Com 435 Poster Project

For the Com 435 poster project we were asked to create a poster on an emerging technology. For my poster I chose to do a new emerging technology program, school of one. This program is funded by the New York City Department of Education and was created to advance our elementary and high schools into the future. The program uses emerging technology and software to cater to students learning abilities, as well as, prepare them for the future, which will be full of high tech devices and ways of learning through computer related tasks. A good thing about School of One is that its not just another online program, but instead mixes old styles of learning with new styles to create a new program that helps students learn at their own pace. Look for School of One being implemented in a elementary or high school near you soon!

For more information, check out the products website:
http://schools.nyc.gov/community/innovation/SchoolofOne/default.htm

Instant messaging in the workplace

When I worked at Chase this summer in downtown Indianapolis I was introduce to a new technology being implemented in the workplace: Same time. This technology is very similar to AIM, or MSN instant messenger, but is used solely to contact co-workers through your computer without leaving your desk and to have a conversation without actually speaking.

The chatter was replaced by tapping on keyboards often followed by a sporadic, out-of-place laugh. Instant messaging is already taking over the office environment.

Companies are seeing the benefit of this, rolling out enterprise solutions to improve communication, internal and with suppliers, vendors and clients.

Of all those millions of people who use IM in the workplace, 40% are doing so without the authorisation or knowledge of their IT department.

This unmonitored IM access creates huge problems for companies.

• Excessive personal use is a sure fire way to drive down productivity
• Sensitive and confidential company information can be broadcast with no safeguards
• The standard policies around appropriate content in the workplace are not imposed
• IT security protocols are circumvented allowing the network to be exposed to malware
• In regulated companies, compliance rules and procedures are bypassed and ignored

IM will be implemented in every business, of that there is no doubt. In order to be effective companies will need to be ahead of the curve, implementing policies and solutions which best suit their needs and are aligned to their goals.

Communication and Emerging Technologies of 2009

This coming week we are required to create posters about an emerging technology to share with the class. As I was doing research for this particular project, I came across Time Magazines 50 best inventions of 2009. I thought this was an interesting article. There are many different gadgets, products, ideas and programs that were invented this year that may change the way we think, act and move in the future. These inventions range from NASA Are's Rocket to the 10 million dollar light bulb.

I have compiled a short list of my favorite ones:

The Smart Thermostat

the EnergyHub Dashboard, a little device, with a screen, that can talk wirelessly to your furnace and your various appliances and let you know exactly how much electricity (or gas) each one is using and how much it's costing you. It can also turn appliances on and off and raise or lower the temperature in your house so you can rein in the real power hogs.

The $20 Knee

A team of Stanford engineering students has designed a knee that's not only dirt cheap — just $20 — but also mimics the natural joint's movements. The JaipurKnee comprises five pieces of plastic and four nuts and bolts. It requires no special tools and takes just a few hours to manufacture.

The High-Speed Helicopter

Sikorsky's X2 Technology helicopter aims to annihilate that speed barrier. Unlike ordinary choppers, which pair a single rotor on top with an antitorque tail rotor, the X2 has two main rotors spinning in opposite directions and an airplane-like propeller at the rear. This highly stable setup should allow the X2 to cruise at a zippy 290 m.p.h. (467 km/h) — about the same speed as some small turboprop planes.

Communication jobs and technology, how will this change our view of the world?

Recently, we have been discussing the future of technology and many of my classes, especially Com435. The idea of technology being the next big step in careers in our society, is an excited, yet scary idea. We worry about outsourcing jobs, not just to other people in other countries, but to computers and technologies that seemed to be able to work faster, create better products and produce more revenue that the average human. But unfortunately as good as technology is in developing our society, it leaves many of our potential employees in the dark. We get these degrees in college to know the tricks of the trade and to be able to complete tasks, but if we don't know how to operate the equipment and technology that are advancing these trades, we are left with no knowledge of how to do the job that will advance our careers.

So what do we do? How do we solve this problem of communication jobs and emerging technologies? That is the question I am addressing here today. I want to know your thoughts on how emerging technologies and jobs can work hand in hand to better our society, rather than work against each other in competing for positions.

Internships. Are they necessary for landing a job?

I'm getting closer and closer to graduation, and several school officials have expressed to me that they wish me to get an internship before graduation. That's all well and good, but first, I really don't have time for one between full-time school and full-time work . Second, a good half of the internships that they're trying to hook me up with aren't paid internships.

They make it seem like if I don't do an internship, I'll never get anything more than an entry level job, ever (yes, I've told them my current job situation) Anyway, bottom line is, are internships really necessary for success? In my situation, is real-world, full-time job experience in my field good enough?

In my personal opinion, i have not had a internship specific to my field of study, but i have had work experience. And i think that is what employers are looking for, experience. You can take any experience and look at the core values, and operations of that company and relate it to another company.

But, most experts say that it is important to land an internship. And it this economy, even if you are graduating in the Spring, you might not be landing a full-time position as an employee right off the bat, and here is where internships might be useful to you.

Communication Skills are ESSENTIAL in the job market

I never thought that job hunting was ever going to be easy, especially in the midst of a recession; but I also hadn’t anticipated having my normal speech taken away from me so swiftly either.

Every application I look at seems to say that it is essential to have excellent communication skills, especially in the field of Human Resources, Public Relations, Coordination and many others.

Most jobs require someone with good communication skills. But its not only important to be able to hold a conversation, but have an extensive vocabulary.I would argue that it is easier to have good communication skills with an average vocabulary. If you don’t know how to talk flourished, it is harder to talk above others who may feel you are just trying to make them feel less intelligent than you. What is more important than knowing big words is knowing how to use the “small” words that you do know properly.

Learn proper grammar, and you will do much better with communication. Also, learning how to speak, such as body language and non-verbal, will go a long way toward making you look intelligent without making you look arrogant (which is the biggest problem facing those who know words like loquacious).

If you still feel you would prefer using “big” words, make sure you know how to use them properly. :)

Although the economy may be showing signs of recovery, companies that are hiring are still few and far between in communication fields.

If you are looking for a job in the PR industry, there have been signs of growth as well, as agencies have reported adding mid-level and senior-level staff and corporate recruiters have noticed increased interest from clients. Yet, this doesn't mean that there is going to be a free for all when it coming to the hiring process, companies are mentioning that they are going to be prudent in the upcoming quarters.

Many economists say that health care is strong across the board in hiring, from pharmaceutical to nonprofits to the b-to-b companies. But, even job seekers in the PR industry are remaining cautious as they weigh the uncertainties of a new company or industry.

Overall, it is important to remember that you are not in this boat alone, and that across teh nation there are companies, as well as, job seekers being cautious and waiting, as we see 2009 come to an end, to see what 2010 has in store for our economy.

The Professional Forum: Recruiting Tomorrow's Leaders Today

The College of Liberal Art Professional Forum is coming Beering this coming November 3rd. Here is an explanation of what this event entails: The Liberal Arts Student Council and the College of Liberal Arts Career Development Center hosts an annual graduate/professional school, career and internship fair called The Professional Forum .

The day includes company presentations, panel discussions lead by Purdue alumni, company representatives, and graduate school recruiters, and a traditional career/internship and graduate school fair in the afternoon. The day is topped off with a formal networking social event that evening. The Professional Forum will be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2009, in the Purdue Memorial Union Ballrooms.

http://www.cla.purdue.edu/students/careers/events/career_fair.html
This exciting event is a great way to Network with potential companies, graduate schools, as well as, internships. Its important in these hard economic times to network because you never know who will be able to help you land the job. The Key is to network, network, network!

Media and Communication Careers

I found this interesting website that helps college students find careers in fields they might seem interested in.

Check it out: Media and Communication Careers, Jobs and Training Information Media and Communication is a multibillion dollar industry that offers dedicated professionals a myriad of exciting and lucrative career opportunities. This pages provides a list of links to information on popular media and communication careers. To find detailed information on job opportunities, training requirements, earning and career descriptions for a specific media or communications field make your selection from the list below. Take your time to read through all of the information we provide and we're confident you find just what you're looking for.

TV, Radio and Sports Announcers, Broadcast and Sound Engineering Technicians, and Radio Operators, Language Interpreters, and Translators, News Analysts, Reporters, and Correspondents, Photography, Public Relations Specialists, Television, Video, and Motion Picture Camera Operators, and Editors: Writing and Editing

I hope everyone is familiar with Twitter. And if you aren't then you just aren't technology savy. I first heard about twitter a little over a year ago. I was working with my cousin to help her launch her new line a beauty products: Glory Dead Sea http://www.deadseaglory-us.com/index.php. She asked me to try to get the company on twitter so that they could start accomodating to a new crowd. After working on this project for my cousin, i found this article that discussed Twitter as an opening for Communication Degrees as a Career for companies. http://www.newsweek.com/id/184656


Dr. Pamela Rutledge wrote this following article to discuss the ideas presented in the above link:

This article underscores the importance of looking at new media with an open-mind. Too many people I know, when faced with media that is not indigenous to their technological coming of age, spend way too long explaining why something isn’t important (or worse, is dangerous) without trying to their outside their initial reaction and looking to see how the technology is being used and experienced. As a media psychologist, I’m kind of fixated on that experience thing. Piles of psychological research shows that humans are social animals that need to be connected to others, and, among other things, that interpersonal connections are essential for mental and physical health, and that different people have different connection styles. A lot of people fretted and tried to prove that Web 2.0 technology was going to isolate people and deprive them of their social skill repertoire. With interpersonal connections such a big theme in human lives, why are so many people surprised to find out that social networks, like Twitter and Facebook, become real connections, even 140 characters at a time? These social connections have enormous impact on how information is passed along and how trust and credibility is established, but by entirely new routes and rules. The Newsweek article says:While some microbloggers are who they say they are, plenty of celeb feeds (Ryan Seacrest’s, U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s, Barack Obama’s) are actually being penned by folks like the one Spears sought out. And the skills she required—experience launching online communities, addiction to MySpace and Facebook, graphic design experience, and a love for “creating relationships”—are the same ones companies need as they venture onto Twitter. That explains why, on the corporate side, business are relying on in-house publicists, marketing managers and new professional blogging firms like Twit4hire to helm their accounts.The article excerpt show how how professions will emerge in response to technological innovation. (Twit4Hire may be the best name of all time.) Parents need to embrace the idea that when kids say they don’t know what they want to be when they grow up, they mean it; they don’t even know what the choices will be.
http://mprcenter.org/blog/2009/02/14/new-communication-rules-bring-new-communication-careers/

Catching Up Sunday, Life after college

Since last weekend was October break i haven't gotten the chance to catch up on my blog postings to here it goes! Today i want to talk about how schools are preparing communication majors for the "real world" compared to other majors, especially at Purdue. Last Friday, i had a meeting with my advisor to discuss my final semester of my college career here at Purdue University. At this meeting, after we had finalized the credits I needed to graduate, we began a discussion on the topic of preparation for the real world. This conversation emphasised the need for the College of Liberal Arts to put more emphasis on students finding information for internships in order to gain experience in a specific field, since a communications degree is such a broad option. Also, to make it more clear to the students in courses, what to expect in the real world. My advisor is quoted saying "The college of liberal arts can not expect every student to come out of the program to become either a advisor for the department, a researcher for the department or a professor. We as a department need to prepare the students for the real world outside of academia." I think she is right. If you look at other schools here at Purdue, you see much more emphasis put on finding experience through internships, or research aids, as well as, work studies, in order to prepare their students for what is most important life after college. For example, one of my roommates is a management major. In the Krannert School of Management, academic advisers, as well as department heads and professors pushes the concept of competition not only in the academic setting, but also in the idea of the real world job search and maintaining positions in these jobs. Another example, is my current boyfriend just graduated from Purdue with a degree in Nuclear Engineering. In the engineering field, where most of the school puts it focus on, they encourage internships, research participation and have one of the largest career fairs in the Midwest. Overall, I am just trying to emphasis the point that, the College of Liberal Arts, as much as they try to prepare you for your future through courses relevant to communication research, they do a poor job of preparing students for the reality of life after college.

Sail your boat towards your lighthouse made up of dreams.

After going to a conference presentation by Rusty Rueff ( He is a really intelligent man, who worked his way to the top from graduating with a com degree to becoming CEO of a company...his website is www.rustyrueff.com), I realized that sometimes even though you pick a specific field, a lot of times your dream job will waver down a different path awhile. Rusty used to analogy: Your dream is like a lighthouse, and you want to sail yourself toward this dream, but as most people know with a sailboat, you must waver back and forth in order to make a direct path. This wavering can be considered the different experiences you have in your careers, that lead your towards that dream, or maybe even change it a little. So, remember even though you might have a specific field and goal in mind for your communication degree, sometimes life experiences alter that goal, but its all about how you sail your boat.

Career Fair: Just the start for the race to find a job

Last week, I went to a job fair at Purdue Univeristy for Hotel and Tourism Management. This would be my first career fair here at Purdue, because in the past I was never really encouraged by my professors or my advisors to attend a career fair until junior and senior year of college. Since I haven't ever participated in such an event, I took it into consideration to use the tool Purdue University provided for me, such as the CCO (career center for opportunities) and seminars on interviewing for job positions. The CCO was a great help when it came to preparing for the Career fair. I met with a counselor several times to go over my resume and perfect it. I recommend utilizing all of your resources in order to be greatly prepared for the job search endeavour. Although after talking to over a half a dozen companies, including Marriott, Starwood Resorts, and Entertainment Cruises. I heard many of the same answers: "We are glad you are interested in working with us, but unfortunately we are not able to hire for full time positions at the moment, but if you would like to apply for an internship with our company, that will sure to be a help to get your foot in the door" My advice to those searching for jobs in the near future, the answer to obtaining a career within your desired field might be starting with an internship with that company. So be aggressive and start searching!

At the beggining

So, the final semester of your senior year in college is coming to an end. Now what? That's what most college students are saying today in this economy. With the economy in the slumps, college students who graduate with a communication major are finding it more and more difficult to find jobs in their specific fields. This blog will be used to comment on the economy and how it relates to finding jobs for communication majors right out of college.