1. "I should've gotten an internship sooner."
For other majors, internships look good on the resume. For broadcast students, it's a defining qualification. Don't have it? Well, the odds of you finding a job before an internship are about as high as Donald Trump liking anyone but himself.2. "We get it — print is dying."
If I were paid for every time a professor said "print is dying," I wouldn't even have to finish my degree and I could live comfortably for the rest of my life. We get it — print is a way of the past. That doesn't make technology evil. Accept it. Learn it. Move on. Stop repeating yourself every lecture.
3. "Do I have to start in a small market?"
When I first started my actual broadcast classes, I was told multiple times that you don't usually start in a big market, which strikes fear into my heart. Personally, I don't want to start my career in B.F.E. I understand that I can't just jump straight to national news in New York, but please, quit reminding me of the couple of years I will have to spend working up to get there.
4. "I don't get it. Is my job field dying or thriving?"
You have some professors that say "the job field is shrinking daily, don't do this, you'll never make more than 30K in your life," while others insist that "the field is growing on a daily basis because of the technological revolution!" It's honestly a matter of opinion.
5. "I bet you want to be an anchor."
We all know that one kid who wants nothing more than to be paid to look good and read stuff off of a teleprompter. There's something about students who want to be anchors that just screams it. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just that everybody can tell.
6. "Is it too late to become an advertising major?"
We all know that if you see nice cars on one side of a channel/station's parking lot and crappy ones on the other, the possibility that the crappy ones belong to the broadcasters (news department) and the nice ones belong to the advertisers (ad department) is very high. And with a starting median salary of $23,000, broadcast students might harbor a tiny jealousy towards advertising students.
7. "How long ago were you in the newsroom?"
Some professors are great for telling riveting stories about important events and how they were able to cover them. Others are completely out of touch and will tell you that you need to know things that were only relevant 10 years ago. Or more, depending on how long they have been teaching.
8. "Oh God, not another group project.
Group projects for any major are THE WORST. Now, imagine trying to find news stories on campus, find people to film, find people to interview, find a time that works for everyone, trust someone with your life and have them edit, and then manage to turn it in on time. It's the fifth circle of Hell.
9. "Screw it, I'm going to Marketing."
Marketing is basically Advertising's cousin, but it's more focused on the business aspect. Again, nice if you would like to make more than $10 a year like broadcast majors do.
10. "That wouldn't have happened if I was there."
You see mess-ups all the time now that you know what to look for. Did they forget to take the banner down? Switched cameras too early? Did they switch off the mics too late or too soon? There's a tiny part in every broadcaster that tells them that the same would have NEVER happened under their watch. Truth be told, it probably will at some point.
11. "Wait, she knows what Snapchat is?"
It always astounds me to hear professors over the age of 50 know what Snapchat is. I'm not knocking older people for being in-the-know about modern day apps, but it's very unusual to hear professors reference social media that is mainly used for "u up" or other related activities.
12. "How many definitions of frequencies are there?"
There's several definitions of frequencies depending on what class you're taking and who's teaching it. Long story short: there's too many.13. "None of this is going to be relevant in 10 years."
We grew up in the middle of a technological revolution that is only gaining speed. Broadcast TV and Radio the way we knew it will become as outdated as silent films or listening to the radio for shows. Knowing all you can about modern day technology is important, but the fact that it'll be outdated within a couple of years is beyond frustrating.
