Master of Social Work

Liliana's Career Journey

Liliana Ventura (she/her/ella) graduated in 2022 and is currently self-employed as the owner of her solo private practice, Cultural Roots Therapy, where she works as a mental health therapist providing individual, family, and couples therapy. In her clinical work, she incorporates approaches such as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Internal Family Systems, and Emotionally Focused Therapy, and she also completes mental health evaluations for immigration applications, facilitates groups, and provides crisis response services for Employee Assistance Programs, offering all services in English, Spanish, and Spanglish. In addition to her clinical responsibilities, she manages all aspects of running her private practice, including marketing, bookkeeping, and administrative tasks, which she finds fulfilling. Her typical day includes meeting with three to six clients through both telehealth and in-person sessions, completing case notes, responding to client inquiries, and managing business operations. Her MSW education at West Chester University provided the foundation needed to pass her licensing exams, explore various therapeutic modalities, and approach her work with a macro-level perspective, while her internships were instrumental in her professional development. She particularly enjoyed mental health-related coursework, as well as a mindfulness course in the College of Health Sciences, which helped shape her approach to practice. She manages stress by practicing mindfulness, maintaining a flexible schedule that balances work and personal life, and engaging in self-care activities such as spending time with her pets, taking walks, and working from home. She advises students to remain open-minded about the diverse career paths available within social work and to explore opportunities across micro, mezzo, and macro levels to better understand skills and salary expectations. Reflecting on her experience, she notes that she developed stronger interviewing skills over time, learning how to better highlight her clinical training and strengths, and one of her favorite memories from the MSW program was taking courses with Dr. Todd Vanidestine, whose engaging teaching style and supportive approach made a lasting impact on her learning experience.