By Guest Blogger
Laurie Rhind
Argosy University - Online Programs Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) President

Membership truly does have advantages!

When you join national SHRM, you don’t just get the national membership benefits (which are impressive!), you also become eligible to join our virtual student SHRM chapter. The cost is a mere $35.00/year compared to the full price of membership at $180.00/year. You may wonder what this membership is all about and why it is important to belong to the National Group. SHRM at the national level is a well-respected organization in the Human Resource field; some have called it THE premier association in HR. If you plan on being a Human Resource Manager, or work in any professional field that involves a lot of people skills, it is in your best interest to join. The rewards of this organization are virtually limitless. It is the one stop to access all information pertaining to all aspects of the Human Resource position you may hold. SHRM is known to be the lifeline of many HRM at all levels; I am one who believes this. I have accessed their site many times for professional and now educational use. What we can’t stress enough is how they disseminate information for us to stay up to date on legal issues and federal laws. They are there as a resource to assist you in the time of need. So, please understand if you want to join our group, a National SHRM membership is required. We don’t want to be rude by not allowing you to join; however, strict guidelines have been set for us to abide by at this time. There is no way for us to cut a corner.

Please check out SHRM.org, sign up for a membership and come join our group. We are young, yet growing. Please come visit us or send an email, we would like to hear from you with any questions, concerns, or comments you may have.

Are you an Argosy University Online Programs student interested in writing for this blog? Check the Welcome Center in the Campus Common to find out how!

For students who have earned their degree, whether online or in a campus-based setting, the commencement ceremony can be an important final step before putting what they've learned to use in the world outside of college. Students of Argosy University - Online Programs are no exception to this rule. While they attend class online, they have the opportunity to participate in any of the Argosy University campus-based commencement ceremonies that take place. Current students can find a list of campus locations available for each degree program in the Campus Common. Once they have identified a commencement ceremony that will work best for them, students are encouraged to discuss their options with their Academic Counselor, who will guide them through the steps they need to take to participate.

Argosy University - Online Programs recently held the annual "Teacher Appreciation Week," which was referenced here in an earlier blog post. The winners are now posted in the Campus Common! We received a number of great submissions from our students, who did not hesitate to sing the praises of the faculty members they chose to nominate. Students can peruse all nominations in Connections on the Student Community department page.

In today’s highly technological society, we have more access to information and resources than we have at any point in our history. This information can be a valuable tool, particularly when it comes to healthcare. For example, if we’re experiencing symptoms at a particular time, rather than heading directly to the doctor’s office, we can search online and find other individuals with similar symptoms and determine what they might mean. This culture of “needing to know” doesn’t eliminate the need to go to the doctor, but it creates a better informed, more connected community.

For example, an MSN Health article entitled “Is Social Networking Changing the Face of Medicine?” discusses the backlash incurred when new regulations proposed that women didn’t need to begin having mammograms until age fifty, as opposed to the previous guideline of forty. A number of women, who felt that beginning mammograms at forty may have saved their lives, took to social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter to express their outrage. In the end, the guidelines set forth by the American Cancer Society remained unchanged.

In the situation described above, it can be argued that public opinion and the use of technology only helped, but there’s a fine line between helpful and incorrect. As with any situation concerning the internet, it’s just as easy to broadcast incorrect information as it is to relay the facts. But there’s no denying that information can be a valuable tool if used wisely.

Alexander Street Press Counseling and Therapy in Video

Perhaps the greatest source of anxiety for students—and even seasoned professionals in the mental health field—is the prospect of dealing with clients in the face-to-face counseling encounter. Video lets users observe the intricacies of behavior, tone, facial expression, and body language that define successful counseling experiences. From Argosy University Online Library, you have access to over 500 training videos, reenactments, and footage of actual therapy sessions through Alexander Street Press Counseling and Therapy in Video.

Videos are available on a number of subjects including:

• Client-counselor relations
• Family therapy
• Child therapy
• Geriatric therapy
• Play therapy
• Weight control and eating disorders
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Sex therapy
• Culturally-sensitive therapy
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy
• and much more!

To access this video database, launch the Argosy University Online Library. From the library homepage, click on Psychology under Browse by Field on the library homepage. You will see Alexander Street Press Counseling and Therapy in Video listed on this page.

We recommend checking out this brief tutorial on how to use some of the basic features in this collection, which you can access here.

If you need any assistance with this database or have any questions regarding Argosy University Online Library, please contact library staff at 888-559-7579 during business hours or e-mail us at auolibrary@argosy.edu.