California Lutheran University alumnae spoke about their experiences working in the communication field and gave advice to an audience of current Cal Lutheran students during the department’s annual Careers in Communication Speaker Panel on Tuesday, Feb. 11.ย
The panel was organized by Cal Lutheran Professor of Communication Sharon Docter, along with Career Services.ย
Docter said there were multiple things that she hoped students would get out of this event.
โOne goal is for students to get some very practical career advice, for getting into the field. And another goal is providing opportunities for students to network with our alums and connect with them, particularly regarding careers they might be interested in,โ Docter said.
Docter also said the communication department has been hosting this panel for nearly 25 years.
This yearโs panel featured Director of Communications and Creative Services for the UCLA Teaching and Learning Center Angela Fentiman, Associate Music Supervisor at Format Entertainment Katie Romanovich, and Administrative Assistant in Music Services at Netflix Luisa Virgen.ย
One other scheduled panelist, Cal Lutheran alumna and Senior Vice President at Magid Sarah Holmes, was unable to attend due to illness but has promised to come back to campus at a later date, according to Docter.
Fentiman said that when she attended this panel as an undergraduate at Cal Lutheran, it led her to a job opportunity.
โMy senior year, I connected with one of the presenters after that. She worked at a PR firm here, locally, in Westlake Village. I had a different job in more of, like, a corporate communications role when I came out of school,โ Fentiman said. โI got a call from her boss one day and was like, โHey, we have a position.โ We had done an informational interview, and so, through that connection, [I] got that position.โ
Fentiman said that she had been a speaker on the panel in one of its earlier installments, and through that, was recruited by Docter to be an adjunct professor at Cal Lutheran. Fentiman said that she was motivated to speak at Tuesdayโs panel to support fellow future Cal Lutheran alumni.
โWell, Iโve done the panel before and when Dr. Docter invited me, I was like, โIf I can make it work for my schedule, of course,โ Fentiman said. โJust to, you know, support fellow future alums of the school where I went, and honestly, anything for Dr. Docter.โ
A common piece of advice shared by the three panelists was for students to intern and network as much as possible.ย
โI came to Cal Lu because I wanted to intern, like, literally, I wanted to go driving to LA every semester I could, and it paid off,โ Romanovich said.
Fentiman said that getting involved with organizations and volunteering is also a great way to network and meet new people.
โNetwork, network, network, network, and network some more,โ Fentiman said. โGet involved with those organizations, go to events, meet people in person, follow up and get coffee with them. Build your relationships.โ
Virgen, who said she got her position at Netflix two years ago after an intensive 10-round, two-month-long interview process, recommended that students who are applying for internship positions take the time to do some research before their interviews.
โResearching the company, researching who’s interviewing you, if you can. I’ve never studied so hard in my life than when I studied for my Netflix interviews,โ Virgen said.
All of the panelists said that they were involved in on-campus activities during their time at Cal Lutheran. Romanovich, who held leadership roles in the film club and was a member of iCLU Radio, said that a memorable professor for her was Associate Professor of Film & Television David Grannis.
โHe’s just someone with so much experience and he loves to teach and he always had just such valuable insight, and he just always inspired us to, like, go make what we wanted, and to do all sorts of crazy, fun episodes in class and stuff, so it was great,โ Romanovich said.
Like Romanovich, Virgen said she was also a part of iCLU Radio, along with The Echo. Fentiman said she was also a member of The Echo staff, as an editor.
โI was on The Echo newspaper, which was a great opportunity to learn how to write, to meet a lot of people on campus, also just great practice, talking to people and networking that way too,โ Virgen said.
Docter said she taught all three of the panelists during their undergraduate years at Cal Lutheran.
โThey were all outstanding students and really great people, and the fact that they are so busy, but are still willing to come back, to give back to Cal Lutheran, I think says a lot about their character and the kind of people that they are,โ Docter said.
Student attendees were able to participate in a Q-and-A session and network with the panelists at the end of the panel.
โClearly, our students are very excited to get to meet each of the panelists and to get such good information, and so, seeing them get excited and motivated about entering the world of work and different careers, or thinking about a career that hadnโt occurred to them before, maybe, is what I really enjoy,โ Docter said.
