journey.”


Notes and Reminders

2003-04 FAFSA Forms Available
The 2003-04 Free Application for Federal Aid (FAFSA) forms are now available. Paper copies are available in Student Financial Services or you may file online by visiting www.fafsa.ed.gov. Seattle Pacific University’s school code is 003788. Please note that you must file a new FAFSA every year.

Access Your SPU Account Online
You may view your account and financial aid status online by logging on to the Banner Information System on the SPU Web site and selecting the student menu.

Attention Current and Future M.S.N. Students
An informational financial aid forum for current and prospective students in SPU's master’s degree program in nursing will be held on February 13 at 7:00 p.m. in the Library Seminar Room. For more information, visit: www.spu.edu/depts/hsc/programs/grad/financialaidforum.asp.

Credit Balance Update
Seattle Pacific University will cut credit balance checks on or after the seventh day of each quarter. Resident students will be sent an e-mail when their check is ready to pick up in Student Financial Services and checks will be mailed to non-resident students.

If a student wishes for Seattle Pacific to keep the credit balance on their student account to offset future charges, they must notify Student Financial Services before the seventh day of each quarter. If a student wishes to obtain their credit balance earlier than the time specified above, the student, along with the presentation of an SPU ID card or other ID, must request withdrawals of credit balances from his or her account in writing. To allow adequate processing time, withdrawal of credit balances will take 24 hours from date of request.

Please include a student identification number and signature, and mail the balance withdrawal to SPU, Student Financial Services, 3307 Third Avenue West, Seattle, Washington 98119, or fax the request to 206/281-2835.

Spring Quarter Early Registration
Registration begins March 3, 2003, for Spring Quarter. This includes online registration. In order to participate, students must have their account balance paid in full. For questions about Web registration, please e-mail Student Academic Services at sasinfo@spu.edu.

News From SPU Computer and Information Services
For the latest updates from SPU Computer and Information Services about your SPU e-mail account, helpful software and other technology information click here. Technical support is also available to students 24 hours a day. For more information, visit the CIS HelpDesk.

Important Dates

Quick Resources
Find what you need on campus — from an SPU ID card to class registration information. Click here for a compilation of office hours, phone numbers and other details to make graduate student life a little easier.


Questions, Comments, Feedback
We're interested in hearing your feedback about The Graduate Review and how it can be used to better meet your needs. Please send any comments or questions via e-mail to sasinfo@spu.edu. If you have a story idea or suggestion for a future issue, please contact sarahjio@spu.edu.