Fairfield offers many majors that students are able to choose from, but sometimes narrowing down on that one specific major may be difficult.
Sophomore Tiffany Scifo, like many students at Fairfield, entered into college “undeclared.”
“It’s intimidating to see all of my friends with majors and I am still unsure what I really want,” said Scifo.
To ensure that students are aware of all the opportunities available to them at Fairfield, every department, the career planning center and the department of communication teamed up and sponsored “Careers in Communication,” an event featuring distinguished communication alumni.
This annual panel discussion took place on Monday evening in the Aloysius P. Kelly Center presentation room. The room was packed with students ranging from freshmen to seniors, either looking for jobs or just some insight into what the Communication major can do for them.
Panelists included Courtney Cunnigham ’10, Caitilin Gallagher ’09, Ali Goldberg ’11, Brenna Jordan ’07 and Brendan Monahan ’10.
Panelists were asked a number of questions all relating back to how the communication major can give anyone a chance in the job market.
“Just because you’ve never done something does not mean that you won’t be able to know how,” said Cunningham. She explained that there are many things she is often told to do at work and she knows how to do all of them, whether it deals with public relations or marketing, because her communication degree at Fairfield prepared her for it.
Cunningham is an advertising sales planner for NBC Universal’s program “Sprout.” She earned her bachelor’s degree in communication and graduated magna cum laude from Fairfield in 2010.
She works closely with research, marketing and programming departments to create effective sales pitches for “Sprout.”
Other panelists emphasized the importance of finding two solid internships before your college career is over.
“No job is too small,” said Jordan. She explained that students should never pass up an opportunity to immerse themselves in the field they love because you never know what may lead to the “dream job.”
Jordan graduated from Fairfield with a bachelor’s degree in communication in 2007. She also minored in Spanish and politics.
Jordan now serves as a talent acquisition specialist, recruiting sales, marketing, compliance, finance and entry-level employees. She also coordinates the internship program in Connecticut and New York for the company Legg Mason Global Asset Management.
The panelists discussed how having a liberal arts education and taking the core classes that Fairfield offers does help in the future with any career you may come across.
“Talking to so many different people everyday there’s a great chance that you may not know anything they’re talking about,” said Monahan. “However, I found that you can always bounce back to the core classes and find something to talk about.”
Monahan graduated with a communication degree and journalism minor in 2010. He was involved with The Mirror and HAM Channel at Fairfield.
He is currently a news reporter at New England Cable News and focuses the majority of his reports on investigative stories.
The message of the night was that a degree in communication gives students options in just about every field of employment. Panelists urged students to explore all of their options and never give up on activities that drive passion.
After hearing all of the panelists speak, Scifo said, “I feel relieved. I am so happy I went to this event because so many questions were answered and I think I may finally have a major. Communication is the match for me.”
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