“All of my classes have included small group work, and I feel more than ready to work with professional teams in the workforce.”
Jonas was inspired to major in Communication Studies after taking Patty English’s Interpersonal Communications class, which reminded him of a favorite book, How to Win Friends and Influence People. Jonas points to English as being one of his favorite professors, saying “She supported my creativity when I put memes in presentations and added ax-throwing bars into my examples on tests.”
Within the Communication Studies department, Jonas has appreciated the opportunity to work in small groups and develop connections with his peers, saying “I feel more than ready to work with professional teams in the workforce.” In another class with English, entitled Small Group Communication, Jonas remembers becoming especially close with his group members, and appreciating that “We discuss a lot of weighty ideas, but we still take ourselves lightly.”
Other department faculty have been influential in his career preparation by giving him “reading and classwork that force me to consider both sides of complex issues.” Because of this, he feels “ready to adapt to rapidly changing situations in the workplace.”
The Communication Studies faculty have also aided him in pursuing opportunities off campus. In particular, over J-term Jonas was able to work with Feeding Our Community Partners, a non-profit organization, to help organize efforts to feed school children on weekends. He was involved in redesigning this fundraising campaign by rewriting the webpage and communicating with donors. Jonas says, “It was very rewarding and taught me about marketing, design, and community relations.”
Outside of his major, Jonas is very involved around campus, participating in G Sharp, the Gustavus Jazz Ensemble, and Chess Club. In addition, he creates blog posts and podcasts for his website, “The Dashing Galoot.”