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As the Sun Sets Over Us

Posted by Erika Schulz Nygaard

I’ve been yawning a lot in class lately. One might assume this is because I am in the throes of the infamous MSC summer session—10 weeks of material executed in 6 weeks, and as many papers due in that time. This quarter has lived up to everything I heard about it, and in many ways it is what I expected the entire program would be. Despite the compressed academics, though, I can’t really blame them for my fatigue.

Though I can’t say for certain, I suspect my Friday night insomnia might have something to do with a deep-seated anxiety about what I am facing in the coming weeks. That freshly pressed diploma will effectively strip away the identity of “graduate student” to which I have been clutching like a teenager with concert tickets. Also, my goal of finding a job still eludes me. Being a student without a job seems okay. But a graduate without a job? Not as cool.

And then there is, of course, the bittersweet anticipation of the end of program itself that is at this point a well-formed routine. Recently I enjoyed the company of some classmates as we pondered our adjustments to life after the program: (more…)

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Categories: end of semester, experiences, final project, MSC, Northwestern, NU, Perspective

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Practical Advice, concluded: Tuition Breakdown

Posted by Erika Schulz Nygaard

To wrap up my mini-series of posts on practical matters, following is a bit of helpful information regarding tuition.

Important to Know:

  • Tuition is not billed in four equal segments; rather, it is billed per credit.
  • Fall quarter (for domestic students) contains the most credits, and therefore it is more expensive than the subsequent three quarters.

What might this mean for you?

  • If you are managing your own tuition and/or financial aid, you may wish to anticipate payments and/or disbursements to accommodate this fluctuation in amount due throughout the program.
  • If you anticipate four equal payments, you’ll end up owing more than you anticipated when you get your October bill, and less than you anticipated the rest of the year.

Although I may be in the minority of my cohort having experienced the topics covered here and here, I hope this information will be helpful to individuals in future classes. As prospective Masters in Communication, information gained through experience would be a terrible thing to waste.

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Categories: experiences, MSC, Northwestern, NU

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Practical Advice, continued: Name Changes

Posted by Erika Schulz Nygaard

Continuing my mini-series on practical matters (from my previous post), what follows is some insight into changing one’s name with the university. Many students may never need to deal with this, but I hope this information will be helpful to those who need it.

If you previously attended Northwestern and are now reentering as a graduate student, you probably have had some life changes since your last time here. If your name changed during the time you were away (perhaps due to marriage), you will want to change your name with university administration. Changing your name with the university will ensure your current moniker is reflected on all official documentation and online systems, including:

  • Class registration
  • Grades and transcripts
  • Online course management
  • Online assignment portals
  • Your health insurance ID card (if you have the NU student health insurance)
  • Tuition billing and financial aid

(more…)

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Categories: experiences, MSC, Northwestern, NU

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MSC 2015 Spring Happy Hour & Farewell to Director Staci H. Zake

Posted by ajh558

On June 6, 2015 the MSC program celebrated the eight years of leadership of outgoing Director Staci H. Zake. Faculty, Staff, Alumni, Current and Incoming Students gathered at LYFE Kitchen in downtown Evanston in fellowship and to bid Staci farewell.

MSC Director (2008 -2015) Staci H. Zake & Martina Smith (MSC '14)

A program honoring Staci included remarks from:

Dr. Dilip Gaonkar, School of Communication Faculty Member and MSC Governing Board Committee Member;

Ms. Martina Smith (MSC ’14) and Mr. S. Bob Rowley (MSC ’13), both members of the MSC Alumni Executive Committee;

Mr. Naveen (MSC ’15) and Mr. Doug Dorhn (MSC ’15) who represented the current class;

and Ms. Amy J. Hauenstein, MSC Interim Director, who spoke on behalf of the program staff.

The MSC program wishes Staci and her family all the best, as they begin their next adventure on the East Coast.

Click here to view the full photo album.

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Categories: alumni, careers, change management, culture, faculty, leadership, MSC, MSC Value, networks, Northwestern, NU, values, Virtue, Wildcats

Being a Student at NU—Some Practical Advice

Posted by Erika Schulz Nygaard

Being a student again—especially at NU where I also did my undergraduate study—has been a terrific experience. I’ve enjoyed retracing my steps on campus, revisiting favorite spaces, and using all the new online systems (registering for classes used to be a much more laborious experience). However, being a student at times involves other matters such as interfacing with University administration or managing financial support. I want to share some of the practical knowledge I feel would have been helpful to me when I entered this program. What follows is some insight on the topic of student health insurance. Other topics will be posted soon.

Student Health Insurance

If you decide to take the NU student health insurance, following are several important points to know about the coverage provided:

  • Coverage technically begins September 1, but…
  • Insurance enrollment does not actually occur until after class registration later in September, and verification of your enrollment will take several days after that. I did not receive an ID card until around October 1.
  • When your enrollment is finally confirmed, you won’t receive any notification; you have to keep checking the website to see if you can access a virtual ID card. Some time later, a physical card will also arrive in the mail.
  • Any doctor visits that occur between September 1 (when coverage technically begins) and confirmation of your new insurance (around October 1) may be covered “retroactively.”
  • You will be billed in one lump sum for the annual policy with your first bill from the University.

(more…)

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Categories: experiences, MSC, Northwestern, NU

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MSC Bids Farewell to Staci H. Zake, Director 2007-2015

Posted by ajh558

The MSC program and the School of Communication bid farewell to outgoing Program Director, Staci H. Zake today with a “Boston Tea Party Farewell.” Under Staci’s leadership the program has flourished in exciting and meaningful ways, and she leaves us with a solid plan for transition in place.

"Boston Tea Party", June 26, 2015

“Boston Tea Party”, June 26, 2015

We bid Staci and her family farewell with the warmest wishes for great success and happiness in the future!

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Categories: culture, experiences, leadership, MSC, MSC Value, NU, values, Virtue, Wildcats

Student Tip: Graduation Terminology

Posted by Erika Schulz Nygaard

programs on chairs

Programs await graduates at NU’s 2015 Commencement.

As a Northwestern student expecting to receive a degree, it will be helpful to understand two terms associated with graduation:

Commencement: the university-wide ceremony at which speakers address all students, and the university President verbally (and thus only ceremoniously) confers degrees upon the students. For the MSC program, names of the previous year’s cohort are printed in the catalog, although the current year’s cohort is invited to participate in the ceremony. The university’s commencement is in June.

Convocation: a separate ceremony at which you will actually receive your degree. MSC’s convocation is in August.

I’m sure it seems a long way off, but if all goes as planned you’ll be receiving information about graduation sooner than you might like. Here at NU, individual colleges, programs, and sometimes even majors have their own ceremonies at which degrees are awarded to the appropriate students. The university graduation event is an entire weekend in June during which many of the ceremonies are held. Commencement is of course one of these ceremonies, and one of the few to which everyone is invited.

Although this splitting of ceremonies was a new concept to me (and continues to vex friends and family), it makes sense if you consider the number of students involved. Having participated in the 2015 Commencement, I think the system actually works quite nicely. I appreciated the opportunity to march as part of a university-wide graduation ceremony and to hear the speakers, but I also appreciated not having to endure the calling of a very long list of names as each student received her diploma.

I was glad I participated in Commencement, but knowing it was not my real graduation yet, I felt a bit excluded from the excitement and sadness expressed by the people all around me. Most MSC students this year opted out, and I can understand why. In August, we’ll have our own ceremony with our own speaker. We will have the benefit of all recognizing one other, and I bet there will be some real, genuine excitement and sadness of our own.

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Interim Director of Master of Science in Communication program

Posted by ama537

On behalf of Ellen Wartella:

Dear MSC Community,

The Department of Communication Studies is pleased to announce the appointment of Amy J. Hauenstein, MA, as the Interim Director of the Master of Science in Communication program. Hauenstein will assume this position effective immediately. Hauenstein earned a MA in Education from Ursuline College and will complete her Ed.D in Curriculum Studies at DePaul University in 2016; since joining the MSC program, she has served as Assistant Director. A national search for a permanent director will start in the near future.

Sincerely,

Ellen Wartella

 

Al-Thani Professor of Communication,

Professor of Psychology, and Professor of Human Development

and Social Policy, Professor of Medical Social Sciences

Director, Center on Media and Human Development

School of Communication

 

Chair, Department of Communication Studies

2148 Frances Searle Building

Northwestern University

2240 Campus Drive

Evanston Illinois 60208

 

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Alumni News: Craig Pugh, MSC ’90, named Agency President of Public Communications Inc.

Posted by ama537

Public Communications Inc. Names Craig Pugh Agency President

Appointment adds marketing, management capacity to support agency’s continued growth nationally

CHICAGO – April 22, 2015 – Public Communications Inc. (PCI) www.pcipr.com announced today that Craig Pugh of Tampa, Fla., will join the national integrated communications firm on June 1 as president. He also joins the ownership team of the 53-year-old agency ranked one of the largest independent, women-owned PR firms in the country.

Pugh, 58, brings 30 years of extensive management and marketing experience to the agency, and returns to Chicago after several years leading two Florida cultural attractions through strategic expansions and multi-million-dollar capital campaigns.

Pugh comes to PCI from the Lowry Park Zoological Society in Tampa where he served the past five years as CEO and directed a staff of 350 and a budget of $20 million. He previously was executive director of Palm Beach Zoo, Palm Beach, Fla.

“I’m excited to join such an accomplished team of professionals at a time the agency is poised for growth and expanded reach. I look forward to bringing executive leadership and communications expertise to PCI’s array of clients. It feels like I’m coming home to Chicago, where I have deep roots and admire the extraordinary community of education, culture, research and business development,” said Pugh, who held senior editor positions at Scott Foresman Publishing and Times Mirror/Mosby Year Book prior to working at the Chicago Zoological Society as associate director, Communications.

Pugh earned a Master of Science in Communication from Northwestern University.

As the agency’s fifth president he will help manage professional development and concentrate on the agency’s growth in all sectors, including tourism and hospitality planning and development, business to business, and association marketing, as well as provide executive and issues counsel to clients. He has served on several boards, most recently the Florida Attractions Association (FAA), Florida Association of Museums (FAM), and advisory board of Visit Tampa Bay, and was appointed in 2009 by Florida’s Governor to the Florida Council on Arts and Culture.

“As our agency continues growing into new business sectors and we expand the menu of services we provide, Craig’s proven talents in executive management and collaborative team development strategically enhance our capacity to meet the needs of our diverse clients,” said Chief Executive Officer Jill Allread, APR, who has held the president title since 2010. “His leadership and communication experience are a great addition to our team of talented communication counselors and strategists.”

About PCI

PCI is a national, full-service communications and marketing agency with more than 55 professionals committed to making a positive difference for our clients and our community. PCI is the fifth largest independent public relations firm in Chicago and within the top 55 in the nation.

PCI provides clients global reach through the WORLDCOM Public Relations Group, one of the world’s leading networks of independently owned public relations counseling firms. The agency is a certified Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE). PCI’s offices are at One East Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago.

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