What Students Really Say About Farmington


Tell me a bit about the field of Rehabilitation Services.
Rehab Services covers a wide range of career options, from caseworker to physical therapist and more. That's why I chose it — it's a wide open field where you can choose what you want to go into after you graduate. The Rehab classes I've taken here so far ranged from therapeutic recreation to expressive arts therapy. So if you're into that kind of thing, the Rehab Services program at Farmington is really good.

Did you come to Farmington knowing you wanted to major in Rehab Services?
Yes and no. I actually started as an Early Childhood Special Education major but when I got here I looked at the Rehabilitation Services program a little more in depth and decided I wanted to do that instead — it just seemed to have a wider range of jobs in the areas I was interested in. I knew I wanted to work with kids and help kids, but I wasn't sure of the field I wanted to stick with. Being a Rehab Services major here has helped me figure out exactly what I wanted.

What are some interesting classes you've taken in Rehab Services?
I really liked my Intro to Therapeutic Recreation class — that was really cool. And I'm taking a class this semester called Addiction Rehabilitation and that's interesting, too. What else? My Casework class is great because you learn how to be a caseworker. It's a lot of work, but it's very interesting. Intro to Disabilities was an eye-opener because you actually get to experience what life might be like for somebody who has a disability.

What are some strengths of the Rehabilitation Services major at Farmington?
The professors here are great. Dr. Barrett [Karen Barrett, Assoc. Professor of Rehabilitation] is very motivating and has been a really good influence on me — she's been a role model. She has been a real inspiration to me because I see how much work she does and where it gets her. And her classes are great. They're interesting and thought-provoking and I learn a lot.

Have you had any professors that have really stood out?
The ones that really stood out would be Dr. Barrett and Dr. Jones [Jewel Jones, Assoc. Professor of Rehabilitation]. They're both very enthusiastic about what they do and I think it's very important for a student to see that their professor is enthusiastic about the subject matter because that makes the class more interesting.

Have you done any outside- the-classroom projects in Rehab Services?
For my practicum I worked at a therapeutic riding stable. I helped with side-walking and leading the horses. Basically, when you sidewalk, you keep an eye on the rider. When you lead, you keep an eye on the horse. I also helped with care and maintenance of the horses in the stable, so my experience was pretty cool. It was a lot of fun. I kept a daily journal that summed up what I did during the day, who I helped, what challenges we faced and how we solved them. We also read some professional journals that were relevant to our practicum in order to broaden our knowledge. I also wrote a newspaper article and submited it to a local newspaper.

What classes outside of your major have stood out and why?
Well, I really enjoy the class I'm taking this semester, Childhood and Adolescent Development, with Dr. Joel King [Professor of Psychology]. He's a great teacher. I really like it. I'd definitely have to say my Psychology classes stand out for me.

Have you studied abroad yet?
Actually, I went on a May-term Tropical Island Ecology travel class to St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. It was a blast! My roommate and I saw a poster announcing the class and we were like, “Yes! Let's do this!“ The whole experience was just incredible.

As a student from out of state, how did you first find out about Farmington?
I went to a big college fair in Rhode Island and an Admissions rep from Farmington was there. The school's display caught my eye and I decided to find out more.

What originally interested you about Farmington?
The fact that it has a major in Rehab Services and it was a small school. URI in Rhode Island is huge. I just like the small school atmosphere, it is nice.

Had you been to Maine before coming here?
Nope.

How did you decide to come to Farmington?
What drew me to the school initially was the fact that Farmington looks at the student and not just their SAT scores. That was really important to me because the other schools I had looked at seemed to only be interested in my SAT's. Farmington looked at the whole student. I also liked the small school atmosphere because you're known as a student and not a number. The Rehab major was the other thing that drew me in.

How would you describe Farmington to somebody from your former high school?
I'd say it's a beautiful campus with the greatest teachers and staff. I really enjoy it — it's a lot of fun. If you're the outdoor type it's perfect. You've got the mountains right there and Sugarloaf, too.

What does a Liberal Arts education mean to you?
For me it means that you get a variety of things in your education which I think is important. The more variety you get, the better prepared you are for whatever you do next.

Has Farmington been what you expected or have you had any major surprises?
I actually think that it has been more than what I expected. I'm getting a wonderful education and I'm having a blast up here. I'm having a lot of fun.

Sometimes people who aren't from Maine think there isn't much to do here. As a Rhode Islander, what did you find?
Oh, there's always plenty to do here. I also like being able to take off and get away from campus, maybe go climb a mountain or something — just as a stress reliever. I really love that about Farmington. It's gorgeous around here and there are plenty of places to see. Like, we just went to Bailey Island last weekend. It was gorgeous and a lot of fun. So, there are just places where you can go to get away. I chose UMF partly because it's the outdoorsy type of school. I was like, “Hey, I can be outdoors, and it's around the mountains. I'll even pick up skiing again!“ I know for me, I don't feel the need to go home very often.

You've been doing some hiking?
Oh, yeah. We hiked up Bald Mountain a week ago, which was a lot of fun and I went up Titcomb Mountain, and we hiked around there.

You said you are in the rehab club? What is that like?
I'm in the UMF Rehab Club. It's a student organization closely linked to the Rehabilitation Services major - it's not like we're “in Rehab“ [laughs] it's an academic club - like the History Club or Political Science Club or the Theater Club. [laughs] Anyway ... the Rehab Club does a lot of things out in the community and we put on the annual Rehabilitation Awareness Day, which is a big fair that gives everyone a little bit more knowledge about the field of Rehab. Our club also does a lot to raise awareness on campus, and we raise money for different events. And sometimes we help families in need and we've volunteered at different places. For instance, we've gone to one of the nursing homes here in Farmington and we did crafts with the older ladies. It was fun and we got a lot out of that. I've also participated in a Kids Night Out program where we let area parents drop off their kids and we'll watch them for the night so the parents can go holiday shopping or go out for dinner and a movie. It's fun.

What do you plan to do after you graduate from Farmington?
I want to get my Master's degree in speech pathology and from there get my certification in hippotherapy, which is working with horses and people. That's pretty much my plan. I want to be a speech therapist use horses as my tool.

Do you feel Farmington is preparing you well?
I really do because I've gone home and my mom has told me that the work I'm doing is at the graduate school level. She says the work that they're giving me is really preparing me for the next step. So yeah, I feel Farmington is preparing me well.

What are some things Farmington does really well?
Well, they definitely prepare you for your next step in life really well. The coursework is very good and you're always learning something. And Farmington is also great, at least from my experience, in setting you up with a good roommate. My roommate is great and we've become best friends.

Is there anything Farmington could do a little better?
Being from out of state, I think they could give more time for out of staters to get here. For instance, this year we had to move in on a weekday. That was difficult for my parents because they both had to take a day off from work to help move me in. It's a five hour drive to get here and then we had to get my stuff all unpacked. It would have been nice to have had a day to get settled in before starting right in with classes. That's the only thing.

Any sage advice for an incoming student?
I'd say don't be afraid to take a class you're not sure about. Take a little bit of everything because you're sure to find something to spark your interest.