Navigating Opportunities Towards a Career

February 13, 2023

Written by: Dylan Kenny

Ever wonder what it would be like to work around national celebrities and professional athletes? Well, most of us wouldn’t know, but we did get to hear from someone who does.

The Clemson Chapter of PRSSA got to hear today from Caroline Kucko, a Corporate Communications Coordinator at Sirius XM. Over a Zoom call hosted by Clemson PRSSA and open to anyone interested, Caroline shared her career path before arriving at her current position with Sirius XM. She began by taking an internship with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL when still in school. While there, she got to meet countless superstar athletes and become professionally intimate with a franchise in the most profitable sports organization worldwide. The experience allowed her to break out of her comfort zone and network like never before. Soon after, Caroline received another internship, this time in the Public Relations department of Sirius XM. A second internship the following semester would confirm her growing relationship with Sirius XM, and she soon after received a full-time offer as a Corporate Communications Coordinator. The job has been spectacular so far and Caroline has been loving every aspect, clearly evident through the excitement and passion in her eyes as she spoke.

After sharing, Caroline then responded to questions from the curious students, each answer flowing without hesitation. She expressed her profound gratitude for the opportunities her internship experiences provided her; not just for the resume content, but the personal growth that led her to define what she was truly passionate about. Ms. Kucko then ended by recommending Sirius XM to anyone interested in a company with a great corporate culture, highlighting the various intern programs offered, and inviting viewers to connect with her on LinkedIn.

Bringing in guest speakers is important to our chapter as there is a lot to be gained by hearing from professionals who have made those steps we are looking to soon take in our lives. Even better is being able to receive real-time feedback and advice from any questions that may pop up during presentations.

On behalf of the Clemson Chapter of PRSSA, we would like to thank Ms. Caroline Kucko for taking the time to share so much with us. It’s enlightening to soak in the wisdom and experiences of others, while presentations like this will hopefully lead us to make the most of our own opportunities.

Connect 2019

By: Eimile Harrison, Chapter President

This past Friday, November 8th, we attended the Connect Professional Development Conference in Cayce, SC hosted by SCPRSA and IABC-SC. For many of us attending, it was our first time, so we were unsure of what to expect, but we knew it would be an amazing experience. While at Connect, we were able to meet so many amazing people, as well as our fellow PRSSA chapters in the state, Claflin University, Anderson University, and UofSC. With an amazing speaker to start our morning off, there were a total of 8 break out sessions to choose from, but you could only attend four. We each picked whichever session piqued our interests, but the Student Panel was extra special. Nicole McAlister, who spoke on the student panel, is a Clemson graduate and former member of the Clemson PRSSA chapter. I think I took over 5 pages of notes throughout the day. The last session I attended was Brandi Boatner, or as she calls herself "The Beyoncé of the business world", on Driving Digital DNA. With an interactive presentation and clever connections to the communication industry, she presented our digital dna as being made of ACGT, just like our DNA, but here it means Audience, Technology, Goals, and Content. I don't want to spill too much on her session, because it's my hope that our chapter will be able to have Brandi as a guest speaker later this year. Connect was an amazing opportunity that allowed us to meet so many people, both students and professionals, and I can't wait to attend next year (even if it means leaving campus by 6am again).