Wisdom from a Recent College Grad: Get Involved!
The PRSSA 2023 Southwest District Conference that UTSA PRSSA had the amazing opportunity to host!
Hello, my name is Bailey McGoldrick and I am a public relations intern at MVW Communications for the Fall 2023 semester. I am graduating from the University of Texas at San Antonio in December 2023. Fun fact - 60% of college students change their major, according to research done by Asim Akhtar, CEO and Founder of AtOnce. Back in 2020 when I graduated from high school and started college, I never would have imagined that I would be working in public relations. I didn't even know what public relations was, and yet here I am.
“I’m going to major in biology, go to medical school, and be a doctor!” \ Or so 18-year-old me thought, as I know many of my peers can relate to. When I learned that most people do not end up working in the career field they earn a college degree in from one of my mentors at Northwest Vista College (NVC), I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. I feel very blessed to have had experiences and mentors in my early college years that helped guide me to majoring in communications with a concentration in public relations. Changing your major can be really scary, but with every communications class I have taken, I have felt more and more grateful and confident in my decision. A plethora of factors played into my decision to change my major, such as holding leadership roles in student organizations and guidance from mentors. Without these, I fear I would still be a biology major drowning in labs and math equations.
My first experience with public relations was when I served as the Public Relations Officer for the NVC chapter of Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society (PTK). Due to the pandemic, everything we did was virtual, so it was vital that I was able to use social media and email marketing skills to reach out to members and get them involved in chapter events. I loved the creativity of creating eye-catching flyers and learning about branding and tone. I was thriving in this leadership role and later became the President of PTK, where I learned priceless leadership skills. I learned I had a knack for advertising events and social media through my involvement in this student organization. The connections I made in PTK also led to me becoming the first woman to be the NVC mascot, Wildcat Willie, which has proven to be a great icebreaker! Later, during my internship with MVW Communications, this mascot experience served me well when I was asked to be Pepper, the mascot for The Nonprofit Council during the Big Give 2023 (so much fun!)
Me and Dr. Kanso, a public relations professor at UTSA, after his talk about award-winning elements of PR campaigns at the PRSSA 2023 Southwest District Conference.
Once I transferred to UTSA and changed my major, I started looking for other student organizations to join. I ended up in the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). This professional development organization aims to prepare students for the workforce through networking opportunities, guest speakers, and learning opportunities. In PRSSA, I have held several leadership roles in which I have made countless, invaluable connections to my peers and to professionals currently working in the PR world. The lessons I learned about planning events, time management, emotional intelligence, interpersonal communication, working with professionals, and fundraising are immeasurable.
As for mentors, I was able to build a professional relationship with my professors by asking questions, participating in class, and discussing their feedback on my assignments during their office hours. That later led to my professors being able to give me solid advice that was relevant to me about my major and career choice. One mentor specifically, my humanities and ethics professor, heavily encouraged me to look into careers where writing skills were critical because he had seen my skills in my classwork. I wanted to be a doctor because I wanted to help people, and this professor and mentor helped me realize that I could have a job that makes a difference in people’s lives without being a doctor. During this time I learned to listen to myself and play to my strengths. At the same time, my mentor who was also the faculty advisor for NVC PTK urged me to change my major from biology to communications, and she is still a great mentor to me to this day. Having trusted, experienced sources has been the perfect, last nudge I tend to need when it comes to making decisions about my career as I learn to navigate the professional world.
Becoming a communications major is one of the best decisions I have made in college and I am greatly looking forward to my career in public relations. College is an amazing chapter in anyone’s life and I cannot stress enough what I have gained from having leadership roles and mentors I know I can trust. At the end of the day, you get out of college what you put into it. Having leadership roles in student organizations has taught me invaluable soft skills such as emotional intelligence, time management, interpersonal communication, and critical thinking that I know will carry over into the workforce. Knowing I have trusted mentors to help steer me in the right direction has made the real world much less scary. If I could give future and current college students one piece of advice, it would simply be to get involved! Life lessons come in all shapes and sizes, and personal experiences are the optimal way to grow, professionally and personally. College is the ideal time to go on your journey of self-discovery and find your career path!
