For my second upperclassman interview, I spoke with a student named Bill, who is also a Strategic Communications major. Since I am double majoring, I decided it would be most beneficial if I was able to interview an upperclassman from each major. Bill decided on studying communication because he really wanted to work with people, and he hopes to use his degree for a career in Public Relations. Starting off in college, though, he had wanted to go into business, but decided communications was a better fit; instead he is working toward a business minor. Since he will not be graduating until next Spring, he is not sure where he will be working after he graduates, but definitely wants to move to California. Moving on through the interview, Bill gave me the advice to practice communication with everything I do on a daily basis. Practice it, recognize different forms of it, and analyze the media. He said that once he really began to focus on things in his daily life, it was much easier to understand the concepts and gain a better perspective.

This year, I completed 20 service hours as a requirement for HSS, but it impacted me more than I thought it would. Most of my hours were spent making homemade string bracelets and cards through the club called Buckeyes For a Cause. These items were then sent to Nationwide hospital and given to the children who are patients there. Although this was something very simple, it made me feel like I could brighten someone’s day, which is an amazing feeling. It made me ask myself what else I could do, and it gave me the idea to help visit kids at the hospital. I am currently emailing the hospital to see how we can put this into action.

Another event I attended was Buckeyethon, which was a dance marathon that raised funds for children battling cancer. Other than raising the money, we were able to interact with several of the kids who are currently fighting cancer and kids who are cancer-free. We talked, told jokes, and some of the kids painted on my face. Again, these actions may seem small but seeing the faces of the kids was totally worth it. I plan on dedicating more of my time to help plan this event in future years.

For this section of my G.O.A.L.S. category, I interviewed an upperclassman named Jessica Petrie who is also a Hospitality Management major. During the interview I asked her multiple questions about why she chose this career path, how she is developing her career, what struggles she has faced, and so on. So to start off, I asked her why she chose this major. She told me that she decided it would be a great fit for her because she loves to work with people and she loves to organize things; she also added in that math and science were not her best subjects. I continued to ask her, since this major is so broad, what she is specializing in. She chose to focus on careers in event planning because she loves little details, organizing, and working with people directly. Originally she wanted to be a wedding planner, but after consideration she decided it would be a better choice for her if she focused on event planning on the corporate side. Currently, she is not sure where she will be working right after college, but she is contacting multiple businesses in Cincinnati that she is interested in. Her advice for this area was to email everyone you can to find as many opportunities as possible. Her plan to start off is to become an administrative assistant and work her way up. When I asked her what her dream job would be, she gave me two answers. Her more realistic dream job, she said, was to become a corporate meeting planner for a large company because she wants to feel that her work means something and won’t end after just one event. Her actual dream job was to help plan the Olympics because she said she loves the diversity of the events and loves finding special details that take the experience to a whole new level.

Continuing on with my questions, I asked what would be a good minor to look into. She replied that personally, she has a business minor, which she finds to be very helpful. She also suggested to minor in communications if time permits; both are helpful she said. This led us to my next question, which was what were some difficulties you faced in your college experience for this major. For her, she said the business classes really challenged her because she prefers to work with people, and this was more preparation for back of the house training, not front of the house training like she wants. Other than that, she said that time management was a struggle between classes and internships. Although it was tough at times, she said that it was not impossible, and it was all worth it in the end.

Next, I asked her what kind of work and internship experience she had throughout her college career. She began out as an OA for two years, which she said really helped her to meet new people and have a basic administrative experience. She also became an orientation housing assistant, which allowed her to gain more customer service skills. Then in her junior and senior years she has been an RA, which she said has really helped her with building long-term relationships. Moving on to internships, she had her first one at Sloopy’s, where she said she did a little bit of everything. Then she had an internship at Crowne Plaza for marketing and sales, which she remembers to be very beneficial. Her last internship was with a company Lakeside, where she and 3 other people planned about 300 events in 3 months, which she also found to be very beneficial for her experience. This last question led her to give me some final tips for my future experiences. She said to be as involved as I can be, and meet as many people as I can. She said, “It is never a bad time to network!” Overall, I found her stories and answers to be very helpful, and it allowed me to prepare myself for my future endeavors.

[ “G.O.A.L.S.” is a place where students write about how their planned, current, and future activities may fit into the Honors & Scholars G.O.A.L.S.: Global Awareness, Original Inquiry, Academic Enrichment, Leadership Development, and Service Engagement. For more information, go to: http://honors-scholars.osu.edu/e-portfolio. Delete these instructions and add your own post.

Global Awareness: Students cultivate and develop their appreciation for diversity and each individual’s unique differences. For example, consider course work, study abroad, involvement in cultural organizations or activities, etc .
Original Inquiry: Honors & Scholars students understand the research process by engaging in experiences ranging from in-class scholarly endeavors to creative inquiry projects to independent experiences with top researchers across campus and in the global community. For example, consider research, creative productions or performances, advanced course work, etc.
Academic Enrichment: Honors & Scholars students pursue academic excellence through rigorous curricular experiences beyond the university norm both in and out of the classroom.
Leadership Development: Honors & Scholars students develop leadership skills that can be demonstrated in the classroom, in the community, in their co-curricular activities, and in their future roles in society.
Service Engagement: Honors & Scholars students commit to service to the community.]