My internship at SafeNest — a non-profit dedicated to providing resources and transitional housing to survivors of domestic violence (DV) — has been nothing short of a great, conducive learning environment. As a Residential Program Advocate intern at the SafeNest shelter, I primarily staffed the front desk and came in direct contact with the brave survivors of DV, their kids, and their furry friends. I not only learned more about domestic violence statistics, but I also learned a lot more about temporary protection orders (TPO’s), Nevada’s Victims of Crime Program (VOCP), among many other things.
My day-to-day duties entail helping residents at the shelter in numerous ways: buzzing them into the shelter, answering their questions, answering phone calls, de-escalating and resolving disputes, and retrieving necessities for them (i.e. toiletries, bedding, donations). Some residents would, understandably, vent, so being a part of this internship, being empathetic, compassionate, and having solid active listening skills would be especially beneficial. As a psychology major with minors in addictions treatment and addictions prevention, this internship at SafeNest has not been that far off from what I am learning at UNLV. If anything, this internship has allowed me opportunities to interact with DV survivors in ways I would not have if it were not for SafeNest. Although I would not be interested in working at a shelter front desk after completing my internship as I look to primarily involve myself in drug/alcohol/behavioral addictions, I would highly suggest SafeNest to anyone interested in victim advocacy.
Again, a huge part of this internship is interacting and to lend an ear. Working at the front desk, computer proficiency and knowledge of operating phone lines will be a plus. Computer proficiency because there is data entry involved in order to always have the most up-to-date clients’ profiles and client lists. Among these skills, other skills needed are conflict resolution, multitasking, and patience.
A class that has been especially helpful for me during this internship was CED 315: Counseling Skills in Human Services. In this class, we learned about counseling skills, active listening, probing, decision-making, goal-setting, and ways of dealing with different clients. This class prepared me to listen with empathy and respond smartly, compassionately, and respectfully. A LinkedIn Learning Course, “Effective Listening,” has also honed my empathetic listening (and communication) skills, successfully preparing me for this internship at SafeNest. Having a background education in social work, criminal justice, psychology, or counseling would benefit the most from interning over with SafeNest. All of the residents are from different walks of life and have dealt with all so different situations but everyone has one thing in common: domestic violence. As an intern, there is a lot you will be exposed to but there is also a lot that is beyond your pay grade.
The biggest and best advice I could give for future interns with SafeNest is to PLEASE take the free “Effective Listening” course on LinkedIn Learning (https://www.linkedin.com/learning-login/share?account=57679385&forceAccount=false&redirect=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Flearning%2Feffective-listening%3Ftrk%3Dshare_ent_url%26shareId%3DcRgbgad0TfyRXJolb9przw%253D%253D). This resource helped me GREATLY throughout my internship. As I mentioned throughout this blog post, listening and responding are a huge part of this internship. With that, discretion and patience are also vital. Another piece of advice I could provide is to wisely choose your shifts. It is recommended 12-15 hour shifts a week but you have free reign over what shifts you want to work. Overnight shifts are quiet since everyone is asleep, whereas morning shift and swing shift is sporadically busy and chaotic.
Lastly, as for the relevant and appropriate photo, I am not allowed to take pictures at the shelter for confidentiality reasons, but I have attached SafeNest’s logo to this blog post.
Thank you everyone!
Hi David,
I am glad that you learned a lot in this internship opportunity, and it seems like this non-profit organization has a great impact in our community by advocating for survivors of domestic violence. In fact, you described what an intern requires to have to success in this internship: being empathetic, compassionate, and having solid active listening skills would be especially beneficial. Great job in your internship!