So, I don't usually do this with my blog. I like to keep things on the internet at a distance from my personal life. Yeah, I'll be sarcastic and witty, I'll give you my opinion on the latest album or film, and I'll even post pictures of myself. But I don't really ever discuss what's going on in my day-to-day. So here is a little glimpse of what's happening behind all these posts.
The Olympics are over, all the blockbuster summer movies have come (and most of them are gone), and here we are at the footstep of another school year. But this time it's a little different, you see, this is my last year of school. This is my last first day of the fall semester. I am one more day closer to finishing my degree and moving to the next phase of my life. And I'm excited, anxious, scared, happy, sad, and determined. I can't wait to get to that next phase, but I also know how crucial it is to savor these last few moments. I've thoroughly enjoyed the experiences I've had thus far: the people I've met, adventures I've been on, and the opportunities I've had. I have a couple of big events in my education coming up this last year that I feel could be really life changing and I plan on making the most of it.
The first is that I'm attending the PRSSA National Conference in San Francisco this October. The PRSSA is the Public Relations Student Society of America and there are several chapters of this society all around the nation. It's like the official club for PR students. I'm going to the conference to schmooze with PR professionals, learn more about PR, and all for the end goal of finding a good job when I graduate. I think this will be a great opportunity to gain some experience and get my foot in the door.
The second is that I'm going to be a part of the Bateman Case Study competition that goes on from October to March. This competition is also a part of the PRSSA and the top three teams win a cash prize. UVU (where I attend) has received honorable mention the past three years (which is how long they've been a part of the PRSSA, so that's pretty neat). I know this all sounds pretty impressive, but you're probably wondering what the heck a case study is. Well, I'll tell you. The whole purpose of Public Relations is to increase credibility, visibility, and valuation. To do that, a case study is often needed. Case studies take a company and look at what is going wrong in their company and try to fix it, or recognize an opportunity the company may have to increase their visibility, credibility, or valuation and propose that they implement the plan. The end result of a case study is a PR campaign. You see PR campaigns on a daily basis: commercials, company events, social gatherings hosted by a company, "liking" a company on Facebook, etc. So, PR case studies require a lot of research, creative thinking, a good handling of a budget (these campaigns typically don't get much to spend), and a bit of luck to really be profitable for a company. The Bateman Case Study competition is a for-real case study. It's not a mock or pretend thing. We're given real money and a real opportunity to run not only the case study but also the campaign. We'll have from October to January to research and plan a campaign, and February to execute and measure how successful the campaign was. It will be stressful and time consuming, but it's a real hands-on opportunity. This means when I go to a job interview, I'll have some very real experiences and can be an automatic asset to the company in which I'm interviewing.
I'm not saying all this to brag, but more like a "hey guys, this is really cool and I'm so so glad I've been given this chance." I'm excited about the possibilities. Mostly, I'm looking forward to being done. Most of my friends have moved on, are getting their masters degrees or PHD's and I'll just be finishing my BS at the age of 26. At the same time, I have friends that aren't really happy with their career choices or are still wondering what they're going to do when they grow up. I'm a late bloomer in regards to my education, but I am so happy that I'm not only graduating, but I'm graduating in something I have a passion for and I can't wait to get in the game and show the world what I've got. I feel like I've gained a lot of life lessons and I recognize that life doesn't always turn out as planned. I feel like I'm a more mature graduate and though my hopes for career success are optimistic, I'm also realistic. I know its going to be a long road before I'll be working in my ideal position. But I have also made steps to make my odds for a job right after graduation in my favor. Overall, I'm confident and content of the path before me. And while I've got all these emotions running through my veins at once, there is an overriding sense of peace. So here's to the beginning of the end! For all of you who are also going to school, good luck. And for those of you who are also finishing up this year, I hope you're just as excited and content as I. Cheers!
