IMC Hawks Blog

Category: COM Studies

  • Finding My Way to the Top

    Finding My Way to the Top

    My college career has consisted of four different schools. Carson Newman University, Sandhills Community College, Milligan University, and now UNCW. It’s a long story as to why this is a thing, so I won’t get into any details. But, I can say that a big reason for my scenic route through college was that I had trouble finding a school that felt like home to me. The past three schools were great schools, but I did not fall in love with them like I had planned. It wasn’t until I came to Wilmington that I finally was able to call a place “home” and truly mean it. I transferred here the second semester of my junior year and haven’t looked back.

    Newly-renovated entrance to the UNC Wilmington campus along South College Road. UNCW / Jamie Moncrief

    When I came to UNCW, I was a business major with an emphasis in marketing. Honestly, I was struggling. I had this idea that if I wanted to get into sales and the business field, I needed to be a business major and get a degree in business. This is where I was wrong, and I paid the price for it. I went through that one semester here at UNCW, and I’ll be honest with you, I was not a fan at all. I was struggling in all of my classes, I was stressing about how long it was going to take me to graduate, and I was beginning to tell myself that I was a failure. It wasn’t until the fall semester of my senior year that things started to turn around for me, and that was because of this little thing they call COM.

    I came to the conclusion that the road I was going down was not the road for me. I swallowed my pride and went to my advisor’s office in hopes of creating a plan for myself and my future at UNCW. After a small discussion, my advisor brought up communication studies and began to brag about the department here at the dub. After some consideration, pulling some strings, and a bit of prayer, I decided to change my major to COM. I understood that because of all the transferring that I had done in the past, I would have to spend an extra year in college to finish my degree if I switched. At times I had thought of myself as a failure because I did not complete what I had started in my business education. I even thought that I might not be able to have a business career because I was not getting my degree in it anymore. All of these thoughts were completely wrong and I found out very quickly that everything I was telling myself about my decision was completely wrong.

    Here I am, in my last semester as a COM major, about to graduate from the great University of North Carolina Wilmington. I currently hold a full time, “grown up” job at Cellular Sales, the number one Verizon retailer, a job that I thought would not be possible at first because I was not getting my degree in business anymore. That was another thing that I quickly learned – COM studies allows you have a wide range of careers to pick from. You can nearly choose whatever you want to do! After learning that COM broadens your horizons instead of minimalizing it, it was like a huge weight being lifted from my shoulders. Here I am, in a sales job, a goal of mine that I had written down for years, all because of COM. Could I have done something completely different to start off my career? Of course! That is the beauty of COM and everything it has to offer.

    In days, I’ll be graduating. Because of COM, I’ve improved my skill set more than I could have ever imagined. Because of COM I have new friends who I will be friends with for the rest of my life. Because of COM I have complete control over the rest of my life and the rest of my career. Because of COM, I found my new home in Wilmington and no matter where I go from here, the Dub will always me home to me.

    Brady Childers is a May 2021 graduate. His father inspired him to pursue a career in business. Brady loves meeting new people and solving their problems.

  • Humans of COM Studies: Lauren Arsena

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    Photo courtesy of Lauren Arsena.

    Lauren Arsena entered UNCW in the Fall of 2014. At the time, she knew she was interested in marketing, but was unsure which major would be the best fit for her. She quickly discovered COM and the potential the department had to teach her, not only marketing, but advertising, public relations, and more.

    In terms of campus involvement, Lauren is the President of the Association for Campus Entertainment. ACE is the student-programming board at UNCW; they are responsible for a wide variety of events across campus, including the Jesse McCartney concert in Kenan Auditorium last Friday, September 22. Lauren was an integral part of the team that brought Jesse to campus, resulting in the fastest selling show in ACE’s history. The show sold out in less than 90 minutes.

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    September 22, 2017: Jesse McCartney at the concert on campus. Photo courtesy of Hayley Kane (ACE Photographer).

    Lauren first decided to join ACE because she wanted to have a say in planning events for campus, while still having fun. Before becoming the president, Lauren was the Special Events Chair, now known as the Activities chair. She worked on a few of ACE’s traditional events like Last Seahawk Standing and Speed Dating. She created a few new events of her own as well, including Swing Dancing and Salsa Dancing lessons–both free for students. Last fall, she brought an improv group to campus for a Murder Mystery Dinner. Guests interacted with the characters to learn who the killer was.

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    Lauren (right) and the Spirit Committee Chair Maddie (left) outside of Lumina Theater before one of ACE’s films. Photo courtesy of Hayley Kane (ACE Photographer).

    She has gotten the opportunity to apply a lot of the knowledge from her courses to her position in ACE and vice versa. Lauren states, “I’m on the PR/IMC track, so I’ve learned a lot about how to effectively market on social media. ACE also helps me in my classes because I have experience in event planning, leadership, teamwork, and public speaking.”

    Along with ACE, Lauren works as a Calendar Assistant for Campus Life. She uses Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to create the calendars in the bathrooms of the Fisher Student Center and Union. Her experience with the Adobe Creative Cloud inspired her to add a Digital Arts minor.

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    Two of Lauren’s recent calendars. Lately, she has been hiding a Pac-man ghost somewhere in the design. See if you can spot him! Photos courtesy of Lauren Arsena.

    After graduation, Lauren would like to work in event planning for a few years. In the long term, she would like to return to school to work on a masters degree in Student Affairs. Her goal is to work with a student-programming board like ACE.

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    September 26, 2017: Lauren (far right) photographed here with Brandon Stanton (center), the creator of Humans of New York. Brandon’s work is the inspiration behind this post. Photo courtesy of Stefani Norris (right of Brandon).

    “Interpersonal COM, public speaking, and PR have taught me how to market myself better to others so I feel more confident and ready to enter the workforce after I graduate.”

    By: Katie Solinski

  • Humans of COM Studies: A Profile on Katie South

    During your first couple years at UNCW, it can be difficult to get involved on campus outside of clubs and sports. College can seem overwhelming at first when trying to pick a major and get involved on campus that coincide with your career goals. Maybe you came to college not knowing what you were going to major in or had an idea of what your dream job was, but realized you were not cut out for it. What do you do then? Do you try a new field and try to gain job experience, or do you just give up? Katie South, a junior in the Communication Studies department, went through a similar situation during her first couple years at UNCW.

    When Katie began her freshman year in the fall of 2015, she knew she wanted to be a Communication Studies major. “I always wanted to be a sideline reporter,” Katie said. “I soon realized that I didn’t know nearly enough about sports to do that, but the major is so versatile that I figured I would still be able to find something I’d enjoy.” She started working for the UNCW Campus Dining Peer-to-Peer sales team in the fall semester of her sophomore year; she, along with a team of other students in a variety of majors, tabled around campus to inform students about their meal plan options and take surveys that fit them with their best option. This job opened up opportunities for Katie that she never expected. “I thought it would be good experience for me to get more involved with campus and meet other students. The other job I had at the time took most of my free time, so I didn’t get involved with other school activities like I had wished. But working for the Peer-to-Peer sales team gave me that opportunity to meet new people while still earning money and gaining experience with sales and marketing.”

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    When taking the core COM classes, it may seem like you would never use some of those skills in a real profession. It can sometimes be difficult to see how your classes would pertain to a real job in the adult-world when sitting in lecture after lecture, but gaining experience in on-campus jobs can help you see the importance of these classes. Katie goes on to say that “being able to apply the communication skills I was learning with real students in real world situations gave me a new appreciation for what I was learning. I was able to build upon my interpersonal communication skills and pick up on students’ nonverbal cues that I may have previously overlooked had I not taken these classes.”

    While Katie was just expecting to stay on the Peer-to-Peer team throughout college, a job opportunity with Auxiliary Services opened up that she couldn’t pass up. She got the position of marketing assistant about a month ago that allows her to work directly with the marketing specialist to “complete project research, develop promotional and informational materials, plan and attend public relations activities, among a variety of other activities.” Although she has only been in this position for a short time, it is something she is interested in staying in for a while. She has even started considering going to graduate school here and staying in her current position or finding a similar job within the marketing field. Katie has been able to use skills from COM classes such as 101, 200, 232, and 280 that she never thought she would use in a real-world setting, but now utilizes them every day at her new job.

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    “My biggest piece of advice that I could give underclassmen is to not limit themselves. I had no desire to pursue marketing when I first started here at UNCW; I was determined to graduate and go straight into the news field. Once I opened myself up to the Peer-to-Peer sales team, I realized how much I loved working with people and being that line of communication when there’s confusion.” Katie shows us every day why being a student in the Communication Studies department is so rewarding and vital to succeeding in any job market. By embracing new ideas and gaining experience in various fields of work, you might be able to find your niche and succeed more than you ever thought possible.

  • Valentine’s Day, Come and Gone

    When I think of Valentine’s Day, the first things that immediately come to mind are candy, flowers, and stuffed animals, but people get much more creative with their gifts on this special holiday, especially now in 2017.

    According to Readers Digest, these are some of the best gifts to buy your special someone on Valentine’s Day:

    1. Candles
    2. Puzzles
    3. Earrings
    4. Mittens or Gloves
    5. Bamboo hearts
    6. Couple’s Pillows
    7. Desserts
    8. Personalized Wallet Inserts
    9. Phone Cases
    10. Personalized Notes

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    Even though these may be among some of the more creative gifts, heart-shaped candies and chocolates still saturate my hungry mind when I think of Valentine’s Day. Since Valentine’s Day disappears as quickly as it comes, the candy stores slash their prices overnight, and with Easter right around the corner, stores are eager to clear their shelves of Valentine’s candy and restock with Easter goodies.

    Not only can you get great deals on the Valentine’s Day candy, but you can also stock up and use your leftover candy for Easter and other holidays. Personally, the candy is the best part of any holiday, so I always take advantage of the sales.

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    -Jennifer Howard

     

  • Four (and-a-half) years later…. *Spongebob voice*

    I always knew I would come to UNCW. Heck, the only application I completed was to UNCW (looking back, that was not a good idea). And to be honest, I didn’t have a strong reason to come here. However, four-and-a-half years later, I know I was supposed to be here.

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    That feeling was reassured when I entered the Communication Studies Major. The major facilitated opportunities for me to grow and learn. I tried to make the most of these opportunities because I know the experience I gained from them will pay-off later. Being able to apply my knowledge in classes is something I will not take for granted.

    It hasn’t really hit me yet that I will be leaving friends, classmates and professors that I’ve built strong relationships with. And that will be the hardest part. But the things I’ve learned from them will stay with me forever.

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    Looking forward, I know the skills I’ve obtained at UNCW and the COM major will propel me to where I want to be. For this, I am forever grateful.

    Go do great things, class of 2015!

    Oh, and happy birthday to me!

    – Patrick