Career Path of a Communication Professor at Mt San Jacinto College
David's career path began with an internship at Western Digital through Cipher Training and Development, where the experience involved "put[ting] together a health fair" and a presentation skills workshop which aligned with the interpersonal organizational communication major at Cal State Long Beach. Before finding the right fit, the interviewee initially struggled in high school, attended multiple community colleges, and changed majors several times at Cal State Long Beach, going from business to public administration before finding interpersonal communication which "was just really a nice fit."
Communication Studies, Internship Experience, Career Change, Higher Education, Presentational Skills
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
David Moss
Associate Professor of Communication Studies
Mt. San Jacinto College
Utah Technical College, BYU, Cal, State, Long Beach
Speech Communication, Cal. State., Long Beach, M.A., Education, Capella University, Ph.D.
Communications
Education
Education
Pell Grant Recipient, Took Out Loans
Video Highlights
1. Internship experience at Western Digital in training and development, creating a health fair and presentational skills workshop for managers.
2. Initial struggles in higher education, attending multiple community colleges to improve grades before transferring to Cal State Long Beach.
3. Major changes from business and public administration to interpersonal communication, driven by a love for people and interaction.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Do you have any internships or jobs you had before your current role?
I did have an internship when I was at Cal State Long Beach with an organization called Cipher Training and Development. I did a summer internship in Irvine with a company called Western Digital.
I was interested in getting into training and development at the time. My major was interpersonal organizational communication at Cal State Long Beach, which was a perfect segue into that field.
They had a student chapter in their organization, and I was able to apply for and get an internship for the summer. It was a great experience because I worked with a senior trainer and was asked to put together a health fair for the company. I also put together a workshop on presentational skills for managers.
I was hoping to get my foot in the door for employment, but it didn't work out that way. The company was laying off people at the time, but the experience was very good for me and prepped me for what I'm doing now.
As far as my career path goes, it changed a couple of times, which often happens with students. I wasn't a very good student in high school; I went to about four different community colleges, improved my grades, and then transferred to Cal State Long Beach.
I started as a business major but didn't like accounting or economics. I then switched to public administration, which I also didn't like. My wife suggested I try an interpersonal communication course, and I found that to be a nice fit because I really love people and interacting with others.
That's what I stuck with, and that's how my career path went. I earned both my bachelor's and master's degrees at Cal State Long Beach, where I had a great experience.
Advizer Personal Links
linkedin.com/in/david-moss-ph-d-39171419, www1.msjc.edu/instructor/emoss/