University Senior just trying to find a Job

Networking and Promoting yourself

2011-12-07T12:04:00.001-08:00

Very recently, I was fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to spend the day at the United Nations. Not only did I make sure to read up and do my research before I came but I also took it upon myself to make a video documentary on the experience. After spending 3 hours doing so, I emailed the finished video to almost all of the people I met.

So, why was this a smart move:
1) I am networking
2) They now know, I am a proactive and a hard worker
3) You never know who, what, where and when your big break will be.

Once I noticed the enthusiasm from the folks at the UN, I decided to email a video I was working on for class about the Banana Factory in South Bethlehem to one of the artist. He loved it and has invited me to do a photoshoot. Sweet! If all goes well I could use those photos for my portfolio.

What I would like for you to take from my experiences is DO NOT BE AFRAID TO TAKE INITIATIVE!

Keep all doors open

2011-11-29T17:35:00.000-08:00

It is a very competitive job market out there, that is why one must be prepared to handle or be able to maneuver any situation.

Take I for example, I am a Science-Writing Journalism major, from my major, it is probably safe to assume that I understand science and can write journalism articles.

On top of that, I am a member of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA), although it is a little late in my academic career (as a senior) to understand accounting, I do get the general gist of the accounting atmosphere. Also, because I have attended numerous NABA events, I learned that sports is a must-know language, regardless of what industry you end up in.
Guess what! For my journalism internship, I decided to do a sports internship at my home school, Lehigh University.

To some of you, I may sound confused pursuing all of these random opportunities; however, I know that I am building a strong foundation for myself so no matter what situation I am in, I will have the confidence to speak because I have some background experience.

Honestly, one of the best times to become a "Jack of all trades" is in school, when you don't have too many responsibilities or worries besides enhancing yourself for the future.

My only advice to anyone, regardless of what field you are in is to pursue opportunities outside your comfort zone, you never know where the doors will open up for you.

Understand the Culture

2011-10-20T22:17:00.001-07:00

Hey Guys,
So for those of you that were pre-med, i am assuming you took all or at least some of the pre-med requisites, you probably joined a medical society and most likely read publications that dealt with medicine or how to get into med school. Here's what you might not have realized: You Submerged yourself into the culture of medicine.
Now its time to play catch up time!
Since I have switched to the business realm, I made sure to attend an insane amount of business lectures. To some of you, this may sound boring and actually some of them were; however, just sitting in the lecture greatly broadened my understanding of the business culture. From the way they dress to the way they express themselves. It is very important to understand minute details such as those and to be honest, from the information I have gathered about business, BUSINESS IS 80 PERCENT YOUR APPEARANCE AND THE WAY YOU CARRY YOURSELF!

I used to be Premed, now what?!?

2011-10-16T17:37:00.000-07:00

Hi guys,
My name is Ope and like many of you who are probably looking at this blog, I was once pre-med. It wasn't until after several nervous breakdowns, the summer before my senior year at Lehigh University, that I was finally honest with myself and decided that becoming a physician was not right for me.

However, what sucks is that, I am kind of late. I almost wish that I was one of the pre-med students who flunked several of my core classes because if that was the case, I would have had a quicker and easier exit. Now I am a senior and unlike my fellow pre-med colleagues, I no longer have the security of med school.

I am currently looking for a job in the business community, which has proved to be quite difficult, given that I have not taken any college level finance, accounting or even economics courses. So far, the only jobs that seem to even glance at my resume are the financial advisory positions. This could be a very good gateway for me and ideally, I would love to go to New York and work with all of the other high- rolling Wall Street bulls. But we will see and to be honest, I would be happy just working with a finance, accounting and etc... company, regardless of whether I was stationed somewhere in the Mid-West or in Japan.

In this blog, I will keep you guys updated posted on how to tailor your resume, present your case at interviews and basically make a smooth transition from the very distinct pre-med society to the polar opposite business world (or any other distinct profession you have always been passionate about).

golden babies

2010-08-30T15:15:00.000-07:00

So when I first got here, a London-educated Ghanian man introduced himself to me and asked for my number. Of course I did not give it to him, but for future reference I took his number. You know, just in case I wanted a new perspective on Copenhagen and possibly the night life. Anyhoo, I called him and he didn't pick up and the next day, I called him once more, still no answer... so naturally I just deleted his number.

Today I saw him get out of the bus with a beautiful toddler. The baby had gold-brown curly hair and bronze skin. EUREKA, the guy had a kid like 95 percent of the young Danes in Copenhagen. Seriously, in Copenhagen, having a stroller and baby have become the latest fashion accessories. And also, in Copenhagen both of the parents take care of the child. It is just as common to see a father trucking around a fancy stroller as it is to see a mother doing the same.

The Danes seem to take their parenting very seriously and today in my Danish Language and Culture class, my teacher confirmed this. She said regardless of your income or how highly ranked you are, most Danes will get time off to pick up their children from daycare or whatnot.

When I am ready to have a child, Denmark will be up on my list as possible places to raise my children.

my first week in Denmark

2010-08-26T10:37:00.000-07:00

Before I got here, I missed my flight and then I lost my baggage. When I finally did get on a plane, it was delayed for three hours. I sat on that plane thinking maybe God is telling me something, should I be coming to this country where stereotypically is a sea of blond hair- blue eyed people and is very cold.
First off, Copenhagen is a bit brisk but it rains a shitload here! like wtf. Secondly, ugly people are the minority here. Not to say that beautiful people are all blond hair blue eyes, which is certainly not the case here, but everyone here has a demeanor that makes them so sexy, so model like, so sheek1 Oh btw, the fashion here is ridiculous. I found myself taking fashion tips from little 5 year old girls. Trust me when I say, people here will put NY social elite to shame.
The guys here are so hott!! I have never seen anything like it before. This is the first time where I have seen that the guys put so much thought into their clothes. Also, I have noticed that they are probably as many male clothing stores as there are female.
Lastly, I would like to point out that pedestrians have no rights here, bicyclists rule the streets of Denmark, and if you get into their lane-----THEY WILL RUN YOU OVER. I personally have had a first-hand experience.

Dont Call Yourself a Journalism Student Unless You Have Taken a Course on Social Media

2010-05-10T01:02:00.000-07:00

A couple of years ago there was this pesty rumor that Journalism is dead. Nowadays, it becoming more of a fact. Oh no! I am a journalism major. What the hell am I supposed to do when I graduate.

Low and Behold, along came a J198 Multimedia course that confirmed Journalism is evolving into another being called Social Media.

Honestly, if it wasn't for the J198 course, I would have switched my major into something that gave some form of prospect of employment in the future. Now that I have taken this course, the possibilities have opened up again. There are a multitude of ways I can inform the public. For instance blogging, tweeting, making TV shot videos or documentaries, and etc.
And even if these skills do not help me get payed directly, they make me a more competitive candidate for the ever seemingly scarce journalism jobs. Because of this class, when I am applying for jobs, I have the confidence to walk into the New York Times employment office and be like BAM! take a look at my acquired skills and if that doesn't impress you, I can make a website. To prove it, I will give them the URL to my kick ass website on arts in South Bethlehem. http://www.southbethlehemarts.net/index.html

So how would I evaluate this course?

I would say that hence forth, for every journalism student, this course should be a pre-requisite.

Enthusiasm, guidelines and a good Professor is all you need

2010-05-09T19:50:00.000-07:00

Multimedia Journalism is a very interactive course. The best way to learn or become familiar with social media is to personally explore it.

This is why I ended the course kind of annoyed at the fact that I dropped down $54 buying the course books: Journalism Next and Be The Media by David Mathison. Don't get me wrong, they are great books and everything. They honestly do give you an accurate picture of social media BUT Professor Littau does such a good job of informing us that it was not really necessary to sit there and go through pages of reading. I would rather spend the money on a more interactive software or put the money towards my own freakin personal camera.

Don't get me wrong, not all of the reading material in the course were unnecessary. Prof. Littau made step by step guidelines for almost every social media tool we used and those were so helpful! For instance, I wanted to make a video but for some reason I blanked. Was I worried. Hell No! because in a matter of minutes, I whipped out my guidelines and was completely capable of making a video again.

Speaking of video making.... In the J198 Multimedia course, we used Windows Movie Maker, which was at first relieving because it didn't sound or look too complicated.

However, a part of me wish we used a software more sophisticated that wasn't accessible to everyone who had a PC. That kind of sounds snobby but i am so serious. Think about it, Prof. Littau made some kick ass guidelines that made everything look like the ABC's so surely even if a software was complicated, he would break it down in a way that made it look so simple. This would allow me to gloat but more importantly put down on my resume that I can use BLAH!

Farewell my Beloved

2010-05-08T21:02:00.000-07:00

I cant believe I am saying this, but I am actually sad that my J198 course this semester will be ending.

That's right I still want a college course to go on and No! i am not a nerd.

To be quite honest, I initially only signed up for the course because I thought it was like a tv news anchoring training course. After all, my lifes goal is to meet Anderson Cooper and be the next Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
However, I was pleasantly suprised. Not only did we do some news anchoring but we really dug deep into Multimedia Reporting.

Because of this class, I have caught up with the rest of the world and started Tweeting!

Because of this class, I have learned some videotaping techniques. For instance, the fist time I did filming, I cut off someone's head (MATTHEW Harris)

Flash forward toward the end of the semester and I can honestly say I have improved tremendously.

On top of that, we learned to podcast, set up a Gowalla tour and even better (in my opinion) explored Google Map. Check out what I made

View Colleges and Universities in Lehigh Valley in a larger map

In the end, we compiled all that we learned into one Fabulous website that came up as the first website when you Google South Bethlehem arts in a shorter time than Professor Littau, my group members and I expected
TA DA!!

http://www.southbethlehemarts.net/index.html

We are getting there

2010-04-14T10:40:00.000-07:00

Hola! I am really enjoying seeing my groups progression. We are so much better at making videos and not to say we were ever that bad, but now we make videos like we have some background experience. Last week, I did some filming at the banana factory and I did the whole jazz. I got lots of B-roll, interview a good number of artists and had lots of fun doing it.

The fun really began when I came back to start editing with my group. I felt like we were professionals, you know, doing some friendly debating over what clips we should keep, which artist should come first and which B-roll we should use. I am really excited to see how our entire project comes out!

Check out the Red Show video!

How to get what you want

2010-04-07T10:05:00.000-07:00

So today I had to take pictures at an art gallery for my J198 class. Knowing how impossible and particular people who work at art gallery can be, I was prepared to beg. Well not litteraly, actually yeah, sort of , I actually meant Power Beg. Power Beg means you are vulnerable and you really need whatever it is you want but you talk to the other person as if they are going to miss out if they dont let you have it.

As expected when I walked in, the lady said we have a No Photography policy. I immediatly turned on to Power Beg mode. I told her I was doing this for a Multimedia Journalism class and I think it would be great publicity for the gallery. Walah! as soon as the word publicity rolled off my tongue, she was trying to contain a smile.

She immediatly called her boss and advoocated that I be able to take pictures. Bam! I knew I was in and I took about 20 pictures of the various pieces of art work.

Lesson of the day- Learn how to glam up a situation and never ever make it known to the other party how desperate you actually are.

Locating Sex Offenders in Google Map

2010-03-24T11:35:00.000-07:00

Beware they are closer than you think. Today in our J198 class we also did a google map collabaroation. Everyone located about 7 registered sex offenders in the Lehigh Valley area. It was disgusting how pinned up our map was. Google map is a very valuable tool. We honestly generated the map in less than 15 mins and I know it would have taken forever if I had done it myself.
However what is a lab if you dont run into problems.
Of course, I thought I was putting up my sex offenders on the class collaboration lab but when I went to view my work, it wasnt there. Then I refreshed the collaboration map and did the same exact thing but this time it worked..I dont really know what I did wrong the first time. All I can say for future reference is: Constantly monitor your work. You dont want to reach the end of an assignment like I did and have to start all over.

Anyhoo, for anyones intrest, here is a map of the sex offenders that my class compiled

View Megan's Law: Registered offenders in Bethlehem, PA in a larger map

Google Maps, Better than Map Quest?

2010-03-24T10:55:00.000-07:00

So for our lab in J198, we played with google maps. It is amazing and it is so easy and convineant, mostly because google does all the work for you. It got me thinking..why do people still use MAP qUEST.

With google maps, you even know what your location looks like and you can search up the most random things like all of the dunkin donuts spots in the area. How cool is that!

So I decided to look up the universites around the bethlehem area. Guess what! with google maps I can even make a trail to map out a road trip! How many websites let you mark the areas you want to visit, draw trails and best of all: SAVE IT FOR LATER!!

Thank you google, next time I travel I am going to google map the area
Below is a map I created of the colleges and universities in the Lehigh Vallley.

View Colleges and Universities in Lehigh Valley in a larger map

The Wonders of Being in a Group

2010-03-03T23:58:00.000-08:00

The great thing about working in a group is that if you cant get that interview to seal the deal, rest assured, your group member probably could.

Earlier this week, I was really bummed out about not interviewing enough people but then I realized this is a team project and I asked Lauren to see if she could get anything.

And she did, her interviews added texture to the video and because she did it after Bobby Mcferrin's actual performance, there were people mingling in the background and the people she interviewed were still in awe from the performance. The whole scene was perfect.

For our final group project, my group and I will be covering the art scene in Bethlehem, this should be alot of fun. But I think we are going to get some great footage. I mean, Art! it doesnt get any better than that.

This is Opeyemi Akinbamidele reporting for J198 at Lehigh University, stay tuned.

Be a Multimedia Reporter, not the Paparrazi

2010-02-28T13:03:00.000-08:00

So today, I went to see a Bobby Mcferrin performance. You know, the guy who sang Don't Worry, Be Happy. If this doesn't ring a bell you should be ashamed, but that's okay, his prime was in the 80's before I was even born.

Well anyhow, I got there on time. BIG MISTAKE! As a Multimedia Reporter, I should have gotten there at least a half an hour early to surface the place, because by 2 pm when the performance started, all of the Black Box Theatre at Lehigh University was packed. So I ended up having to sit at the back where my angle for video tapping was shitty as hell.

Being the opportunist that I am, I decided to maneuver through the theatre for a better angle, and while I thought I was being lithe, the entire Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh was pissed. Afterwards, like five people came up to me and scolded me to the point where I wanted to pass out. I hate getting in trouble. In fact, one lady came up to me and said "I just wanted to let you know that you were very annoying and I got alot of complaints about you. You have to think about others and not just about yourself."

I thought to myself, omg I am never going to see a play again. The entire staff knows me now and they hate me! I felt like disappearing and I quickly fled the scene, which was unfortunate because there were a bunch of people who I wanted to interview. Like for instance, President Gast of Lehigh University.

Can you blame me, put yourself in my shoes, Not only was I red from blushing so hard (btw I am black, I was so embarrassed that I turned red, which is only possible in very extreme cases...)but I felt bad because I might have ruined some of the audience members experience during the show.

Later, I showed some of my footage clips to Andrew Daniels, and he was really impressed and reminded me that I am a journalist, I am supposed to be annoying, which comforted for a little bit, but with the vibe I got from Zoellner, I felt like I was the paparazzi, annoying to the exponential.

Tips to not get into my situation

1) Send an email or contact the person in charge, especially for a sensitive event like a guest performance.

2) Get there ridiculously early, so you can get great seats and would not have to move around for a decent angle.

3) If you do find yourself in my situation. Stay strong and finish your job, by that time, you probably have nothing to loose. (I really regret not getting in all of the interviews I wanted)

There is always next time for me to take my own advice.
This is Opeyemi Akinbamidele, reporting for J198 at Lehigh University, stay tuned.

First TV News Story

2010-02-25T18:49:00.000-08:00

Okay, so remember how I said I was going to be Miss Multimedia Reporting from now on. Well, I am still trying to hold up on that promise.

Today there was snow and I thought: Gee this might be a good story to report on. Turns out it really wasn't much of a story since we only had about 4 inches of snow.
Anyhoo here is the video

Well, I tried to use the flower mode, which is a video function that is really good for closeups and I thought that was really cool, but of course, I still haven't mastered the technique. Also I thought my narration was a bit slow and at the end I was trying really hard not to laugh, so that is why it came out a bit weird. Other than that I really liked how my transitions came out. I tried to vary them, all the while, not making them too distracting.

I am excited about this video but not proud of it. The topic wasn't all that exciting and my narration and presentation at the end really turned me off. But this is only the first half of the semester. I hope I can look back on this as one of my amateur films...

"This is Opeyemi Akinbamidele reporting for J198. Stay tuned."

It is Official-Print Journalism is Dead!!

2010-02-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I have blogged and I am not going to lie, I was never really all that enthused about the idea. I was always skeptical and these questions always ran through my head: Why should people get a passage into my inner thoughts, what if I get judged about my opinions.
But then, I went to a AAAS conference in San Diego and everything changed.(BTW going to San Diego was one of the best and worst decisions of my life. Good because I learned a shitload, and bad because I missed so much school and my sleeping schedule is off, and oh, did I mention this is during midterms...)
I realized that this class may be one of the most important classes I have ever taken or will ever take. Multimedia Reporting is where it is at! Blogging has been recognized and twitter is on its way.
Its one thing to hear from Lehigh that it would be beneficial someday to start gearing towards blogging, tweeting, and video journalism, but it is another thing to hear it from a woman who has worked at ABC and NBC for the past 20 years and is confirming that the world is moving very rapidly towards multimedia reporting.
When I heard that, it all clicked, suddenly the chapters I have been reading in Journalism Next by Briggs and Be the Media by Mathison all made sense. Suddenly all of the lesson by Prof. Littau became the bible and he was a god.
When I came to this revelation, I was inspired. I want to do all the video reporting I can and edit the hell out of my videos so that when Prof. Littau sees them, he'll think i had help from a professional.
For my first personal project, I have decided that I would like to document a SpringServe trip to ATL. I think it would be great and give me the experience I need to really become a competitive candidate in the journalism world. That ABC and NBC woman said "we want journalists who are writers, editors, video makers..."
LOOK OUT WORLD, HERE I COME!!

No class but Journalism still continues.

2010-02-11T07:46:00.000-08:00

Yesterday there was a crazy blizzard and our lab was canceled; however, we are still required to make a 5 minute video. rats. Also this is a group project that involves three people which makes it all the more challenging because scheduling, I think, is the biggest challenge when working in groups. I hope this video editing doesn't take too long. However, I really excited to work with people who are more experienced than more. There is a lot you can learn form your peers.

The pain of not having a USB Flash Drive

2010-02-03T11:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I interviewed the receptionist for the Journalism Department and I had really great footage. I was so excited to use it for my Multimedia Lab today but...turns out the clip got deleted!! I am not going to lie, I was so pissed that I am almost started to cry. To calm myself down, I reminded myself that if I had saved the clip on a USB Flash Drive I would not be having this problem.

Well, anyhoo..Lesson # 1 : Always save footage that you treasure on a USB Flash Drive, so in case your video clip disappears you wont be totally bummed out. By the way, although you get can get USB'S for well over $100, there also some great ones for only about $35, including shipping and handling.

As for my clip, it came out a bit short because I decided that watching someone do some weird tricks on a computer could be a bit boring, especially to an untrained eye. However, I found the voice over quite simple, far different from what I had anticipated. It honestly took me five minutes to do. Honestly, once you nail the basic technique of video editing, which we practiced in the first and second lab, the rest becomes second nature to you.

However, if I could do it all over again, I would have told her not to talk while she was demonstrating her work so that the voice over would not be so blatantly obvious.

I thought this was a rather successful lab, I felt very comfortable with working with the clip I taped and i learned a valuable lesson! Never

Interviewing people

2010-02-02T18:31:00.000-08:00

I like interviewing people. It gives you an insight on someone's personality. Those who are too quick to anwser a question are usually insecure and it is usually easy to stir them into the direction you want by being forceful versus the people who take their time to anwser a question are usually hard to get straight cut answers from. With those people you have to be more diplomatic and ease into the major question you want to ask. Today I interviewed the receptionist for the Journalism department. I knew I was going to get alot of information from her when she made me wait so she could brush her hair. In 2:46, I knew when and where she graduated from, how long she has been working there, how she percieved herself in the job and so on....When I interviewed Pendelton she was much slower to anwser my question and never gave me an extreme opinion. All her answers were in the middle, which is great but I WANT A QUOTE!

Does Work Ever End

2010-02-01T23:25:00.000-08:00

Why is it that the more studious or hardworking you decide to become, the more work you have. This could entail working out, studying or performing better at your job. Will there ever be a point in my life when I can relax and not glance at my cellphone 24/7 to see if i have any new emails, missed calls or text messages. Will i ever satisfy myself and stop feeling guilty for taking a break?

FIRST INTERVIEW in my Multimedia Class

2010-01-27T17:33:00.000-08:00

Today I interview Megan about the Haiti Crisis. I wish I didn't interview her for as long as I did because that sure as hell was a long editing process. The first video is the raw interview with the exception of the credits at the end and the "News Banner" title bar to introduce her.

In the second video clip was the long process of editing about 12 questions. I have to admit I did get better as the clip went on but it took me a long time to get used to splitting and eventually I developed simple techniques such as watching the video and then splitting!

Finally we ended the assignment with a simple but clean fade before the actual interview. I had fun doing this project and I definitely learned a lot!

sleep

2010-01-26T23:57:00.000-08:00

I have trouble sleeping. Everynight i am dead tired and when i go to bed it seems like my brain wakes up. this is posing to be a huge problem. Is there anything I can do without going to see a doctor?

Tired

2010-01-25T20:17:00.000-08:00

Have you ever been in Fairmont and all you heard were "nerds" talking chemistry or biochemistry or whatever they are doing. It gets quite annoying, especially when you came to Fairmont not Linderman. I have so much work to do but I am tired as hell!Ever been too tired to work but too antsy to sleep....that is how I have been for the past week and a half. It SUCKS!! Should I go to my room or wang it out, oh wait, its not that easy because i live in Sayre, the top of the mountain and I dont have a car. I love my life...

First Day of Multimedia Class

2010-01-20T11:30:00.000-08:00

Today was my first day. It was quite interesting, this class looks like it is going to be the most useful for me.... It took us so long to figure out that we were in the flower mode and now our video's are blurry. I think the technical name is soft clip mode?Shucks.
This is a simple device, but if you are in the wrong setting, it can really mess you up. Also, it seems like I am going to have trouble saving, converting and yadayada.....I guess I am going to be more alert and practice this. I hope I do well in this class but more importantly, I hope I remeber everything and actually learn. We'll see