Final Post-Player's Choice by Josh Rogers

Final Post-Player's Choice by Josh Rogers

For my final post, I thought I would point out and discuss some of the resources available to the graduate student. Hopefully, you will find some of these resources useful in your own journey through graduate school.
Take a visit to the OU IT store. There are a number of "free"( free, as in, you've already paid for it with your tuition fees) downloads available. If you want to upgrade to Office 2003 Professional this is a free download. Symantic Anti-Virus and Ad-Aware are also available to download. For grad assistants, I would suggest downloading a copy of EndNote, or ProCite. These are very useful reference managers which will help store and properly format all the research that you have downloaded from the library. The only pain is that you need to do a little data entry to load your references but after that you will be able to cite and reference effortlessly in most Word .docs.
If you like to listen to music while you are studying check out ruckus.com. OU, like many other universities, has an agreement with Ruckus for free music downloads. Ruckus also has videos and games which might distract you from working on your thesis but it is worth checking out. Pandora.com is also a great customizable Internet music site. Build music channels with your music preferences-listening to Pandora is almost like inventing your own favorite radio station that only plays the kind of songs you want to hear.
Feelin' blue? Gradresources.org is a website that has a section for "E-mentors" that are available through email correspondence. According to the website:
Nick Repak, National Director of Grad Resources, has started a weekly email letter to those who have requested E-Mentor assistance. His initial topics have included Time Management, Prof/Grad Relationships, Financial Pressures, and other issues grad students face. He will also respond to topics/issues you feel are pertinent to a majority of grad students, and would greatly appreciate your feedback and suggestions. If there are specific issues that require personal responses he will attempt to answers these personally or put you in contact with someone who can.

If you have a more urgent need for help, Gradresources.org also offers a crisis hotline-1-877-GRAD-HLP. Unfortunately, the section that was titled Grad Student Survival Kits: Free Resources for Graduate Students is now closed.
Trying to eat well on a tight budget? I would recommend this site for a number of recipes that are possible for a starving college student. Recipes like "Hot Dog Casserole" and "Ramen Foo Young" are quick, easy and affordable for a graduate student on a budget.
For those graduate students that are hard up for cash-- donating plasma might be a possibility. The local center in Norman is right down the road from campus. I paid for my high school prom by donating plasma and I finished The Once and Future King by T.H. White-required reading for my senior A.P. English class-during my plasma sessions.
I know that some of these tips might be more practical than others. I just thought that I would have a little fun with my last post. Hopefully, though, at least one of these tips will come in handy-Have a good summer and good luck with the Hot Dog Casserole.

Topic of Choice: The Defense

Topic of Choice: The Defense
Leslie Cermak

This class has been very helpful in learning more about developing a thesis or project in several ways. I think we all now know how important it is to have a committee that gets along. All in all, this one-hour class was composed of a lot of work and some helpful information.

Although I’d love to grow excited when I think about the end of December (when I can officially graduate), there is one looming obstacle that stands in my way: a successful defense. For me, the defense is that undefined event that I just really don’t know how to prepare for other than know my topic well and be prepared to answer anything and everything about it. Our class presentations in thesis seminar were a good primer, and we’ve learned some about the process here and there, but I still think I don’t know what to expect.

For me, this is unsettling. Considering that I’ve been a teacher for five years, the part about public speaking shouldn’t be terrifying. I also know my committee members well. However, when I taught, it was subject matter I knew very well and to people who wanted to learn more about English grammar. At my defense, I’ll be communicating about a topic I’ve learned a lot about but to people who will know it very well. This is a different type of rhetoric than I’m used to and likely to make me nervous. And when I get nervous, my ability to speak effectively disintegrates.

I realize that a good chair will not set you up for failure and that it is up to the student to determine how successful a defense can be, but even the name of the event does not sound pleasant.

So, how does a graduate student prepare for defense? Well, we’ve been told to know much about our topic and our study. Obviously answering “I don’t know” often is probably not a good marker for a successful defense. An essay written by Reckski (2005) likely lays out a more detailed how-to than these vague answers. But what else can we do to prepare? One thing I’ve learned is to consider attending a fellow graduate student’s defense before it’s your turn. Although I have always had either my job or classes that conflict with defense meetings, I intend to speak with professors about any that I might be able allowed to attend. In this case, I think experience or observation really may be the best way to prepare. Kuhlenschmidt (1992) writes in her article “Teaching Students to handle the Oral Defense,” (Available through Lora in the journal Teaching of Psychology) that a voluntary workshop held on her part helped students get over some of their anxiety.

Although we may not have a workshop at our disposal, we do have some very receptive faculty members who seem more than willing to speak with us and peers we can turn to for support. There are also numerous online articles including those by the American Psychological Association, universities, writing centers and blogs that offer guidance and information about what to expect. This may be the next best thing to having a good chair that will help us along the way.

My Choice

My Choice – Amber Theinert

I hate my choice options. The open-endedness of such a blog makes it difficult to decide what to do. I could write about my research, but sometimes I bore of that topic (since I am so immersed in it on a relatively frequent basis). So, I think I will contribute to this blog by writing a mini survival guide to getting a Masters degree while working full-time and being a full-time mom. As much research as I’ve done in sports public relations, I definitely know much more about this topic then anything else.

1. Find a job that will work with you and understand your school commitments.

This is actually quite difficult, as I soon found out. First, I moved backed to Oklahoma as there were no schools within close proximity to where I lived in Texas that offered my degree. Then the job I moved for that promised complete understanding no longer understood after a year. Luckily, I finally fell into a job that seems to get it (although there are still issues at times).

2. Have a strong support system in place.

Having family that gets it and an awesome spouse that is willing to spend a lot of lonely nights with two children under the age of three seems like it would be impossible to find. However, a simple conversation explaining all the crazy time commitments can go a long way to save a marriage. Also, knowing that if your spouse has to work late that you have other family willing to take care of the kiddos while you are in school is of the utmost importance.

3. Although you have no time, be ready to make time.

This is the hardest thing for me to do. I still find myself doing a lot of things last minute (like this blog), but time is really difficult to make and often times I need the deadline to kick things into high gear. Luckily, I’ve always worked my best under pressure. I’ve learned quite a bit about time management by getting my Masters degree that I never learned while getting my Bachelors degree.

4. Getting a Bachelors degree is very different than a Masters degree.

This is good knowledge for every student taking this step. The whole undergraduate process is geared toward practical knowledge, training you to get a job upon graduation. However, graduate school requires more thinking, asks that you learn more about the why rather than the how of it all. So, all studying skills that were effective for a BA are almost completely ineffective for an MA.

Life After the M.A.

Life After the M.A. by Josh Rogers

Since I still have about a year left to go in this program it doesn't seem like there ever will be a life after graduation.
But, this year has gone by pretty quickly. What will be nice is that after this semester I will feel that I'm more in control of my course of study since I'll have most of my required courses behind me- Statistics, Theory, Research Methods, and Qualitative Research-I'll miss you.
One of the advantages of working on a thesis is reading the literature that is related to the specific topic one is studying. I'm not certain that writing a thesis about advergames will directly contribute to finding a job in a year. I am certain that since I'll have a pretty thorough understanding of advertising, social Internet use, and a pretty good idea of why people want to spend their free time puttering around playing a sponsored game like this one. This game will take awhile but you get to play pinball and jump a car.
After I graduate I've given some thought about working for the Chickasaw Nation. I attended a retention event hosted by the Chickasaws on campus last night. In addition to getting a small bag full of exam week swag (post-it notes, popcorn, hot cocoa, a scantron sheet) they also had a recruiter on hand as well. She explained that the Chickasaws are now becoming more sophisticated in tracking Chickasaw students who are on scholarship and checking to see if there are any possible job positions for newly graduated Chickasaws. The Rogers family has decided to stick around OK for a while so this might be a possibility. I used to belong to Rotary and would also hang around and volunteer at film festivals every so often so getting some free time back in my life would be great.
I am still thinking about trying to help out my sister-in-law's skateboard shop. I think that there website does not represent their brick and mortar operation or open up their business to new customers outside of the San Diego area. This website is pretty sparse and is not very interactive. There was an attempt a few months ago to start a mailing list but that sort of fell through. No Facebook, no Myspace, no updated features or social aspects to the website. The news is old and there is no sense of stickiness to the site that would make kids interested in skateboarding want to visit or spend time with the site. I am taking the interactive media course that is offered this summer so maybe I'll find out if such an undertaking would even be possible for me to start.
I am not sure that I would want to continue on to a PhD. I work with a few Doctoral candidates and those guys seem pretty stressed out all the time. Maybe if I take another ten years off of school I'll decide to go back to school again.

Life After My Project

Life After My Project – Amber Theinert

Is there life after working on a project and graduating with a Masters degree from OU? But of course! If not, then there would be absolutely no reason to be here.

While we as a class will take very different paths after our graduation, some off to get the coveted Doctoral and some (including myself) hope that this final project will land us the job of our dreams, or at least on that path to said job.

I find myself in very different circumstances then most graduate students. I’m a working professional, going to school part-time while holding down a full-time job as the Event Manager at the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism in downtown Oklahoma City. I’ve got two beautiful children (one born during the summer between my 1st and 2nd year of grad school) that always want my nose out of the books and paying more attention to them. I’ve come back to school so I can not only better my own life, but insure that my family is always taken care of.

So what is my life after school? I imagine it won’t be much different then now, other than a lot less stress. I will continue working full-time, although I hope to change my career field and work in sports administration (more specifically, sports public relations). I find this field so intriguing, and an area that I feel I can really make an impact in as a woman. I’d like to work in the collegiate athletic atmosphere, but with the Sonics franchise moving to Oklahoma City I feel like a really wonderful opportunity is presenting itself to me. I just have to keep my ears open for the job postings.

My ultimate goal from the beginning was two-fold; (1) get a Masters degree that will get me a great job I love; and (2) get said degree before my own children start school. After 2 years in the program and looking forward to the last year, I truly believe now that the goal is achievable.

Will I contribute to the overall body of knowledge? I guess. Will my project make radical changes in the world of sports public relations? Probably not. Will I ensure that I have a solid project that will be impressive to any employer? Absolutely. And as long as that great job can pay me enough to afford these crazy gas prices, I will be very happy!

Final Post, My Choice

Taylor Newcomb

When thinking about this class and what my topic is to be, I can only think of the need for all of us to understand the purpose of all of this, because I am not sure and I wonder if other people are sure as well. By all of this, I mean the need for the project, the need for the classes, the need for the degree. 

I figure we need the project because we all want a nice paying job. A job in which we neither do this or that. Those jobs don't seem fun. This degree would then allow use to get that nice paying job because of the capitalists we all are. Yea, capitalism! The project allows us to show our worth and our need to those who can give us those good jobs. I don't know about you, but I'd rather get a job based on my project and skills rather than because some government policy told them to give me a job. The project just gives us that little bit extra in which to move forward with our lives and our careers, no matter how much of a pain in the arse it is.

As for the need for classes, we need to learn how to do stuff before we do it. In going to my preferred field, it would be possible to get some PR job based on my journalism experience, but I would prefer to know what I am doing before I start doing it. I am sure all of y'all feel the same way. The classes give us the knowledge from which to build on (that link is my particular knowledge I am taking, but to each their own). I am not a fan of just starting something new without knowing what I am doing, which is why I came back to college so many times to begin with (3rd degree is the charm). 

Finally, we need this higher degree because that is the way the world is going. We can't get good jobs anymore on a B.A. or B.S. degree anymore. I've tried. I ended up at a shoddy newspaper with a horrible boss who didn't know how to manage people. Every job I look at that would be a good career has that little disclaimer which states that a Master's degree is either preferred or very much liked. It's not much fun, but c'est la vie. It seems to be only inevitable that Ph.D's become the required or preferred degree. When that happens, I will not being going back to college. Somebody needs to flip those burgers. 

There is my topic of choice, my final post. I am not sure if I actually added to anyone's knowledge but it may be something that we needed to know. It's not fun having to stay at school, but I want a good job and I am sure y'all do to, so here we are making assignment posts on a blog so that we can get that great grade that will help us just a little more in getting that job. 

Useful Research ~ by Jaimie T.

As you all know, my thesis examines the gatekeeping practices of ethnic minorities in television newsrooms. My paper hopes to influence television newsroom practices via newsroom managers and producers. I think this paper will be very important especially considering all that each of the minority journalism groups (NABJ, NAHJ, AAJA, NAJA)and do to promote equal treatment and presentation in the journalism field.
Minority groups have been treated unfairly for so long in many different aspects of media... from the big screen, to the TV screen, stereotypes have prevailed in the images of minorities on the news.
If any of you get a chance, read Color of Ratings by Av Westin. The article can be found through the Communication and Mass Media Complete database within the library's website. This article chronicles the disparities minorities face at the hands of newsroom managers. It tells of reporters with good, solid stories with minority characters, asked to go back into the field and find a white family to focus their stories on. It's really sad, but true in this field.
Furthermore, women should have a more active role and voice in news stories. Women tend to look like authoritative sources by their positions in newscasts, but are actually silenced through news stories.
My paper and research hopes to influence people who make a difference in how minorities are portrayed in media and to inspire those who can't to speak up. Please read these two letters from two minority journalist organizations: NABJ to Newsroom Leaders: You Must Do Better and Make diversity a curriculum core. This article can also be found through the Communication and Mass Media Complete database.