Tag Archives: Communication Studies

Time Flies Faster Then You Think

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Our three years here at UNCW has been a nonstop learning experience. We have not only gained knowledge in classes, but have also gained valuable and unforgettable life experiences. Laura transferred to UNCW after her freshman year and since she has been in Wilmington has had three very valuable internships. The key to getting a job in this market is to have experience in your field of interest and being able to effectively market yourself to potential employers. In our IMC 1 class we had an assignment where we had to market our personal brand and why we should be hired over our competitors. It is crucial to understand how and why your brand is better than the kids sitting next to you. It is not only important to know why your brand is the best, but you also need to understand how to market your experiences and internships to fit the qualities for your potential employer. Taking advantage of internship opportunities, especially for credit through the Department of Communication Studies, is a great idea for anyone and everyone. Without those experiences we would not be as prepared or as knowledgeable about our field of interest as we are now. So, when you’re thinking of what to do with all your time during the beautiful summer in Wilmington, think about taking an internship or think about how you can make your brand stand out among others.

Another important piece of advice is to get involved on campus. Once you are a student, UNCW becomes your home away from home. The best way to find comfort is meeting and bonding with other students who are in your exact situation. UNCW has over 200 clubs and organizations for students to become involved in. The only hard decision you have to make is: which club should I join? Tennis, TealTV, Communication Studies Society, the choices are endless. The moral of the story is this: get involved on campus and make your presence known. You only have four years, which believe me, flies by in a blink of an eye. The friends you make in college become your friends for life. It is important to make your college journey memorable, exciting, and one that you can laugh about 40 years down the road reminiscing with your old college friends.

Lastly, as a college student, one of the most important things you do is research. Whether it’s writing a report, putting together a presentation, or simply watching the news on TV to catch the latest events, you are gathering information to analyze. Some of this information will be forgotten shortly after graduation, if not before you even cross the stage to get your diploma. However, some information you have gathered through your college career will stick with you for a lifetime and will become helpful in future career situations.  Learning doesn’t just stop when you get your diploma. The research skills you learn to use as a student can be used for the rest of your life, as you strive to be an informed individual.

So just remember, time flies. Before you know it you will be walking across the stage to receive your diploma.  Don’t just be a beach bum, at least, not all the time. Do something that will show your future employers that you did something with your short time here to make a difference.

-Laura Simmons, Brooke Keller, Ashley Oliver

Going Green, Brings Green

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Brands can promote themselves through almost any medium nowadays. Pens, stickers, posters, billboards, you name it, you can put your brand on it. Planet Earth Promotions is a company that is designed to help brands promote themselves in an eco-friendly way. There is constantly increasing awareness about environmental protection and a greater consciousness about how important it is to protect these environmental and natural resources. Planet Earth Promotions is leading the way for this “EcoSmart” promotional item trend.

Planet Earth Promotions’ mission statement indicates that their “goal is to help companies and corporations around the nation proactively enhance their brand through the use of environmentally conscious and educational promotional items”. They have certainly delivered in this respect. This company has been ranked #1 in promotional advertising for the past ten consecutive years. Not only are they paving the way for other companies, they have become a greatly successful brand that is little to no impact on the environment. Planet Earth Promotions has built a successful brand on a trend that is becoming increasingly important as time goes on. This brand is very strong considering they have remained at the top of the list from Arizona Magazine for the last ten years and they are here to help other brands.

They are able to offer many alternatives for companies to help cut back on environmental damage by providing recycled goods, information about recycling and environmental days in the USA and tips to bring pollution down. With so many companies shifting focus to being the “EcoSmart” companies and LEED (Low-energy electron diffraction) certified, it is a challenge to stay on top. Planet Earth Promotions has paired up with other environment-friendly companies such as AWEA (American Wind Energy Association) and Women’s Business Enterprise to built a very powerful and successful brand and continue to pave the way for other companies looking to create environment-friendly products and solutions for all varieties of businesses.

- Julius Roberts, Leanna Marshall, Leslie Tyler and Bryce Koonts

Just Calling to Say “Happy Earth Day!”

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LG and Sprint have made celebrating Earth Day a little easier this year with the release of their new mobile phone with eco-friendly features.  The LG Optimus Elite will be available through the Sprint 3G Network on Sunday, April 22 through sprint.com and will be Sprint retail stores on May 18.

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 The LG Optimus Elite is the third eco-friendly device launched by Sprint and LG this year.  The company released their first environmentally device in 2010 and continued with the release of two other cell phones earlier this year.  Sprint’s Vice President of Production Development, David Owens, released a statement saying “As a leader in environmental responsibility and sustainability, Sprint continues to expand its portfolio of eco-friendly devices and services by providing consumers with strong device choices,” while continuing to call the LG Optimus Elite “a dynamic and affordable green option for customers who want to go green without sacrificing the latest features”.  The company is thrilled that the release of this phone is happening on Earth Day, which reaffirms the company’s move for sustainability.

 The LG Optimus Elite is sleek and stylish while still exhibiting eco-friendly attributes.  This new cellphone even has UL Environment Platinum Certification, which is the highest level of

environmental performance recognized by sustainable requirements.  The certification is established by UL Environment and Sprint.  The phone is protected by a casing made of fifty percent recycled plastics, is RoHS compliant, meaning it is free of any hazardous material, and includes a charger that exceeds the EC Code of Conduct on energy efficiency and only consumes 0.03 watts of power when plugged into a wall socket without being connected to the phone.

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Even the packaging to this phone is eco-friendly: the box is made from fully recycling packaging, printed with soy inks, and contains over 85% post consumer paper.

Sprint is a corporate leader in sustainability and is ranked the third in Newsweek’s 2011 greenest companies.  The company is committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, committed to renewable energy, and encourages cell phone recycling.  In addition, Sprint’s policies and practices showcase their strong efforts in being eco-friendly.

So how should you celebrate Earth Day this year?  By buying the brand new, eco-friendly LG Optimus Elite!

-Christina Stevenson, Mollie Berthold, Dorothy Conley, & Laura Simmons

Live Blogging at UNCW COM Studies Day!

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#COMstudiesday - Click here to see what people are saying about COM Studies Day on Twitter!

Join in the action of COM Studies day and participate in our live blogging event coverage! Our first event is a panel of 5 alumni. Panel 1 starts at 10am and ends at 11am in LH 125 (TV Studio). Hope to see you there!

Morning Panel Features
Al Inman- News Photographer, News 14 Carolina, graduated May 2008
Jessie Warren Langley- Career Counselor, East Carolina University, graduated May 2003
Sean McBride- Public Affairs Specialist, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Charlotte District), graduated May 2009
Cliff Pyron- General Assignment Reporter, WWAY-TV3, graduated May 2009
Chris Rea- President/CEO, Top Tier Computer Services, graduated December 1999

Click Here to view the transcript of Panel 1!

Click Here to view the transcript of Panel 2!

COM Studies Day Events:

10:00-11:00am Panel presentation of 5 alumni in LH 125 (TV studio)

11:00-11:30am Networking session for afternoon panelists in LH lobby12:15-1:30pmLunch and Fashion Show coordinated by CSS in the Warwick Center Ballroom 2:00-3:00pm Panel presentation of 5 alumni in LH 125 (TV studio)3:00-3:30pm Networking session for afternoon panelists in LH lobby

4:00pm Reception and Social Gathering for panelists, guests, faculty and COM students at Fox and Hound

Light appetizers provided by Fox and Hound & the Department of Communication Studies

Find out more about UNCW’s COM Studies Department at our website!

Learn about Communication Studies at COM Studies Day

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When Communication Studies majors share their idea with others they are often met with a variety of  questions. These questions often range from “what is Communication Studies” to “what on earth are you going to do with that?!,” and can leave the student wondering just why exactly did they pick this major in the first place. Fortunately the UNCW Communication Studies department is hosting its annual Communication Studies Day this Friday and will answer many of these questions.

The Communication Studies Day  will have panel presentations of UNCW graduates from the major discussing their careers and experiences since college. Students will be able to hear from individuals who are currently doing things with their Communication Studies degree that they are considering doing after graduating, such as marketing, graduate school, broadcasting, and public relations. Many of the panelists graduated recently and will be able to relate to the students attending the presentations as they only recently were in the same point of approaching graduation and having to decide what they wanted to do and how to go about it. There will also be networking sessions for students to speak with faculty, friends and alumni. Another aspect of Communication Studies Day is the Dress for Success fashion show, in which attendants will get to see outfits of business casual and business professional attire. Attire is an important component of a professional image and many students are unsure about how they are expected to dress for a successful career.

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Communication Studies Day is not just an event that is simply put on by faculty and that students can show up to if they want to. The event is being  coordinated and marketed by UNCW Communication Studies students. Dr. Persuit’s IMC II class will be tweeting, posting photos, and sharing information about the event as it is occurring on this blog. Individuals can learn more about the event by following #DressForSuccess2012 and #COMStudiesDay on twitter.

~Molly Jacques, Josh Vester, Ashley Oliver and Hunter Wilson

What’s Your Unique Brand Style?

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UNCW’s Communication Studies Day includes an informative Dress for Success Fashion show for college students of all ages and levels. The fashion show will also include skits demonstrating the importance of an elevator speech, professional attire, portfolios, and how necessary it is to be prepared for interviews. This year the theme, “Will You Make the Cut?” is based upon the Food Network show “Chopped.”

One idea about IMC manifested in this fashion show is that company image and brand management is very vital for growth and success. Individuals, as well as companies, have always had their own image and have to manage their own brand. It is sometimes hard for college students to transition from a student image that they have had for the past 13 years to a business professional image. The great part about the fashion show is that it shows students how to transition from their current image and brand to something more professional.

Whether people realize it or not, we are branding ourselves every day through the types of clothes we choose to wear in professional or unprofessional settings. Your unique brand style can be a description of who you are in a job interview setting. It is very important to make interpersonal connections with job interviewers through your developed style and authenticity that will make you stand out from others. Branding yourself when looking for a job is very similar to branding a product. Basically, you are selling yourself as a product to your potential employer with the goal of standing out amongst the rest. Are you casual business, formal business, chick, trendy, preppy, classic, or a hybrid of several?

By: Laura Simmons, Mollie Berthold, Dorothy Conley, Christina Stevenson

Where to go, Where to go.

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I’d like to tell you a story about “My Friend”. My friend is a senior enrolled at UNC-Wilmington, and though he is very low on funds, he really wanted to enjoy his final spring break. After some consideration, he decided to make the short drive to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with his girlfriend where they could live it up like true college students. After my friend returned from his 4 day trip he took a few moments to relive his getaway and came to an abrupt realization. When he was in Myrtle Beach, his schedule consisted of very few things that couldn’t have been done right here in Wilmington. He got up at the break of noon, spent the afternoons lounging on the beach, the evenings relaxing at the local eatery and the nights chilling at the local pub. So if all of these things could have been accomplished in Wilmington, why didn’t my friend just stay in Wilmington? More importantly, why don’t other college students from all around flock to Wilmington to celebrate their time off?

After some consideration and a little observation, I think I have discovered the answers to these questions: college students don’t come party in Wilmington because Wilmington doesn’t want them to come party here. Wilmington, and more specifically Wrightsville Beach, consists of well-developed (expensive) beach houses and family friendly entertainment offerings. If flocks of college students flocked here every spring then Wilmington could potentially become a less desirable location to bring your family or spend your retirement. It almost comes to a point where a city that is blessed with the kinds of attributes that make it a destination must choose what segment of the population they want to be a destination for. Though the marketing of geographic locations is often not as aggressive as that of traditional businesses, it can be an important decision in the life of a city.