Panel to plug into questions

November 5, 2009 by Pashtana Usufzy 

Panelists to discuss careers available, different sectors of cable media

With hundreds of cable channels on television, the expansion of cable Internet services and the development of cable phone service, it is no wonder the cable industry is seeking its next generation of workers.

The Cable Maverick Series will visit UNLV Monday, bringing experts in the communication and technology fields to the university to interact with students and expose them to different aspects of the cable media world.

“It brings those executives directly to those students,” said Christen Adams, Cable Center coordinator for programs and education.

The event, which will include a panel discussion on cable media with experts and UNLV-affiliated media professionals, will “[discuss] what the media industry workforce will look like for the millennial generation,” according to the UNLV Career Services Web site.

Eileen McGarry, director of UNLV Career Services, said the opportunity will allow students in all fields to learn about the host of different careers available in the cable industry.

“A lot of us just watch cable,” she said. “We don’t even think beyond that.”

Adams echoed the sentiment, adding that cable offers careers in industries ranging from engineering to audience research.
“There’s communications, there’s legal,” she said.

Joanne Dant, a senior associate at October Strategies, the center’s public relations associates, said that cable has expanded its reach as new technologies have been introduced.

“It is constantly adapting,” she said, describing how the industry attempts to integrate new media to reach the appropriate audience.

This expansion and need to keep up with technological trends creates a need for new workers with diverse backgrounds, Adams said.

“Cable ends up being a possibility [for students],” she said.

The Cable Maverick Series, which began in 2005, has reached nearly 4,500 students at 28 different colleges.
Experts are approached by the Cable Center and asked to participate by visiting the universities of their choice.
Jill Campbell, who will host of the UNLV panel discussion, is an alumna and the current Eastern division senior vice president of operations for Cox Communications.

“We actually sought her ought and asked her to join the program,” Adams said.
Adams, who assists in organizing the events and attends the lectures and panels, said she has seen the program benefit students and cable companies.

“We run the program and we go to all of the lectures and we think [the experience] is fantastic, not to toot our own horn,” she said. “Students love this lecture series.”

Part of the appeal, she said, is clearing the misconception that only communications students can work in the cable field.
“The Cable Center is known as the educational arm of the cable community,” she said, adding that she believes the center’s focus on developing a link between higher education and cable helps inform students of otherwise unknown career opportunities.

McGarry said she has seen numerous careers that are closely guarded secrets because students are not aware of the possibilities.
“We’re excited about [the panel]… sometimes there are undiscovered fields or areas out there,” she said.
The cable panel and discussion will be held Nov. 9 in the Greenspun Hall Auditorium.
Students can RSVP by contacting the career services department.

ON THE WEB:
UNLV Career Services: hire.unlv.edu