Loyola Marymount University
05/12/2026 | News release | Distributed by Public on 05/12/2026 16:16
Graduation Season Advice From Communication Studies Alumni: What Students Should Know Before Entering the Job Market
By Film and Television Production major and Public Relations minor Mikayla Nguyen '26
As graduation season approaches, Loyola Marymount University's Communication Studies Department (CMST) shares lessons from its recent "Careers After CMST" alumni panel to help students prepare for the transition from college to the workforce.
The panel brought together Carla Cruz '03, senior director of communications at Segerstrom Center for the Arts; Lia Maiuri '12, communications executive formerly with Paramount, "Days of Our Lives," and NBCUniversal; Ruby Murphy '21, technical recruiter at Hampton North; and Elaina Maga '25, account coordinator at Infinity Marketing, as they talked about uncertainty, career pivots, and the realities of building a professional path after graduation. Their stories offered timely advice for graduating seniors and prospective students considering how communication studies can support long-term career development.
The conversation ultimately pointed to four key lessons for students entering the job market:
1. Your first job does not have to define your whole career.
Alumni repeatedly emphasized that career paths are rarely linear. Panelists described moving across industries, exploring different roles, and learning from jobs that were not always the right long-term fit.
2. Communication skills travel across industries.
Whether working in arts communications, entertainment publicity, recruiting, or experiential marketing, panelists said the same core skills remained essential: writing clearly, thinking critically, building relationships, and adapting quickly.
3. Relationships matter as much as résumés.
Several alumni credited referrals, mentors, and former classmates with helping them find internships and jobs. Students were encouraged to build genuine relationships and contribute to their communities rather than approaching networking only as self-promotion.
4. Resilience matters.
Panelists spoke openly about unemployment, rejection, layoffs, and self-doubt. Their message to students was that professional setbacks do not determine personal worth, and that persistence is a necessary part of career growth.
Alumna Elaina Maga said her experience in LMU's internship and leadership courses helped prepare her for the demands of agency work. "In the moment, the workload felt intense, but it mirrored what professional environments are actually like," she said. "Learning how to manage pressure and meet deadlines in those classes is exactly what prepared me for the pace of agency life."
By sharing these stories during graduation season, the department hopes to give students a more realistic and encouraging picture of life after college, one that values adaptability as much as certainty.
The Communication Studies Department continues to support students through coursework, internships, faculty mentorship, and alumni engagement that connect classroom learning to professional development.
Loyola Marymount University published this content on May 12, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on May 12, 2026 at 22:16 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]