On Thursday, Oct. 29, NBCU came to the Michelle C. Loris Forum to showcase the career opportunities it provides to communications students. The visit included a short presentation, trivia, and a panel featuring SHU students and alumni discussing their careers at NBCU and fielding questions from the audience.
| Contributed by Joshua Gee ’26 |
One of the members of that panel was Justin Alter, a production assistant at NBC and a SHU alumnus, who talked about the strong SHU alumni presence at NBCU.
“I walk around there every day [and] I see somebody I know from Sacred Heart,” said Alter.
Professor John Barnes of the School of Communications, Media & the Arts is a former producer at NBC Sports, where he worked on both studio and live broadcasts for over nine years.
“They are shocked how qualified [SHU] students are coming out of college,” said Barnes.
“I see people come in with a large amount of knowledge that some people starting out might not have,” said Alter. “I worked all these broadcasts, I was able to get those reps I needed to ask questions, make those mistakes and build a strong knowledge that I can carry with me for the rest of my life.”
The choices for each college student are different, and as an academic adviser, Barnes also acknowledges this.
“One student wants to be a producer, one student wants to operate cameras, one student wants to do social media,” said Barnes.
The diverse nature of the communications program, as well as the range of opportunities to work at NBCU, brought many different students to the forum to hear about potential future careers.
“My sister currently works there. I have a few friends that work there,” said junior Dermot McSpedon. “So, I’ve heard good things all around.”
McSpedon credits school faculty, particularly his academic advisors, for keeping him informed about different career opportunities opening up, including the NBCU event.
“[My adviser is] shouting out all the opportunities and pushing me to be better,” said McSpedon.
For students struggling with finding or searching for jobs, Barnes kept it simple.
“I would [give] the same advice to anybody,” said Barnes. “Who you are as a person, can do a lot of heavy lifting and set you apart.”
To explore career opportunities, Barnes suggests reaching out to people on LinkedIn.
“Not asking for a job, but saying, ‘I’m a college student. I would love to hear more about how you got to where you are.’”
Alter echoed that it is not just a resume that employers look at, and stressed the importance of having a good portfolio.
“[Your resume is] like an elevator pitch, your 60 second snapshot of who you are,” said Alter. “[Your portfolio] shows exactly what you’ve done, and I think that is invaluable.”
For students interested in learning from NBCU professionals, their summer internship applications open Monday, Nov. 9.
