Clinton Edmondson, Media Arts and Entertainment major
Where are you working?
I am working at Original Productions, a reality TV production company based out of Burbank, Calif. The com- pany is famous for shows like “Deadli- est Catch,” “Ice Road Truckers” and “Storage Wars.” I currently work as a story associate producer for the show “Ax Men” on the History Channel.
How did you secure the job?
I secured the job through an internship two years ago when I worked on season 4 of “Ax Men” as part of my Elon in LA experience. I went on to work the following summer on season 5 as a story associate producer full time because of my positive impressions left after the in- ternship. With two seasons of experience on the show, coming back for season 6 just made sense.
What does an average day include for you?
An average day for me is hardly anything exciting to the third-party observer. Each day I work on stringing out story beats (individual story units of a greater season or episode arc) for one of the logging companies our show follows. This entails editing a rough 30 to 40 minute sequence from about 10-12 hours of field tapes that outlines the story for the editors and producers. While that may sound unimpressive, I am the first “writer” in the sense of the story we tell, and that helps guide what will eventually get put on the show.
Aside from that, usually there is some sort of conferring about operations in the field in a general day, be it pitching stories for the field teams to execute or requesting certain story elements to be reshot (also known as a pickup). That’s about my day in a nutshell. Honestly, I get in at 10 and before I know it, six rolls around and the day is done. Every day is extremely full.
What is your favorite part?
My favorite part of the job is hon- estly the way we tell stories. Writing in narrative is like making a statue out of raw clay. You get to choose every form and detail before throwing it through the kiln. Reality writing is much differ- ent. Instead, it’s as if we get the block of clay already hardened and we craft the direction of the story by chipping away at what already exists. Not to sound cliche, but it’s a lot of thinking outside of the box.
Do you have any memorable stories from your time so far?
Let’s just say kids aren’t the only ones who say the darnedest things. Loggers have quite colorful little sound bytes, most of which I wish I didn’t hear.
Sarah Alexander, Business Administration major
Where are you working?
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. Asset Management, Funds Valuation Team in Columbus, Ohio
How did you secure the job?
The summer before my senior year, I was offered an internship within J.P. Morgan’s Corporate Development Program. This pro- gram recruits young talent in hopes to then employ them within the firm pending their graduation. I accepted a position within the Operations Analyst Development Program October of my senior year. The OADP is a two-year commit- ment that allows me to rotate every six months between teams within my line of business.
What does an average day include for you?
My team is responsible for providing the value of certain se- curities. The value of stocks can be easily found — you can go to any finance website and find the price at which the stock is trading. Other types of investments, like mutual, commingled and hedge funds, are more difficult to value. We work with a third party vendor to pro- vide our portfolio managers with fair valuations of securities that we hold. My main responsibility right now is to test our valuations and make sure that they fall within our tolerance levels.
What is your favorite part about your job?
Since I’m fairly new to my job, I am still adjusting and learning the processes of my position. My favor- ite part of the program, though, is the opportunity to rotate and experience different teams within the business. The company is so large and has so many functionalities that it’s advantageous to be exposed to various areas within it. It also al- lows me to narrow down and define my ultimate career path.
Do you have any memorable sto- ries from your time so far?
For the program, they flew us out to Jersey City for a week of training. I was flying in the night before and was supposed to land at 8:20 p.m. Unfortunately, there was terrible weather throughout the East Coast, and I didn’t get into the hotel until 2:30 a.m. that night. That was a rough 6 a.m. wake-up call on my first day at work.
Patrick Cunningham, Psychology major
Where are you attending graduate school, and for what?
I am attending UNC Greensboro to pursue a master’s degree in counseling and educational development with a special- ization in school counseling.
How does it feel to be starting over and pursue a new degree?
It is actually just a two-year program, although going to school for two more years didn’t always seem like the most ex- citing plan. I know that it is a necessary step in order for me to get a job as a school counselor. Now that I am starting, two years doesn’t seem like a very long time, and I am excited for the specialized classes and practical experience.
What is your ultimate goal?
My ultimate goal is to be a high school counselor.
How has the experience been so far?
I have only been through the orienta- tion, but I love my program of study and I am excited to get to know my cohort and begin classes.
What are you most looking forward to?
I am most looking forward to getting to spend time in the schools and gain a better understanding of how to be an ad- vocate for the students.