By: Vallo Vision News Staff

Sharron Swain, Bham Now managing content producer, gives students advice on career readiness.

The University of Montevallo began a new lecture series this fall to share glimpses of the professional world of mass communication with students. 

“What we find is the education students receive in the classroom can only go so far if they don’t pair that with industry knowledge. So, the Topic Talk series is meant to bring the industry to students, helping them to think about their futures well before graduation,” Dr. Danielle Deavours, UM assistant professor of multimedia journalism, said.

Each month there is a Topic Talk on a different subject. Students can attend Topic Talks in-person, on Zoom or watch recordings of the meetings posted later.

The meetings feature working professionals in mass communication fields like journalism, public relations, production and more.

“Certainly you’re going to leave here with a degree which means you have a good education. But you also need to leave here with experience, and that goes beyond the classroom,” UM Career Development Center director, Michael Lebeau, said. 

This need for experience while in college led to the first topic of the series, What Hiring Managers Are Looking For. Guest panelists included Sharron Swain, managing content producer for Bham Now; Dustin Wellborn, president of Down in Front Productions; and UM Career Development Center director, Michael Lebeau and other career counselors. 

Deavours says other topics for the series this semester include how to utilize alumni networks and how students can use social media to brand themselves professionally. 

Deavours started the Topic Talk series this fall.

“We really hope to see this series meeting the needs of students so they can feel more prepared when they apply for internships and jobs. We know students in our program have so much talent. This series is just meant to help guide them as they are jumping off to the next part of their journey,” Deavours said.

The next Topic Talk is scheduled for Monday, October 4 at 11:00 a.m. in Strong Hall. It will feature alumni of the mass communication program sharing where they are and how alumni networks helped them in their careers. You can learn more about the series on the Mass Communication program’s Instagram page. 

To see the full recording of the September Topic Talk, visit the Vallo Vision News YouTube page.