A glimpse of my 2014 application.

The 2015-2016 McMaster Child Life Program application has been posted and now it’s time for you to either start this process for the first time or do it all over again! I didn’t get accepted, or even an interview the first time that I applied, so don’t feel discouraged! Just think – that they are only accepting those who truly want to be child life specialists – not just those who decided yesterday that they thought this career might be cool. Here are a few pieces of advice that I can offer you.

  1. My #1 piece of advise is DO NOT procrastinate! There are a lot of different pieces that you need collect to complete the application.
  • Transcripts – They want all your post-secondary transcripts. For me that meant ordering them from 4 different universities. Which included McMaster for the online undergrad child life courses and University of California Santa Barbara for the online child life course I took. Ordering transcripts will likely cost you too.
  • Reference letters – Make sure your references can speak about your interactions with children. I received this piece of advice after my first unsuccessful application. Also make sure that you give your references lots of time to complete the form! And remember to thank them – buy them a gift card or something because if they are CLS they might hire you someday!
  • Resume – Remember that this is a child life resume that they want! Include all your relevant course work and volunteer experience as well as any work experience that you think will make you a standout candidate and speak to your pre-existing child life skills.
  • Certified Cheque or Money Order – You need to go to the bank for this one. It doesn’t take long but just make sure you don’t leave it until Sunday night when banks are closed!
  • Mailing Time – Don’t forget that it’s going to take a couple days for your package to get there. Make sure you send it registered mail or through a courier.
  1. Answering the questions – think hard about what you want to say because you only have 3 pages. Also do some research – read many definitions about what child life does and then think of how you want to articulate that. I answered question 1 totally different on my second application than I did on my first. I had another year of volunteering under my belt and 2 more CL courses, so my understanding of the multi-dimensional role of a child life specialist was greater. Use that knowledge to help you answer the other questions. You know that child life specialists work as a part of a multi-disciplinary team – do you have any experience working with people with a range of different skills? CLS constantly are thinking on their feet to come up with different interventions to help kids – are you a creative quick thinker?
  1. Lastly, find a way to add some personality. No one told me to do this – but I just think that after reading through 130 applications it’s a breath of fresh air to read something that has some life! I added a picture of myself volunteering so they could put a face to my name while reading.

Good luck with your application! Remember not to be discouraged if you don’t get in the first time. Good things come to those who wait!!


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