After watching the UWW YouTube Alumni video interviews, I was introduced to fourteen different individuals with fourteen different jobs, responsibilities, and career paths. They all had a different way of getting to where they are today, but they all started out at Whitewater. I enjoyed listening about each individual occupation and the advice that they had to give out to students. Some of the reoccurring advice that I heard was to get as many internships as I can, get as involved as I can, and none of their days at work are ever the same. Out of all of the videos there were three that stood out to me the most, those being Merri Oxely, Cassandra Sura, and Brian Kohlmann.
Merri Oxley, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDUWZEc2Nws went to UW-Whitewater in the 1960’s when the Vietnam War was going on. She said that Whitewater helped her learn team work and get along with people. Right after school she moved to Washington D.C. working for applied linguistics and met people from all over the world. When she moved back she was able to start her own company. What made me remember Merri Oxley above the other interviews was how knowledgeable she was. She has had so much experience with different jobs that she had so much advice to offer out for students graduating from college, I enjoyed listening to her.
The next interview that stood out to me was Cassandra Sura, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_rIR3EDxPM. I was able to see Sura in person when she came in for a speaker meeting for PRSSA and I enjoyed meeting with her in person as well as seeing her online interview. I thought it was nest that Sura works for Elmherst Memorial Healthcare and does all of their planning and events. She also gave great advice on how your first year out of school is very important in choosing exactly what it is you want to do with your life. She said that once you’re placed in your job setting it may not be exactly what you expected so we may want to wait to go back to school and get our masters. I’ll be able to keep this advice in mind for after I graduate.
The final individual that I took an interest in watching was Brian Kohlmann, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU6z0LJ9Qzg. I liked Brian’s enthusiasm about his job and how he said that there’s never a dull day because every project is a little different and challenging. I also could relate to him when he said he chose to go to Whitewater because it was close enough to go home when he wanted to, yet far enough to where he could move away because I thought the same thing when I went here. I also liked how he said that his experiences in school affected him as a person and that we should get as involved as possible.
All of the interviews had something different to offer, however, I took a particular liking to Merri Oxley, Cassandra Sura, and Brian Kohlmann. It was nice to hear advice from people who are professionals in the area that I’m majoring in. I’ll be able to take their advice and apply it to my career.
