Name: Nadia Caldwell
Program: Strategic Public Relations M.A.
Expected graduation: May 2018
Hometown: Tacoma, WA

Why did you choose to attend Annenberg? 
For me it really came down to the community. You always hear about the “Trojan Network” and how connected we are here at Annenberg but it goes so much further than that. It’s the relationships. When I visited the campus and met the faculty and saw firsthand how truly invested in the students they are, and how everyone here—staff, faculty and students—are dedicated to helping one another, I knew I had to be a part of this community.

Tell us about a great experience or opportunity you’ve had here at Annenberg? 
Coming and visiting and getting exposed to the warm communal experience that is being at Annenberg was one of my favorite experiences at USC until recently. I just had the opportunity to come full circle and sit on the student panel for this year’s Admitted Graduate Student Preview Day. I got to speak with students and try to give them that warm communal experience that I had. Building a meaningful community and my own personal network is probably the greatest opportunity I’ve received here at Annenberg.

What is one thing at USC that no student should miss?
Can I say everything? There is just so much to do, see and be a part of at USC. I don’t know if it is possible to say just one. I recommend getting out and about and really engaging with USC as a whole. I’m in the Oriana Women’s Choir at the Thornton School of Music and that’s not an opportunity afforded to non-music majors at other universities. USC gives you the opportunity to engage with a wide range of things from the arts to the sciences and you don’t want to miss out on any of it.

Tell us about an experience you’ve had outside of class (internship, research project, publication, etc):
Last semester I worked in Annenberg’s Center for Public Relations. While there I had the opportunity to work with Fred Cook, Chairman of Golin, on the first-ever USC Annenberg Relevance Report. So much work went into curating this book, one that brought together some of the most influential people in PR to give their projections on the future of PR. Working on that report has been one of the highlights of my time at USC.

What is your favorite spot on campus and why?
My favorite spot on campus is the fountain behind the ASC building in front of the Bing theater. It’s similar to the 9/11 memorial where the water drops down from the sides into a hole at the base of the structure. It’s beautiful! So serene and calming. I could be having the worst day and when I just walk past that fountain I feel so much better.

What do you hope to do after graduation?
With graduation a year away it’s still far off and my plans may change. However, as of now I plan to be working here in Los Angeles, hopefully with an agency that specializes in advocacy PR. Otherwise maybe somewhere in the nonprofit sector working my way toward political communications and government relations.