City College students will have the opportunity to meet with professionals in various communications and media arts fields at City College’s fourth annual Meet the Pro’s exposition Nov. 8.
Presenters from various fields including publishing, marketing, television, graphic design and radio and music recording will be attending the event in order to provide valuable insight in their respective fields. Some may even offer employment opportunities to students.
The event is intended to raise opportunities for students to take what they learn in the classroom and extend it into the real world.
“We had so many shared education goals, and we wanted to make available avenues for our students to have access to real world experiences and opportunities,” said Communication Instructor Sarah Hock.
The General Manager of FM radio stations 102.3 and 88.3, Mary Olson, confirmed that stance.
“Anytime you’re a student and have the opportunity to meet with working professionals in a field you’re interested in, you should,” she said. “People who agree to participate in these events are genuinely interested in students and in reaching out to them in any way possible.”
Panelists include former News-Press editor Jerry Roberts, Barbara Brown of Barbara Brown Marketing and Design, and Kathleen Milnes, executive director of the Entertainment Economy Institute.
Director of Public Relations of The Santa Barbara Independent, Jennifer Mailkin, is one of the presenters that will attend the event.
The exposition is an excellent opportunity for students to explore different possibilities and be creative with potential paths to get their dream job, she said.
The presenters are professionals volunteering to help students. They will share their expertise with students and give underexposed students a chance to interact with professionals in the media industries, Hock said.
Roberts will be attending this year after being a key speaker last year. Roberts was the Executive Editor of the Santa Barbara News-Press up until July this year. He is now teaching Adult Education at City College and UCSB.
This exposition is especially important for City College students because of the technological changes in the media industry, Roberts said.
“It is important for City College students to understand that [the] process is happening and that [it’s] transforming the workplace so that when they’re done with their education, they have some clarity and awareness of what kind of positions are available and what kind of skills they’re going to need to fulfill them,” Roberts said.
Nearly 400 students attended the exposition last year, and the numbers continue to increase. The event is open to the entire campus, but primarily targets students in the School of Media Arts.
Meet the Pro’s began as a collaborate endeavor between the Communication Department and the School of Media Arts to build bridges between the disciplines. The first exposition was held in 2003.
Immediately following the exposition, there will be a guest-speaker panel discussing “The Merging of Technology and Media in Communication Careers: How Technology is Changing the Way We Work.”
