Meet your 2020 COM Grad Ambassadors! Feel free to contact whichever ambassador you’d like with questions about your program, moving to Boston, life at COM etc. Note that you are free to contact any ambassador, not only the one(s) in your program.
Emerging Media Studies
Akanksa Upadhyay
- Hometown: Mumbai, India
- Undergraduate degree: Public Relations
- Favorite COM course so far: EM795 Gamification & Motivational Design of User Experiences
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Junior Associate, Client Experience – dna Communications
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Reading, musicals, motivational design, sustainable technology
- Advice for new students: Budget in time for self-care!
- Contact: akanksau@bu.edu
Yimeng Sun
- Hometown: Beijing, China
- Undergraduate degree: Visual Art Media, Cognitive Science, HCI
- Favorite COM course so far: EM 855 Computer-Assisted Text Analysis
- Past/Current Internship Experience: A/V Communication for Qualcomm Institution, The Design Lab
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Social media platforms, self-proclaimed, rookie YouTuber!
- Advice for new students: Stay curious because there is always something new.
- Contact: ymsun@bu.edu, Instagram: bibileography, YouTube: Bibileo,
Film & Television Studies
Julia Henken
- Hometown: Dover, Massachusetts
- Undergraduate degree: Film & Television, English Minor
- Favorite COM course(s) so far: FT532 NBC, FT544 Special Topics, FT303 Understanding TV (Teaching Assistant)
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Pilot Productions, Brookline Public Schools
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Favorite franchises are Doctor Who and the MCU. Licensed English teacher. Enjoys going to the gym and spending time with her cat.
- Advice for new students: Take the 57 bus, not the green line– the bus is WAY faster!
- Contact: jahenken@bu.edu
Screenwriting
Madi Goldman
- Hometown: Mountainside, New Jersey
- Undergraduate degree: Film & Television
- Favorite COM course so far: FT730 Screen Adaptation
- Past/Current Internship Experience: YES Network, RA Vision Productions
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Fittingly TV: Sex Education, The Marvelous Ms. Maisel, Mindhunter, Brooklyn 99, Fleabag, The Mandalorian, reading, BUTV10 Camera Op.
- Advice for new students: Work hard, don’t be afraid to ask for help and never doubt that you’re supposed to be here.
- Contact: Twitter: madigoldman, Instagram: madiigoldmann
Drew Ladner
- Hometown: Shrewsbury, Massachusetts
- Undergraduate degree: English, Creative Writing
- Favorite COM course so far: FT522 Writing Situation Comedy
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Reality TV fanatic, regular TV fan, football historian, social strategy game enthusiast.
- Advice for new students: Get to know the people around you. I have found it helpful to have a network of people to whom I can reach out whenever I’m struggling with something. Many have helped me work through my issues. I have also found many more who are suffering the same problems as me–and then we struggle together! Plus, the people around you can be great company too!
- Contact: dladner@bu.edu
Television
Stephen Sieber
- Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio
- Undergraduate degree: Film Production
- Favorite COM course(s) so far: FT503 TV to Tablets, FT512 Episodic Drama
- Assistantship: Graduate Assistantship with Professor Luber, FT 503: TV to Tablets and FT 517: Television Management
- Fun Facts/Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Once wrote and directed a concept short for a TV show to pitch to undergraduate college. It was so compelling that the college developed new classes to address the growing TV atmosphere. Met Colin Trevorrow at a screening of The Book of Henry in Cleveland. Interviewed Aaron Morton (Director of Photography, “Orphan Black”, “Evil Dead”, “Black Mirror: Bandersnatch”) in a Skype call.
- Advice for new students: Make friends with the people in your cohort. It’s helpful to have friends to rely on throughout your time at Boston University.
- Contact: sseiber@bu.edu
Morgan Ozdarski
- Hometown: Turners Fall, Massachusetts
- Undergraduate degree: Communication and Legal Studies
- Favorite COM course so far: FT727 Creative Producing, FT565 Motion Picture Editing
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Amherst Media Production Assistant, Video Editor UMass Amherst Transportation Center
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Huge Marvel fan! Loved Avengers Endgame. Never-ending list of TV shows. Highly recommend Killing Eve – Obsessed with anything spy-related! Also love going to the movies, even if it’s just to watch trailers.
- Advice for new students: Get on Boston’s Advanced Movie Screening List. You can see new movies early and for free!
- Contact: ozdarski@bu.edu, LinkedIn
Journalism
Sammie Purcell
- Hometown: Smyrna, Georgia
- Undergraduate degree: Communication and Spanish
- Favorite COM course so far: FT535 Investigative Reporting
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Creative Artists Agency in Nashville – Music Intern
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Loves music, baseball and her dog. HUGE movie/TV nerd. In a band with her dad – check them out on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/reallad1
- Advice for new students: Don’t be afraid to dive in! Everyone is just as overwhelmed and confused, but you’re going to be fine. Grad school is better than undergrad – it’s school, but you get to do the thing you love.
- Contact: sepurcell8@gmail.com, Twitter: @slammie8
Advertising
Jeturi Brown
- Hometown: Detroit, Michigan
- Undergraduate degree: Mass Communication
- Favorite COM course so far: CM708 Principles and Practices of Advertising
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Visteon, Quicken Loans, MAIP 4A’s
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Hanging with friends, good movies, good food. Self-identifying straight-up nerd. Loves Star Wars, Marvel/DC comics, and anime. Played baseball in undergrad and a little bit of independent ball as well.
- Advice for new students: Don’t be shy, come in and learn as much as you can from the teachers and other students. Everyone is here to help so use them.
- Contact: jeturib@bu.edu, Twitter: Jaytour, Instagram: greatnessismine
Komal Pawar
- Hometown: Mumbai, India
- Undergraduate degree: Mass Media
- Favorite COM course(s) so far: CM 741 Design Strategy and Software and AdLab
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Communications fellow for the Yes Foundation Media for Social Change
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: COM Graduate Council Academic Policy Co-chair.
- Advice for new students: Don’t downsize your dreams. BU has opportunities for everyone. Explore the unexplored!
- Contact: komal06@bu.edu, Instagram: komalpawar06, Facebook: komalpawar06, LinkedIn
Marketing Communication Research
Boyi Cheng
- Hometown: Huainan, China
- Undergraduate degree: Economics and Finance
- Favorite COM course so far: CM 730 Marketing
- Past/Current Internship Experience: PrivCo (PrivCo Company Financial Intelligence), Shape Ukraine
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Experienced pianist. Enjoys photography, music, design, and reading. Love Fitrec. Currently taking a jazz-funk class.
- Advice for new students: Search for information about internships earlier if you want to work after graduation.
- Contact: byc@bu.edu, Instagram: scarlettcheng
Nidhi Balaji
- Hometown: Bangalore, India
- Undergraduate degree: Computer and Information Science Engineering
- Favorite COM course(s) so far: CM 722 Communication Research, CM 723 Advanced Communication Research, CM724 Sampling Design and Measurement Techniques, CM707 Writing for Media Professionals
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Microsoft, Unilever
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Research Assistant for Professor Michael Elasmar
- Interests: Searching for Boston’s best bookstores and coffee shops, crossing things off bucket list, traveling.
- Advice for new students: Step out of your comfort zone – you’ll be thankful you did.
- Contact: nidhib@bu.edu,
Public Relations
Marcella Quintanilla
- Hometown: Monterrey, Mexico
- Undergraduate degree: Communication and Digital Media
- Favorite COM course so far: CM 700 Financial & Strategic Management for Communication Professionals
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Media Relations Dana Farber Cancer Institute
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Comms team member in International Research Initiative (www.irinitiative.com), Volunteer at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. Yoga, Hiking, Tea tasting, camping, sleeping full 8 hours.
- Advice for new students: The most important network you will create is with your professors. Do not be afraid to ask questions, curiosity is very important. Also, make time for yourself! Find a moment of peace in your hectic schedule to reset.
- Contact: maquin@bu.edu,
Liming Jiang
- Hometown: Shanghai, China
- Undergraduate degree: Advertising
- Favorite COM course so far: CM 701 Contemporary PR
- Past/Current Internship Experience: Edelman, Sudler MDS, BCW
- Hobbies/Extracurriculars: Once rode Hagrid’s motorbike roller coaster in the heavy rain.
- Interests: animals, swimming, clipping videos.
- Advice for new students: Everyone can make it through the semester. Stay positive, take advantage of resources, and keep in touch with professors.
- Contact: lmjiang@bu.edu,