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After initially struggling to find a college that truly felt like home, I visited the University of New Haven and I instantly fell in love with everything that the Communications department had to offer.

When I first arrived at the University, I was very impressed with the amount of hands-on experiences students receive. At most schools I had visited, students were unable to step into a television studio until their junior year. I was ecstatic to find out that this was not the case at the University of New Haven. As a first-year student, I was able to work in the television studio, including on my very first day of classes back in August 2018.

The first class I ever attended at the University was a course called “Fundamentals of Production I,” which was taught by Professor Wayne Edwards. This course runs alongside “Fundamentals of Production II,” as these courses are often taken by students during their first or second semester at the University.

These courses can be seen as an introduction to the Communications department. During “Fundamentals of Production I,” students learn what it takes to produce a television show. By the second week of class, we were practicing with professional cameras and studio equipment, which was absolutely mind-blowing to me.

I truly do not know where I would be in my life if it wasn’t for some of the people that I have met throughout my time in the Communications department. Sarah Carman ’22

Now a junior, I have been fortunate to have many opportunities to work in the television studio, both in and out of class. During both my first and second years, I had the opportunity to work on a student-run television show called “On the Spot with Mike Maguire.” On this show, young entrepreneurs pitched their business ideas to a panel of judges – a concept quite similar to “Shark Tank.”

I started as a social media manager for the show, and I quickly fell in love with the role. This opportunity helped me decide to pursue a digital media concentration within the Communication program. Having an opportunity to work on a production as soon as I started college was a great way to really figure out what I wanted to do with my time at the University.

Last fall, I was enrolled in an “Advanced Television Production” course in which we recorded a game show called “�鶹AV Code.” Due to the pandemic, we faced several challenges, but the class rallied together to make sure that the show was everything we wanted it to be.

I truly do not know where I would be in my life if it wasn’t for some of the people that I have met throughout my time in the Communications department. This class is a memory and experience that will stay with me for a lifetime, as I will always be able to tell the story of creating a virtual game show from scratch during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sarah Carman ’22 is a communication major at the University of New Haven