Final Blog Comm 314

After completing my ePortfolio, I gained the knowledge of how important an online presence is. When we first started, my mindset was that it was ‘just a website’ and I did not really need to put that much effort into it. As the semester went on and I had to use this portfolio for almost all of my classes, I came to realize that it is a collection of all the work I have done in one spot that I can keep forever. I improved greatly on the setup of the website and how I formatted and used professional wiring. I also think that creating my resume and getting feedback on it helped a lot. I had a resume from the end of highschool but I have accomplished so much since then that it was outdated so creating a new one was really beneficial. What I like most about my ePortfolio is that it is very personable and those who are looking at it can get a glimpse of who I am. I also like how organized mine is and how I get to decide what I want on there and how to change it. Being able to add little fun facts about yourself and pictures gives people a sense of familiarity when looking through your website, which also helps tremendously for professionals as well.

The most challenging aspect of my ePortfolio was trying to make it not crowded with all of my different classes. This semester I took three Comm classes and they all wanted blog posts, so trying to make sure there was no confusion was challenging. It was also challenging to set it up exactly how I wanted. I have pictures on my website but for a while they were upside down because I did not know how to fix them. The biggest piece of advice I would give to future students is to make sure the foundation of your website is good before you try to start adding anything. It is such a hassle to set up your website in a way you do not like and say ‘I will fix this later’ and then have to move everything you have worked on since then. I would also recommend getting feedback on your portfolio from the student help center online. The feedback I got really helped my portfolio look more personable and professional. The most interesting thing about this course was how little I knew about nonverbal communication. I thought this class was going to give me information that was common knowledge or stuff I already knew but I have learned so much throughout this course. I also enjoyed building the portfolio and getting to interact with other classmates, making it feel more like an in-person class.

From the popular press analysis, I have learned even more to not trust the media and to fact check the articles I read before believing in them right off the bat. I think as a whole, we have tendencies to just believe what we read if it quotes scientific research without doing any research ourselves. For me personally, this will help my chosen career because mental health has such a bad stigma and false facts flying around the internet. I could use the information I learned to try and stop the stigma and hopefully more people will seek the help they need and deserve. I also think it will help me in my future career because being a therapist involves needing to pick up nonverbal clues to tell how people are feeling without them having to say it. The knowledge I gained will allow me to do so.