College is about experiences. The classes, the people, the parties, the extracurriculars – all of those things make up four years of an experience that will be unlike any other that you’ll have in your lifetime. Sometimes, one of those things stands far above all of the others – that one class you took, that boy who broke your heart and changed your perspective – or in my case, a crazy professor who changed my life six semesters in a row.
I transferred to Hawaii Pacific University in the Fall semester of 2015, a confused 18 year old barely on the bright side of the transition between a dark, dramatic, and angry high school student, and a respectful young adult. I thought I was a journalism major, I thought I was content being antisocial and spending my free hours alone watching Netflix (which let’s be honest, is still sometimes true), and I never thought I would even consider having or needing work experience until I was a college graduate. On the first day of classes my sophomore year, in a course called Mass Media Today (MC 1000), I met the professor who would change my perspective on every single one of those things.
I sat by myself, in a corner in the front of the room. I was in an unfamiliar room filled with unfamiliar people, and I was scared but ready to learn. I had no idea what to expect from an entry level media course, and I was surprised about the answer as soon as the professor walked in the room and started talking.
“Join Akamai Advertising Club!” she said, “come to this event on Tuesday night!”
The amount of times I heard these calls to action before, during, or after my classes with her were countless – i ignored them 100% of the time until I finally heard, appreciated, and understood the definition of, the magic word: networking. I finally decided to attend a community advertising event called AdUp – and the rest, as they say, is history.
Thinking back on every professional experience I’ve had during college (ie; the agency tours, the panel discussions with professionals, the ad community events), they’ve all been because of this one professor. She is the reason I fell in love with advertising, and in 10 years I will certainly be thanking her for my success (and also thanking her for teaching me that my writing skills can translate into more than just a journalism career). She has scored me internships with national brands, taught me almost everything I know about the professional field I’m about to enter, written me letters than helped spur my acceptance into my dream graduate program, and inspired me every single day to be my best self. I have gained confidence, experience, and knowledge from many sources in college, but if someone asks me in a few years what my favorite thing was about HPU, I can guarantee that her name will be my answer.
We all have that person or that experience that changed the course of our lives, and sometimes it’s nice to reflect on where you are and how you got here, and to be thankful for the unexpected and unpredictable nature of life. I hope you all can pinpoint that moment in your own lives, and to take a moment to say thank you to someone who helped shape who you are.