Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Top 10 Ways My Years in the US Army Prepared Me for Grad School in Communication Studies

For Veteran’s Day Nov. 11, 2015

10.  Sleep?!  You don’t need sleep!  You can sleep when you’re dead!  You’ve got a research paper due!

9.  Just like the military, the professors arm you…but with research studies, texts, and their years of knowledge!

8.  It’s not just a job…it’s an adventure! (You get to eat, breath, and live Communication Studies 24/7!)

7. Drill sergeants don’t yell, they simply talk loud enough so that everyone can hear them! (I never knew this whole time they were teaching me about Berger and diBattista’s (1993) study, Communication failure and plan adaptation: If at first you don’t succeed, say it louder and slower!) 

6.  On those super long class days when you don’t have time to stop for lunch, you realize that the vending machines in Oldfather Hall serve gourmet meals comparable to an MRE packet (meals-ready-to-eat)! 

5.  The army exercises your body – the Comm Studies’ profs exercise your mind!

4.  Forget the camouflage.  It won’t help you hide if you’re not prepared for class!

3. The Comm Studies' professors are like drill sergeants – they constantly push you to a higher level 
of achievement you never knew you could reach!

2.  The road march is long and hard and all uphill!  But the view from the mountaintop on graduation day will be well worth the journey!


1.  Now you’re ready to: “Be!  All that you can be…in Communication Studies!” HOOAH! J



by Carol Tschampl-Diesing, a first year PhD student and US Army veteran

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