Mary and Karina

Great presentations! (Mary on far right)

100 years of AWC

Mary accepts two awards for AWC SA

Karina and Mary

Ann Curry accepts award at conference

The Best Student Chapter Programming Award was presented to Cathy Duncan for her outstanding Meet the Pros event in 2008.

The Rising Star Award was presented to Salwa Lanford, our Vice President.

President Mary Anthony and Karina Alderete attended the National AWC Conference in Seattle this year.

This is a great chance to our San Antonio Professional Chapter to become recognized at the national level, but also a chance to meet members from all across the country and take advantage of extensive presentations and workshops.

A few of Mary’s favorite presentations included “What Men Don’t Tell Women About Business” by Christopher Flett. Other presentation favorites included new technology and online communications/strategies. Mary and Karina were able to tour the city and be a part of history in the “100 Years” celebration on behalf of San Antonio.

Meet the Pros was held on October 1, 2009. We had a great turnout for both pros and students!

Meet the Pros is an event we host every year for students. Students sign up for two areas of interest within the field of communication (Journalism, Graphic Design, for example) and are then paired with other interested students and San Antonio professionals. It’s a great learning experience and a great opportunity to network in San Antonio!

Thank you’s go out to all the pros and to our student program chair, Cathy Duncan.

UTSA Students (with Liz) at the Centennial Celebration.

I really liked the speaker-UT Journalism Professor (Go Texas!) Robert Jensen.

Why did I like him? Well, first of all, he was very funny and offered students some tips when coming to buffet-style events. Bring a ziploc bag, he says.

Jensen presented some thought-provoking ideas about the evolution of media during his presentation on September 22, 2009. As a communications professional, it definitely challenged my way of thinking. I’m all about new media. I blog, I tweet. I text. Information is flowing faster than ever with all of the latest technologies, but is it moving too fast? Is our communication breaking down our relationships, Jensen questions.

He’s not just talking about social media. He also points out that media can take away the deeper meaning of human experiences, that might be “replaced” by media. Example, reading a book to a child rather than child watching a movie by him/herself. His main examples of media replacements were pornography and political news, and how those can negatively affect human experiences.

Some topics to think about:

1. Do the stories being told in the media reflect reality? Who is telling these stories (and for what gain/profit?) Are they moral?

2. Does social media create false sense of community/friendship?

He ends by adding that we shouldn’t go home and unplug our laptops, tvs, and iPhones, but that maybe we should be aware and more careful of media’s impact on human experiences.

What do you think?

AWC UTSA attended the Network Night co-hosted by the South Texas Women’s Business Center back in May.

“A few weeks ago, one of our summer interns asked me to review her resume. Not long after, I thought about dispensing some resume writing hints and tips for soon-to-be college graduates for our firm’s blog.

But then it hit me: I applied for nearly 120 jobs or internships (yes, I was counting, out of curiosity and because it was easier to keep track of follow ups and the status of each application) between January and May, 2008. As it turns out, I ended up with two job offers a few days after graduation. I received some interviews as a result of all those resumes I sent out, but neither of the two offers resulted from the said 120 applications. Rather, they were both a result of having met someone during those four stress-filled months who were in PR and/or who knew of someone who had an opening.

So the moral of the story, soon-to-be college graduate, is that your first job out of school may not be a result of sending out resumes.

However, here are some things you can do to improve your chances of landing that first job from that one person you met that one time:

• The obvious one: get involved with the student chapter of a professional organization. The most popular option is usually PRSSA but there are others: International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) or American Marketing Association (AMA), for instance.

• That student organization usually has ties to the closest “grown-up” chapter. Although some chapters are a lot more active than others, they normally have some sort of monthly gathering and tend to be welcoming of students. When you do attend these events, avoid hanging out with people you know. You’re there to make new connections, not mingle with your friends or people you already know.

• Don’t be afraid to leave your surroundings and everything that’s familiar to you. So many people end up settling for jobs they don’t particularly care for or are overqualified for only because they are afraid to leave their comfort zone.

• LinkedIn. It’s a remarkable tool for connecting with potential employers. Whenever you meet someone at a networking event, add them to your network. Be sure to include a short reminder of how you met and who you are instead of the standard “Join my network” message.

• Intern, more than once. A lot of people will tell you all you need is one internship. Guess again. In this economy, you will need every advantage you can get. Not only will it give you more experience, but it will widen your professional network.

Good luck!”

-Andre Lenartowicz

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Follow Texas State on Twitter @AWCtxstate and say hello on their facebook page.

As always, we will be hosting our Meet the Pros at SAC for students in October. This year, you may sign up online – cash only at the door. Details to come.