A few photos I took for the Humber Networking Event, Humber Games:
The Candyland Bar
Author Archives: vvernick
Humber PR Advice: Know Your Personal Brand
After 15-weeks, I’m halfway through Humber PR bootcamp! In the next three months, I’ll have found my internship and the famous Kalene Morgan will have booted me from my little PR birdie nest. Should I be excited or terrified? I guess a bit of both.
So what’s the biggest lesson I’ve learned so far?
Obviously I’m at Humber College to learn the technical ins-and-outs, grasp the soft skills and develop myself as a professional. But, the best piece of advice I can give is this: Don’t let go of who you are, be yourself and don’t try to fit into a mould. Being a little different than everyone else will end up being part of your “personal brand” and in the end, it will help you stand out from the rest.
At times, it’s been easy to get a bit lost. It’s understandable to feel like you need to be someone or something else – but you don’t. PR is such a vast profession with so many options that there’s something for everyone. Whether you like fashion, finance and stocks, politics or airlines, or if you’re someone more like me who loves music, art, photography, writing and yes, even tattoos- you’ll fit.
At the end of the day: know what you like, admit what you don’t, own your quirks and claim your crazy - trust me, we’re all a little neurotic.
Life in Humber PR: Three Months In
I’ve now been a Humber PR post-graduate student for almost three months. I can genuinely say that I’m learning more applicable skills here than I ever did in university.
This program is intense. It get’s a bit overwhelming at times and it can test your sanity but, I’ve never had more fun in my life!
This semester, I’m taking courses in: writing, social media, public affairs (my favourite), marketing, event planning, corporate and international public relations, strategic public relations and practice & theory.
Being forced/strongly encouraged to read the news every day has lead to my growth and development as a person. Reading the Globe is now my favourite part of the day.
We do a TON of group work, so learning how to interact and work with different types of people is crucial to success. Attitude is everything and never be afraid to ask a question – regardless of how silly it may seem – because asking the right questions is part of the job.
The great thing about this program is there’s something for everyone. And if you think you know what PR is, you’re probably wrong. I’ve learned that public relations is everywhere and is an incredibly important asset to any company – whether it be for-profit or non-profit. The practice is more than simply persuading people to see your point of view; it’s about building long-term, trusting, two-way relationships between an organization and its public/audience. Public relations helps put humanity into what might otherwise be seen as a cold, heartless entity. So, you can actually be a good person, keep your integrity AND go into PR! Who knew?
Just know that, from day one, everyone is as scared, nervous and unsure as you are. No one knows what’s going and and you all sink or swim together but at least it’s together.
Accepted to Humber PR Postgrad? Make the Most of Your Time Off
So, you saw that email in your inbox that read “Accepted to PR for….” and if you are anything like me, you squealed, did a little dance in your chair (or maybe even stood up and shimmied) and called every single person on your contacts list to brag about your accomplishment.
And, rightly, you should! You earned your spot! YOU beat out hundreds of applicants vying for 1 of only 80 spots in the coveted Humber PR post-graduate program! Yay! Breathe a sigh of relief! The first battle of the war to come is over! However, again if you’re anything like me, you want to be as prepared as you can possibly be before even stepping foot on campus. You want to have that edge; that special ‘something’ that makes you stand out. And then you start panicking (or I did). What if everyone else already has experience? What if I don’t know anything? What if..what if…
So, I’ve come up with a number of ways to make the most of my time while also readying myself for the year to come. I hope you’ll enjoy and even adopt some of these tips!
Human Trafficking: In Canada’s Backyard?
“There were so many young girls in there. They were from Moldova, Romania, Ukraine and Bulgaria. Some were crying. Others looked terrified. We were told not to speak to each other…All the time, very mean and ugly men came in and dragged girls into rooms. Sometimes they would rape girls in front of us. They yelled at them, ordering them to move in certain ways…to pretend excitement… Those who resisted were beaten. If they did not cooperate, they were locked in dark cellars with no food and water for three days. One girl refused to submit to anal sex, and that night the owner brought in five men. They held her on the floor and every single one of them had anal sex with her in front of all of us. She screamed and screamed…”
The above quote is an excerpt from the book called The Natashas: The New Global Sex Trade written by Canadian journalist, Victor Malarek.
The United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime’s definition of human trafficking incorporates three components: Continue reading
Luka Magnotta: Should We Blame Technology?
Warning: Graphic Content and Subject Matter
As someone who holds an Honors Double Major in Criminology and Sociology it is hard for me not to be completely fascinated by the recent Luka Magnotta (aka Pornstar Killer) case. Undoubtedly I think his actions are absolutely horrific and my heart goes out to Lin Jun’s family who are reportedly arranging to travel from China to Canada. I can’t even begin to imagine the pain they are going through. However, an article in today’s Globe and Mail that dubs Magnotta as the ‘Facebook assassin’ made me think about the characteristics that differentiate him from other notorious serial killers (assuming he’s killed before) such as Jeffrey Dahmer who was famous cannibalism, necrophilia, forced sodomy and dismemberment (sound familiar?), or Denis Rader who was actually nicknamed the BTK (Bind, Torture and Kill) strangler for fairly obvious reasons but who also sent letters to the media (sound even more familiar?) or finally the legendary Ted Bundy who would rape and murder his victims before engaging in necrophilia with the corpses. Continue reading
PR Prep: How to Prepare for Humber’s Postgraduate PR Interview
Since I’m going to be going into PR, I thought it appropriate to dedicate my first article 
to the industry. In particular, to Humber’s post-graduate program. When I was preparing for the information session back in March, being the google junkie that I am, I searched high and low for any advice as to what to do and how to prepare. After hours upon hours of research, I came up short. So, this is my attempt to fix that for any future PR applicants in hopes that you might find some useful tips in terms of how to ready yourself!
