NW students heard professionals talked about fields as diverse as education, police work and marketing as places where a communications degree could be put to work Oct. 23 in NW Walsh Library.

“What Can You Do with a Communications Degree,” was organized by the NW Communications Department with the assistance of Brian Richardson, professor and department chair for the University of North Texas’ communications studies.

“We want students to gain some understanding of the options within the degree,” NW speech professor Christina Ross said before the event. “Even if the students are not thinking of majoring in communications, they can learn the importance of communication in any field they wish to enter.”

Vanessa Harrison, NW police captain, began by speaking to her duties as a public information officer.

“We have a lot of incidents that are lawful but awful,” she said. “Actions that are within the law but look awful to the public need to be communicated in the proper way. Think about the communication and the strategy that is used to explain it to the public.”

Attorney for the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, Cristin Hedman, said that the persuasive skills she learned in communications were invaluable in her present position.

“There is a lot of persuasion that are required in my job,” Hedman said. “I have to achieve a delicate balance where I am sensitive to their frustrations while at the same time getting the information I need for the case.”

UNT student Joselyn Jimenez let students in on her struggles in determining a major. Originally a biology major, she realized her knack for speaking to people could actually be a career path.

“You can literally do anything with a communications major,” she said. “Being able to engage people in good communication can get you just about anywhere.”

Amanda Moore, NW alum, is now the Communication Coordinator for Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD. She said that her most useful classes were taught at TCC.

“Make sure if there is a word you don’t completely understand, look it up,” Moore said, adding that it was her number one piece of advice.

Brandy Robinson, Head of Client Services at EPL Digital, always knew she wanted to reach a C Level position. That translates to CEO, CFO, COO, … it didn’t matter which one, she said.

She compared her communications degree to the American artist and television host Bob Ross’ famous quote, “a happy little accident.” Robinson’s main takeaway was that no one else holds a person back other than themselves.

Marketing Director for ABC Home & Commercial Services Janae Skaggs, joked about how she never knew she could love pest control so much.

“High dreams, high aspirations and communication can lead you anywhere you want to go,” Skaggs mentioned her love for engaging with people is what led her to her degree.

UNT’s Dr. Richardson, who helped host the event, knew how to get a crowd laughing.

“I’m not a good athlete and I’m not that good looking, not that smart,” he said. “But I can talk.”

He told students that he hopes they learned about how important communication is in every profession. He promoted UNT as “extremely transfer-friendly” with over 400 majors available at the Denton campus.

NW student Justin Warren went to the event as a class requirement but left with some great information.

“I learned about the benefits of many different careers, from marketing to the police force,” he said. “I am getting my computer science degree to go into IT and will definitely need to know how to communicate throughout my career.”