The Communications department at Saint Joe's is expanding with each semester. I have never taken a boring class, or seen a class title that I didn't want to learn more about. No one outside of us Comm majors can even begin to understand our fascination with the subject. I'll often find myself using the phrase "that's so comm" when talking to other students. But what does that even mean? Creative. Innovative. Open-ended. Thought-provoking. These are just a few adjectives that can be used in a description of everything involved in my experience as a Communications major.

I try and fail every time someone asks me what exactly I learn in my classes because I can't even scratch the surface in the time their attention span allows. Not to mention the person asking most likely couldn't care less about my thoughts on net neutrality, the key commands I use for InDesign, or the HTML and CSS tags I'm struggling with. From different types of writing skills, photo and video editing, web and graphic design, presentation skills, and knowledge of technology -- the education of a Communications major encourages students to take on many roles in the working world. In my three years of courses, I have focused on the marketing and journalism aspects of Communications Studies -- content creation and design, branding, social media, and different styles of writing.

I am fascinated by what interests people. One blog post, tweet, or Instagram photo may be funny or inspiring to one person, but dull or meaningless to another. I started my freshman year thinking I would become a Psychology major for the same reason I am now a Communications major -- I love to analyze people's interests and opinions as well as the thought processes that got them there. Observing and practicing the use of social media contributes to these "analyses" of mine and has showed me that while it's constantly used to call for action, the immediate responses from seemingly interested users rarely goes past an initial post, comment, or hashtag.

Whether you're trying to sell a product, or promoting a cause that can save the world, social media has become an extremely powerful mode of advertisement. While I have learned about the potential of social media and its power to send messages, I cannot advocate for its ability to facilitate change as a standalone force. Civic media is centered on the reality that social change can now rely on social media to gain awareness, but it usually stops there. Movements and advertising that create a "call for action" and/or reflection require more than online posting. Social media is powerful, but passive. Caitlin Dewey, reporter for the Washington Post, writes about this in reference to the recent terrorist attacks in Paris.

That being said, I believe Facebook is more than a random friend's political status you don't care about. Twitter is more than an annoying girl subtweeting about her frenemy. Instagram is more than pictures of adorable dogs and delicious food. When used correctly, these platforms can give an individual or an organization so much information about what interests the majority of their audience and how to use that knowledge to be influential.

I experience this on a small scale as I have managed the social media platforms for every organization I've been a part of at Saint Joe's. I was also a member of the Beautiful Social team that consulted the non-profit Project Home on how to market the programs they offer to people experiencing poverty in Philadelphia. I know what is important to different audiences and how to customize content for different platforms. Managing social media goes beyond sharing links, and coming up with "click-bait" captions. A successful post relies on many things including timing, content creation requiring graphic design, influential writing, and knowing exactly what your audience wants to see. I constantly bore my friends with my excitement when I see that more people than usual are clicking on the bit.ly link I posted, or when I finally get InDesign to do exactly what I want -- but I can always find a fellow Communications major to share my excitement with.

With graduation approaching in the spring, I'm currently filling out job applications and so thankful for the diverse skill-set I've gained from my education and internship experiences. Each Communications class is both a group experience, and a personal experience. The individuals in every class have different strengths to contribute to the group, and skills they come into the classroom wanting to improve. I believe a degree in Communications is what you make it, and there are endless possibilities for that.