Luther junior Daniel Dejapin interns at the Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Philippines

Combining his passions for social work and psychology, Luther College junior Daniel Dejapin spent the summer interning at the Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Philippines.

Dejapin, son of Aileen Rose Dejapin and Danilo Dejapin, Sr. of Manila, Philippines, is a 2016 graduate of United World College-Robert Bosch College. He plans to graduate from Luther in 2020 with a major in social work and a minor in psychology.

Interning at the Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Philippines, Dejapin was assigned to the National Training School for Marillac Hills””National Training School for Girls in Alabang, Muntinlupa City. The center is for girls and women who have experienced sexual exploitation, abuse and/or trafficking, and for children in conflict with the law. Within social services, he worked as a case manager for newly admitted residents and conducted group work sessions for children.

Within the psychology service, Dejapin assessed the residents using a biopsychosocial assessment tool. In addition, he had the opportunity to observe court hearings, participate in intervention team meetings and pre-admission and pre-discharge conferences.

For Dejapin, his internship experience was “both a personal experience and an academic application.” He had the opportunity to “see real problems in real time” and envision a professional career in the near future. Interning in his academic area of interest also allowed Dejapin to “validate theories I have learned in the classroom setting, where practice-based and evidence-based approaches are essential,” he concluded.

“As a social work student, this internship challenged me to determine the implications of social policies that are already implemented and how these policies can be used to combat injustices and social problems, especially for individuals that are vulnerable” he said. Exercising his interest in the intersection of social work and psychology in the service setting helped Dejapin to discern that social work is “an ideal profession for me especially because I am keen to learn about how individuals who experience trauma develop resiliency,” he said.

Approximately 10 percent of Luther students take an internship for academic credit each academic year. The Luther College Career Center assists students with their internship search through resume preparation, networking, online internship searches, career fairs, on-campus interviewing and connecting the student to alumni through the college’s Alumni Internship Program. Students also meet with a faculty adviser prior to the internship to create an internship learning plan that includes learning goals and assessment benchmarks.

An internship work supervisor assists in the process by writing an evaluation of the student at the end of the internship. Students also complete a self-reflection form to help finalize the learning experience.

A national liberal arts college with an enrollment of 2,005, Luther offers an academic curriculum that leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree in more than 60 majors and pre-professional programs. For more information about Luther visit the college’s website: http://www.luther.edu.