Grad Thanks Journalism Department for Jumpstarting Career and Party.0

By: Jake White

(@JakeAveryWhite)

My name is Jake White and I am a professional storyteller… well I guess most people call it motivational speaking.  So before this  weekend’s ceremonies, I want to share a short story of how the Journalism Department at UW-Oshkosh launched my career before I even graduated.

To give you an idea of what I do… I basically travel to schools and conferences, meet awesome people, and talk about the importance of depending on ourselves for our own happiness. Others might call me a health educator, substance abuse speaker, or hopefully even a peer educator.

This all started because my freshmen year I got involved in clubs and organizations. I was so involved that the staff asked me to speak to hundreds of incoming freshmen each year about student leadership and involvement. It took me awhile, but I finally realized that this could actually be my profession. So I decided that I would use my journalism classes to build a business. Here’s how I did it:

• Step 1: Gather Materials

In order to spread the word about my service I needed marketing materials. My friend Michelle (also a Journalism major) took some killer photos for me, and my other friend Nathan (Radio TV Film major) helped me put together a demo video.

• Step 2: Create Marketing Basics

I used the materials to create a website in my Online Publishing class. I had learned some basics from my Worldwide Web Site Development class and this one gave me a broader skill set. The main project was to publish our own website. While working toward an A, I was contacted by a school that found my site on Google and wanted to book me for a speaking gig!

• Step 3: Build a Platform

Since the website would be good to reach administrators and those who booked me, I needed a platform to connect with students who I hoped to influence. I started a business called Party.0 Sober Parties with my buddy and built a strong social media presence in my New & Emerging Media class. After just a semester we had a blog and Facebook page that was reaching people from all over the U.S. (and even Australia!)

Now this doesn’t pertain to my current career direction but I owe the proudest moment of my life to Dr. Hansen from the Journalism Department as well. Her projects always have pushed me and expanded my network. The summer of my sophomore year I traveled across the country to take an internship I wasn’t given, hopped from house to house each night for a place to stay, put on an amazing music festival, and had the best experience of my life. I found this opportunity because of an interview we had to do for her Principles of Public Relations class.

Thanks UW-Oshkosh for having a sweet Journalism department and great people to keep it growing! I couldn’t have done all this without you!

 

Jake White

-Alcohol Safety/ Motivational Speaker

-Co-Founder of Party.0 Sober Parties

-Chancellor’s Award for Excellence Winner 2013

 -Call or text me at 920.216.1827

“Life After College” Panel to Explore Career Insights – 3 p.m. Thursday

Are you wondering about how to navigate the job market after graduation and as your career evolves? Journalism students are welcome to hear three recent graduates speak about “Life After College” from 3-5 p.m. Thursday in Sage 3420.

These professionals, all 2009 graduates from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Department of Journalism, will discuss their experiences during the last five years. They will discuss what to expect in job interviews, how to get an interview, when to think about changing jobs and when to consider graduate school.

Via a panel format, students may ask about concerns or issues. The event is particularly geared for students graduating soon.

The panelists include:

Craig Bollig – Digital asset management advisor, Widen Enterprises

As a student, Bollig participated in the Bateman campaign and Advertising Club, and also served as president of the Dr. Julie Henderson PRSSA Chapter. He held internships with EAA, Zeppos & Associates, and E-Power Marketing. After graduation, he was hired as a search engine marketing specialist for E-Power Marketing. In 2010, he joined Widen Enterprises, where he consults with companies like Mercury Marine, the Atlanta Falcons and Trek Bicycle, to deploy cloud-based solutions for marketing managers.

Jessica Faris – Account executive, Clear Channel Media & Entertainment

Faris also was active in department groups and events, including the National Student Advertising Competition, PRSSA, SPJ and the Advertising Club, for which she served as secretary. She held various internships, including social media roles with Reeve Student Union. After graduation, she worked at Coalesce Marketing as an account coordinator / social media specialist. She moved to Madison in 2010 to work as an account manager for Florida Communications Media Group. In 2012, she joined Clear Channel Media & Entertainment as an account executive.

Jason Disbrow – Online marketing specialist, Acumium

While at UWO, Disbrow worked in internships with Career Services for graphic design and Clarity Care for marketing. After graduation, he worked as a sales representative for AT&T until landing a position as marketing brand manager for Walnut Hollow in Dodgeville, Wis. He helped launch a new product line, while also engaging in promotional work related to the web, advertising, public relations, social media and SEO marketing. He recently started a new position as online marketing specialist for Acumium.

All journalism students are welcome to attend.

Travel and Documentary Photography: Study Abroad in London, England

By: Kaila Kissinger @KailaKissinger

Document your personal experience through photography!

Every two years, the UW Oshkosh Journalism Department offers students a great opportunity to study abroad during spring interim.  As it turns out, 2013 marks the next experience abroad! This spring, students will join professor Dr. Timothy Gleason on his Travel and Documentary Photography trip to London, England.  In London, students will focus on documentary photography, the photographic study of places, people and rituals.

So let’s get this straight…the study abroad is all about taking pictures in a foreign country?  Well…not exactly.

On this trip students will learn and develop photo techniques and video skills all while gaining firsthand knowledge about the English culture and how to use ‘the Tube’ in London.

Piccadilly Circus in London, England Photo credit: visitlondon.com

Here is a taste of some places and activities that are on the itinerary for 2013:

• Piccadilly Circus
• Portobello Market
• Trafalgar Square
• Buckingham Palace
• Blenheim Palace
• Cambridge walking tour – Oxford train trip
• Suggested punting on Cam

With all of the amazing sites to see in London, Dr. Gleason has incorporated a lot of free time for students to explore the city on their own.  The most popular must-sees include: The London Eye, The Tower of London, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.

Aside from being a great experience for students, study abroad is something to put on a resume when applying for jobs or internships. For aspiring photographers, the photos you take while on this trip can be included in your portfolio.

Pre-requisites for participating in the course are Intro to Journalism (JOURN 141) and Media Photo I (JOURN 239).  This unique experience is available for all students; not just journalism majors or minors. Students without the pre-requisites noted above can be accepted into the program by the instructor.

Already signed up for this program? Check out some of Dr. Gleason’s travel trips here!

For those who are interested or are unable to sign up for this year’s trip, be sure to look for it again in Spring 2015!

Walk This Way, The Internship of a Lifetime

By: Taylor Anthonsen (@TaylorAnthonsen)

Great internships can be difficult to come by. I would like to share my unique experience as an intern for motivational speaker, and personal friend, Ronnie Bachman. In my junior year of high school, I was taken to an assembly about bullying and harassment, hosted by Ronnie Bachman. Ronnie was born with a severe birth defect resulting in the amputation of his legs. Having grown up in inner-city Detroit as a double amputee, he has been through a lot and had much advice to share. I saw the faces in the room change as he spoke; the tears glistening under the house lights. Ronnie changed my life that day, but I had no idea what was to come.

I had the opportunity to interview Ronnie on behalf of our student newspaper, The Rowdy Report. That interview became a friendship that will last a lifetime. Late last fall, I decided that I wanted to help to promote Ronnie and his company, Walk This Way. Inspired by the Aerosmith song, the “Walk This Way” message stands for walking Ronnieʼs way: taking a path of kindness and respect despite the negative influences we may encounter.

Because of my efforts, Ronnie has given me the opportunity to be a part of his Walk This Way team as his Media and Public Relations Assistant. While he tours to hundreds of schools and companies this year, I will operate his Facebook page, his recently activated Twitter page and his personal website. Ronnie has an amazing number of people reach out to him. Kids who are bullied in school and their parents are thankful for his inspiring message that changes their children’s lives. I have hired Ronnie to speak here at UWO on behalf of Communication Club this semester. It is my responsibility to solidify all funding for his presentation including co-sponsorships from various campus organizations. He will be speaking on Tuesday, April 9th, at 7:00 p.m. in the Reeve Ballroom in honor of Disabilities Awareness Week. Ronnie will share his inspiring story, explain the importance of acceptance in diverse communities with emphasis on breaking stereotypes, and give tips for overcoming adversity for a successful future.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! I encourage you to attend Ronnieʼs presentation in April. There will be extensive marketing for this event, so check your emails and the posters around campus! Please follow Ronnie on Twitter and check out his Facebook page: Walk This Way Ronnie Bachman. If your organization would like to co-sponsor Ronnieʼs presentation or help with the marketing for his event, email me at anthot18@uwosh.edu! Meeting Ronnie was pure happenstance, but this internship is an example of what great opportunities that can happen if you network and work for a cause that you really care about. It has been my pleasure working for Walk This Way, and I wouldnʼt trade my experience for the world.

Taylor Anthonsen, Steven Tyler from Aerosmith and Ronnie Bachman

5 Things Every College Student Should Do This Thanksgiving

By: Heather Smith (@heathr_smith)

Thanksgiving is a holiday full of great food, wonderful family and late-night shopping sprees. It also means that college students get a break from class for a few days. So what can college students do over this Thanksgiving break to still be productive?

Recently, I spoke with Dr. Sara Steffes Hansen  at a Greek Life Council event on campus where we covered the topic of social media in the workplace. It is more important than ever for college students to be professional online and there are a few easy ways to turn your personal brand around in just a few minutes.

Here are five things every college student can do this Thanksgiving to be productive and go pro on their social sites:

1. Clean up your Facebook page. While you’re hanging out on the couch watching football, take some time to browse through your photos and untag or delete any that you think are inappropriate.

2. Finally snap your professional-looking photo. Considering most of us will be more dressed up than usual on Thanksgiving, ask a family member to take a photo of you in your professional-looking attire and use it as your new profile picture on LinkedIn or Twitter.

3. Connect with your family on LinkedIn. Everyone wants more LinkedIn connections.  Networking with your family this Thanksgiving and connecting with them professionally can open more doors for you in the future and is an easy way to increase your connections.

4. Update your privacy settings. Chances are, the privacy settings on most sites have changed since the last time they were updated. While you’re scrolling through Facebook or Twitter, take a minute to go through your privacy settings and adjust them according to your preferences. Helpful tips.

5. Angry Birds Star Wars. We can’t all be professionals at everything. However, I think we all know that when there is time to kill, becoming a pro at Angry Birds isn’t the worst profession in the world. This Thanksgiving, check out the new Angry Birds Star Wars. You won’t be disappointed!

War: Through Their Eyes Vol. 2 Event

By: Eli Drljaca (@elidrljaca)

          Not doing anything this Friday, Nov. 9? Consider this: War through Their Eyes, vol. 2: Warriors and Nurses. Sit back and relax at 5:30 p.m. in the Reeve theater room and enjoy a multimedia presentation about the stories of five war veterans that were or are currently students of the nursing program here at UW-Oshkosh.

The multimedia presentation will be accompanied by a photo exhibition at the Steinhilber gallery showing the stories of these veterans as they made their ways all over the world practicing in the medical field. The locations where the veterans have been vary from Vietnam to the Middle East.

The event is run by Grace Lim, a journalism professor here at UW-Oshkosh. There is a great amount of contribution from Grace’s students toward this event and the organization.

“My journalism students interviewed five veterans who are either current or alumni in the College of Nursing.” Lim said, “They each wrote 2,500-3,000 word profiles about these veterans which was published in an 80-page book. My students also produced several audio podcasts that will be available on the Beyond Classroom Walls website.”

Beyond Classroom Walls is also a great reference to find out more about professors in a much more personal manner with stories and interesting facts about them. The site also has a section for this event as well describing what it is all about.

There is also a very well described question and answer page about the event done by UW Oshkosh Today
which covers all questions you may have for the event. Even if you’re not a nursing student, this is a great event to hear about some life changing experiences. We will also be posting a follow up blog post how the event was so if you miss it, you can come back here and check for event coverage.

Who’s Ready to Vote?

By: Eli Drljaca (@elidrljaca)

With election day just hours away, it’s getting to the point where you can’t even watch a single YouTube video or listen to more than one song on Pandora without hearing an advertisement about the 2012 U.S. Presidential Election.

Being a college student is hard enough, constantly buried in homework and studying, so for some of us we think that there isn’t enough time to get out and vote. I have some good news for you! Whether you’re the type of person who thinks that their vote won’t make a difference at all, or the type that rushes to get their early voting ballot done and sent in, the deadline is just hours away with the election being on Nov. 6.

Now there are a couple ways to go about voting, luckily I’ve broken down your options and have given you some good sites to get information:

• My Vote Wisconsins webpage will help you in regards to finding the nearest voting center in your area. It’s so simple, all you have to do is fill in your information, and it does the rest for you!
• Long Distance Voter is an easy way to get yourself an absentee ballot. It takes you through the steps of getting ahold of your municipal clerk, then they mail you the ballot.
• Wisconsinvote.org has great FAQs about registration and voting.
• Also, take a look at the Advance-Titan, it covered an article this week covering some of the basis of voting. They also have a very nice map showing voting centers in Oshkosh.

If you haven’t decided who to vote for yet, now’s the time to quick head to the website of both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama and read up on what their visions are for our country’s future. Also, you can check out The Guardian to take a look at video clips from the presidential debates.

Stand Out and Set Yourself Apart

By: Barbara Benish (@NEWSPA)

Take the extra step. Run that extra mile. Do whatever it takes.

No matter how you phrase it, it’s clear that if you want to get a job or internship in today’s market, you need to stand out from the crowd.

But how do you do that? Well, that depends on you.

Spring 2012 alumna Patti Werner took that step when she applied to ModCloth last spring. “I found out about ModCloth in November 2010. I distinctively remember clicking on their Facebook ad, going to the website, and falling in love with it.”

Werner explains that she is a visual person, so she liked that the site was aesthetically pleasing. It was so pleasing that she constantly went back to visit the website and blog. The more she learned, the more she liked about the company.

So she started researching the company and learned that an internship was available for the summer. Coincidentally, the owner of Zimride, the business where her boyfriend was interning in California, knew the owner of ModCloth and agreed to hand Werner’s resume directly to the owners of the online clothing store.

But to make it even better, when she visited her boyfriend during spring break, ZimRide made arrangements that she could tour ModCloth. “Talk about crazy networking,” Werner said.

“All I had was graphic design posters, and they wanted writing samples, too,” Werner said. “So a friend and I came up with idea to copy their website and make it look like I was selling myself.”

That was just enough to get a response from ModCloth. In the end, she did not end up taking the internship at the online clothing store. The important thing is she got a response. She set herself apart from the competition.

She’s not the first to do that; and she certainly won’t be the last. The Internet is full of examples of recent graduates and seasoned professionals setting themselves apart. Here are some of my favorites:

• SlideShare.net —Develop your own PowerPoint presentation, upload it to SlideShare.net and promote it through your networks and on your website. Slides can include information about your skills, projects you’ve completed, an endorsement from a manager, etc.
• QR codes — Share a quick response (QR) code on your social networks to direct an employer back to your website.
• Viral Videos or Develop a Video Resume to showcase your personality and skills to employers

• 

  Viral Video Resume

• Pinterest Search “resume” on Pinterest and you’ll find thousands of hits.  You can pin pictures of the companies you’ve worked for, the school you’ve attended and places you’ve volunteered at.  This viral medium can provide a multi-dimensional representation and will set you far apart from the typical two-dimensional resume.

Example of “resume” Pinterest board collection

• Be your own advertisement. When the 28-year-old copywriter Alec Brownstein wanted a new job, he did this using the tool Google Ad Words. He purchased his favorite creative directors’ names on Google Ad words assuming that they would Google themselves as often as the next person.  It turns out he was right. So anytime someone ran a search for one of those creative directors, this is what showed up on the screen: (Needless to say, he got job offers from two of those creative directors.)

“Hey, Gooogling [sic] yourself is a lot of fun. Hiring me is fun, too” alecbrownstein.com

So what are you waiting for?  It’s time for you to stand out from the crowd and land your dream job!

Life of a Non-traditional Student

By: Tim Thiede (@DJ_Tim_T)

Over the past five to ten years many universities and vocational colleges have seen an increase of adults on their campuses. With the increasing number of adults returning to school the term “non-traditional student” may come to pass as the presence of adult students has become more commonplace.

What exactly sparks the interest of many adults returning to universities to earn a degree?  Reasons can vary from the struggling economy, to advancing a career and to following a dream. The struggling economy is a relevant factor for many adults returning to school.

For me the choice was a result of these two factors: achieving a dream and advancing into a career that I have always desired.

When I returned to school I attended a two-year institution before deciding to attend full time. I made this decision because I wanted to major in radio/TV/film and earn a minor in journalism. The two-year institution did not have many of the classes I needed, so the Radio/TV/Film and Journalism programs at UW-Oshkosh were highly recommended to me. I am now a full-time student one year away from a degree.

When returning to college, one has many things to consider. Some of these factors can be a big issue, while others may not be as critical as they seem. With one year away from my degree, here are the challenges I encountered:

 Financial Obligations

As one grows older, the amount of items you make payments and the number of bills you pay only increases. Other than dealing with appendix cancer, this has been my biggest obstacle while being a full-time student. I am still paying on a house I am trying to sell and have car payments, but with assistance from financial aid and various other loans I am living a dream.

Becoming Part of the Campus Community

This can be one of the biggest obstacles to many non-traditional students. Do not be afraid to say “hi” to students younger than you. You will be surprised how much they can make you feel part of the campus community. Getting involved in organizations, especially those connected with your major, can help you feel like a part of the university. The non-traditional student office at UW-Oshkosh can provide you with information about various ways to get involved.

Housing

If you have a long way to commute or are unable to pay monthly fees to rent an apartment, the UW-Oshkosh campus does provide housing covered through student loans. Usually, adult students are placed in a housing community with other adult students and traditional upper classmen. Many people within the community are friendly and make you feel at home.

When it comes down to making the final decision, weighing the factors may help. There are many other factors to be covered and if you wish to find out more, check out my YouTube video.

From my experience, the only way to be successful in returning to college is to have the “mindset” that you want to return. The desire is what makes your learning experience satisfying.

Innovative technology rekindles relationship between journalists and social media

By: Jonathan Dailey  (@Jdailey7354)

The rapid growth of social media has transformed the platform into a source of basic news for many people. Many key stories leak on social media sites as soon as they happen.  This has created an opportunity for professional journalists to roll out a story much faster than the mainstream media.

Ironically, one major problem journalists are facing is the ease of creating and sharing information through social networks.  Today, anyone can take control over the credibility of content. This has raised concerns about how easily there can be a spread of misinformation by non-professional journalists, whether it be accidently or intentionally.

Since professional journalists need to act ethically and hold responsibility in reporting the truth, using social media has become difficult.  It can pose as a real challenge to filter out false information from true stories, especially when it involves the hottest breaking news. However, this problem may eventually become one of the past due some innovative breakthroughs in technology that are starting to take place.

Researchers at Rutgers University and Microsoft Corporation have teamed up to develop a new program called Seriously Rapid Source Review or SRSR.  This program is still under development but when fully completed it will give journalists access to accurate, breaking news like never before.

The program will act as a “sieve” sifting through social media sites like Twitter and Facebook searching for things like: credible eyewitnesses, reports, images and video in order to sort the credible information from the false.

Nick Diakopoulos, one of SRSR’s project authors, stated in a blog post that: “the program was built to deal with how much news is breaking on social media these days… Its features should help journalists distinguish accurate and trustworthy sources.”

In my opinion, the sky is the limit for what can be accomplished using social media, especially in the fields of Journalism, Advertising, Marketing, and Public Relations. It’s going to be very exciting to see what other innovations lie ahead in the future, while SRSR serves as just one example of an innovative technology developed to overcome the obstacles in the field of journalism.