For Adam Payne, Digital Marketing Communications ‘22, grad school was never part of the plan. While getting his undergraduate degree in journalism in the Reed College of Media, Covid-19 hit and changed his plans. After some input from other students and professors, Adam took the leap.
“My heart is in the arts, and it's connected to being a creative. I'm really passionate about digital media, new media that's more magazine forward than traditional news, so that's a space that really interests me,” he said. “I also just love and am passionate about the performing arts. I think what was so helpful for me doing this master's program is that I definitely am on the more creative side but I didn't know any of the actual strategic elements that go into play.”
For Adam, Digital Marketing Communications made sense. With his interest in creative and visual media and his journalistic background, Adam knew he had the creative chops but didn’t have a grasp on some of the strategy, analytics and tools to enhance his work. This is where the built-in certifications from the program came into play and changed the game for him. Now, he can back up his creative work with proven success and an understanding of KPIs.
Adam had a support system in his coworkers at the WVU Launch Lab with whom he shared the experience of doing one of the Marketing Communications programs, and while he had in-person connections with people in the program, this didn’t stop him from growing his network on the discussion boards, too.
“If someone is interested in the program, I would definitely just tell them that it is as flexible as you want it to be and as accommodating. I think what's really great about it is there was such a diversity of people in my courses,” he said. “I could tell that some were full-time employees going back to school to get their masters, some like me that just completed undergrad but they were able to fit it in, so you have to make it work for you. I think the program is really designed to help as many people as possible because you don't have to be sitting in a classroom the whole time to get it done.”
Following the completion of his degree, Adam co-founded and began serving as the editor in chief of YNST Magazine which just launched its first edition.
If someone is interested in the program, I would definitely just tell them that it is as flexible as you want it to be and as accommodating. I think what's really great about it is there was such a diversity of people in my courses, Adam Payne