This past summer I made the decision to change major from Criminology & Sociology to Journalism. This meant a change from the college of Liberal Arts to the College of Communications. At first I was a bit nervous and scared to fall behind, but I soon discovered that the College of Communications had all the tools I needed to fall right into place and make me feel more prepared than ever before.

College of Comm students anchoring in The Game

The Communications website has everything current and future students might need to succeed at Penn State, along with upcoming events and activities. There you can find information on anything you need from on campus opportunities, academics, to internship opportunities and graduate studies.

I would say my favorite parts of the Communications school are:

• The email listserv:
  The listserv provides us with a number of opportunities daily from internships to on campus jobs and everything else you could imagine. All emails come with details on how to apply and who to contact for more information. I actually got the opportunity to intern with the Undergraduate Admissions office because of these emails!
• Advising:
  The advisers in the College of Communications are very easy to get into contact with and are always willing to help the students out. I remember feeling so nervous before my adviser appointment to change my major and after I went in I came out so excited to start my new semester. My advisor even emails us every once in a while just to check in and make sure everything is going well!
• Events & Speakers:
  At University Park it is very common to have speakers come on campus and give lectures. The College of Communications is very big on this and I have attended many myself. The range of topics covered is very diverse and we are lucky to go to a school that lets us enjoy these speakers usually for free. Not only are speakers common, but also events to help you succeed in the future, such as resume building workshops.
• Hands on classes:
  This semester I’m taking COMM 260w, which is a news writing class, and I’m so impressed by it. The teacher gives us writing assignments every day, so we get to practice and improve our skills a lot. The other day he even brought in a speaker for us to conduct our own press conference with. It was so exciting to get to practice real life skills like that!
• Career Services:
  If you are trying to get a job or an internship for any semester or for the summer this is the place to go! Career Services has a huge database filled with job opportunities they can help you apply to. Thanks to this I got to look through hundreds of options for an internship this summer.