Journalism Grad Hits the Books

Giovanni Padilla graduated from CSUDH in Spring of 2017 with a B.A. in Communications with a Journalism concentration. His experience in the Communications Department was one that he loved. "Before I transferred to CSUDH, I was at CSULA for a few quarters, but the faculty wasn't great," said Padilla.

"The quality of professors I encountered in the Communications Department [at CSUDH] was excellent. I built good relationships with Dr. Eagle, Dr. Burkey, and Professor Beers. They all went above and beyond and made my time memorable."

Padilla is also a musician and has been in bands since he was 16 years old. His most recent band was called People Flavor. They released some singles under Dangerbird Records but have halted their work since COVID-19. After graduation, Padilla also pursued journalism jobs.

"I was able to secure an internship as a music blogger," said Padilla.

Padilla is an excellent example of where journalism can take a graduate and how that skill can be applied to job fields that aren't always recognized.

"I interviewed bands and wrote album reviews," said Padilla. "Unfortunately, that internship didn't last long as the creator of the website decided to call it off."

After graduation, finding a job is a hardship that most graduates are familiar with, and Padilla's case was no different.

"It was a struggle to find internships or jobs that I was also interested in," said Padilla. After attempting an internship in Public Relations and learning quickly how much that style was not for him, Padilla made his next move.

"Due to the lack of opportunities and dwindling general personal interest, I decided to go back to school and get my master's in Library Science to become a librarian."

Padilla has worked for the County of Los Angeles Public Library since 2012. An idea that he had stored in the back of his head has now become his current educational pursuit. Padilla will graduate with his master's from San Jose State University in the Spring of 2022.