Mass Communications: JOSEPH FISHER JOSEPH FISHER graduates this spring after completing dual degrees in mass communications and political science in three years. But he realized early on that real-world experience would be as valuable to landing a job as his academic studies. He worked on the campus TV station, BUTV; was managing editor of the student newspaper, The Voice; and interned with Bloomsburg’s local newspaper, Press Enterprise. Last summer Fisher, of Huntingdon Valley, interned with KNBC in Burbank, Calif., where he helped produce on-air segments for Today in LA and the NBC4 News at Noon. As producer, he scheduled guests and wrote scripts for on-air personalities, working more than 700 hours from May to August. In honing his skills, Fisher says he’s enjoyed producing programs for BUTV’s In Focus, In Depth, including an interview with Rebecca (Funk) Campbell ’83, president of ABC-Owned Television Stations Group, when she recently returned to campus. “I’m really happy to have that connection,” Fisher says of meeting Campbell. “That’s just one example of what every student could be doing with an alumnus in their major.” l
A Distinct Advantage Digital Forensics: RYAN AMMERMANN RYAN AMMERMANN values the experience and connections gained during his 10-week internship last summer with CNN, Washington, D.C. Ammermann graduates this May with a bachelor’s degree in digital forensics from BU – the study of how to retrieve data from computers and smart devices and the first program of its kind in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. In an internship arranged through the Washington Center, a liaison that matches students with companies, he worked on CNN’s help desk, assisting staff with computer issues, and was entrusted with installing 14 new graphic servers after receiving instruction from his supervisor. Ammermann, of Mount Bethel, says his studies prepared him for the job, but there is no substitute for having a chance to put the classroom knowledge to use. The internship also showed him what to expect in the corporate environment. “I did make a lot of connections,” he says. “There are a lot of people at CNN who I can now contact and ask questions about anything. I am connected with them, and that’s good.” l
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