Communication Graduates On the Road to Success

Recent graduates of Bowling Green State University are doing amazing things with their degrees. The new alumni are receiving jobs and recognition for their hard work and are excited and enthusiastic about beginning their careers in the field of media and communication.

Among the successful recent graduates is Drew Ashby King, who served as Freddie Falcon, the University mascot. King is excited to continue his education and work toward a Master of Science in College Student Personnel at the University of Tennessee. He hopes to take what he has learned from BGSU and “build [his] theoretical knowledge.” He plans to apply all he has learned to “make a positive impact on the campus community.”

Katie Webb, a communication graduate who served as Frieda Falcon, is thrilled to be a recent graduate of BGSU. She secured a job in April, about a month before graduating, with Girl Scouts of Western Ohio in Dayton. Webb was a Girl Scout from kindergarten through sixth grade. “What also made me consider a career in Girl Scouts was the passion I redeveloped for the organization through the work I did in my sorority, Kappa Delta.”

Webb not only renewed her passion for the Girl Scouts organization, but also found a new passion for her major in communication with the help of some supportive teachers and mentors. “Dr. Hanasono really showed me what it means to be passionate about communication. It was one of the first classes I took in my major that made me realize why I wanted to be in the COMM department.” Webb listed others who have influenced her college career such as Joanne Somme, “one of the best professors I had” who really cared about  her students and their success.

Riley Matthew Lane, another May 2017 graduate, received a degree in communication, with a minor in military science. Lane was involved with the ROTC program and began receiving active duty pay a week after graduating. He was a commissioned 2nd Lt. and graduated in the top 20 percent of his class. He was also awarded the President’s Award for academic achievement.
   
    “Between your freshman and sophomore year, even in your junior year, every semester that you can, take 18 credit hours,” Lane recommends. He explains that by pushing yourself and focusing on academics early on in your college career, you will free yourself up to assume more responsibilities your senior year and take on the opportunities that you aren’t necessarily assigned to do, but want to be a part of.
   
    Taking the right steps to secure your position outside of college can help you feel more comfortable with the idea of leaving the University. Emily Helm, a communication major with a minor in general business and psychology, says she is happy to be graduated, but it is “also surreal.” She had thought about returning to school for her master's degree after graduating, but things changed when she attended a national conference for campus recreation programs across the country in Washington, D.C. (NIRSA). “I brought resumes with me and decided to submit some to various schools. I interviewed with a handful of schools and was offered a marketing assistantship position with VCU’s RecSports department before I left the conference.”
   
    Graduates of Bowling Green State University are taking charge of their futures and working hard towards building their new careers; taking the skills and knowledge they acquired from Bowling Green State University with them.