Deadlines approaching for 2016 Grady College Study Abroad and Field Study programs

Students at the Cannes Film Festival Study Abroad Program

Grady College prides itself in offering one-of-a-kind opportunities that not only enrich students’ lives but also set them apart in their fields.  Global study programs in China, Croatia, France and Prague and domestic field studies in Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York City and Washington, D.C., strengthen students’ portfolios and provide them with a critical understanding of the global scope of Journalism and Mass Communication.

“Study abroad gives students the opportunity to stretch outside the boundaries of what feels comfortable to them… they do things that they didn’t even know were possible,” said Kelly Meyer, Distance Learning Coordinator at Grady College.  “It sets the tone for them to keep taking big steps all the way through [their careers].”

Completed applications for the following international Grady programs are due by Friday, Jan. 15, 2016:

•   Cannes Film Festival Study Abroad Program

•   Cannes Lions Advertising Study Abroad Program

•   Choose China Advertising and Public Relations Program

•   Travel Writing Journalism in Prague or Croatia

Meyer will be on hand at the UGA Spring Education Abroad Fair on Jan. 20, 2016, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Tate Student Center, where she will accept applications for wait lists.

Interviews with applicants for international programs will begin Jan. 19, and selected students will be notified by the first week of February.

In addition to the Grady global programs, students can earn Grady course credit through Grady@Oxford (apply by Friday, Jan. 22, 2016) and Environmental Journalism at UGA Costa Rica (apply by Saturday, March 20, 2016).

Students interested in applying for one of the following Grady domestic field study opportunities need to submit their applications by Friday, Feb. 5, 2016:

•   Grady@DC

•   Grady@LA

•   Grady@NYC

•   Summer at the Circus

Interviews with applicants for domestic field study programs will start Feb. 8 and students will be notified about decisions by late February.

At this time, Grady@DC and Grady@LA are only open to Grady students.  All other programs will consider applicants who are non-Grady majors, as well.

Students selected to participate in a Grady study abroad or field study program must attend a group welcome and orientation March 2 at 3:30 p.m. in Studio 100, as well as several individual program breakout meetings in preparation for travel.

For additional information or questions, email Kelly Meyer, kellym22@uga.edu.

Author: Stephanie Moreno, s.moreno@uga.edu

Contact: Kelly Meyer, kellym22@uga.edu

University of Georgia Students Share Bond with Hong Kong Baptist University

AdPR students visiting the School of
Communication at Hong Kong Baptist University

HONG KONG (May 13, 2014) – Six students from UGA participating in the AdPR China study abroad program visited the School of Communication at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) to exchange and discuss information about public relations and advertising curriculum.

The students discovered several similarities between their majors at HKBU compared to those at UGA. For example, HKBU has a student agency that participates in work similar to AdPR’s Creative Consultants or participation in the Bateman student case-study competition.

The “To Fuse the Separation” campaign was especially interesting to UGA students. The project was a logo design featuring three Chinese characters meaning ‘separation’ and ‘harmony’ fused together to signify unity to the Chinese population.  The goal of the project was to encourage strangers to treat each other like they are close friends and family.

Additionally, students toured the Academy of Film and its studios, and enjoyed an authentic Chinese dinner with Dr. Juan Meng and Dr. Flora Hung-Baesecke.

Student Spotlight: Katherine Keng

Katherine Keng, a senior majoring in public relations and English, is from Marietta.

What encouraged you to apply to Grady College?  I was decidedly undecided throughout freshman year. In terms of majors, all I knew was that I wanted to be in a line of work where writing would be a key tenet in my daily duties. I stumbled upon public relations, whereupon I was unclear about what such practitioners did. As I learned about the work, I realized that good PR underpinned the growth of my dad’s startup company. I applied for Grady because I believe every organization should invest in good PR, and I wanted to be one of the people making it happen.

What activities are you involved in at Grady/UGA/Athens? I am a part of UGA’s Honors Program, which has given me unique learning opportunities through Socratic Circle-type classes, lunchbox lectures and faculty mentor network. I am also involved with PRSSA and Creative Consultants. Currently I am working with EcoFocus Film Festival, a local environmental film organization. The setup is great because we have a lot of flexibility and room for creative idea sourcing. The best part for me is collaborating with same-age peers, which I haven’t been able to do much of in past internships. I was a contributing writer and copy editor for Little Red Book, a campus fashion magazine, and Chinese Language Society member and Alpha Lambda Delta service society member for three years.

What kinds of internships have you been involved in, and what were your responsibilities? Last summer I interned with JMC, LTD., the manufacturing partner of Ford Motors in China. I was JMC’s first intern, so experimentation was a running theme, and being in a foreign country upped the excitement. I took charge of the corporate newsletter, integrating my bilingualism and writing skills to write feature stories, reports on competitors and company updates. During this process I learned to digest and translate annual reports and also grew my Photoshop and InDesign capabilities. I also rewrote parts of the company’s English website for higher readability and web presence and sat in daily on marketing meetings and presentations to collate a higher understanding of branding.

What were the best parts of your internship experiences? The best part of my internship experience was being immersed in a different culture. It was a lot of fun but also made me appreciate certain aspects of American work culture more. I also engaged with some Chinese social media outlets. Though I learned a lot about the consumer mindset and social landscape, exploring the content on those sites did not feel at all like work.   

What part of your Grady experience (classes, professors, etc.) has been helpful in your internship or work experiences? I’ve been lucky to have a roster of top-notch teachers. The Dr. Jones team has been especially wonderful. Dr. Barry Jones sharpened my writing skillset, while Dr. Betty Jones’ graphics communications class taught me many new things and had high real world relevance. I ended up with pieces for my portfolio after all their classes and really appreciated that the Drs. Jones were so helpful on any matter, both in and out of class. Dr. Leara Rhodes, my Honors faculty mentor, has also been incredibly generous with advice and time. All three of these professors take real interest in their students’ lives – I think that’s amazing.  

What advice would you give to someone who is considering pursuing an Ad/PR program? My advice would be to work on creating a brand for yourself. Find something that others don’t have and use that to an advantage. It’s not new advice, but especially in AdPR careers, a brand name can go a long way. (Of course, you also have to start with hard work in order to back up that brand!)

What are your career goals and interests? My short-term career goal is to find a position in either branding or corporate social responsibility. I realize that true social responsibility is not just participating in a program or two but actual integration of social and environmental considerations into an organizational vision. The idea of helping to transform an organization for the better really appeals to me. I’m interested in newness in all its forms (cool-hunting, technology, etc.), but I also know that some things, like being part of a good cause, transcend trends.