Olivia Slater and Jada Ruff first graduates from UNK's online Public Communication M.A. program

More than twenty-nine percent of UNK’s master's degree graduates in the last five years also hold a bachelor’s degree from the institution.  

Olivia Slater and Jada Ruff will be among these alumni after the Spring 2023 commencement ceremonies, but they will also be identified as the first graduates of the Public Communication Master of Arts program, a relatively new addition to the UNK graduate catalog. 

After obtaining her Bachelor of Science degree in Sports Administration, like many current graduate students, Slater decided to pursue her master’s degree for career advancement. The Public Communication program gave her the chance to continue building upon the experience she gained in advertising, public relations, and recruiting while in her undergraduate program.  

“I’ve always wanted to go into recruiting. In undergrad, I was the Vice President of Recruitment for my sorority and a handful of other organizations. I thought Public Communication would better serve me and my personal/professional skills, since recruiting is so geared toward people. As a recruiter you are continuously communicating,” she said.

The online format of the program also provided the opportunity for her to continue working in her job while working on her degree.  

"I currently work full-time as a corporate recruiter. My hope is that with my graduate degree, I can keep excelling and growing in my field,” said Slater.

In contrast, Ruff’s decision to pursue a master’s degree provided a chance to branch out and explore new educational options. As an undergraduate student, she pursued a degree in Exercise Science, but she was looking for a way to have a bigger impact on her community. 

“I love to learn and was inspired to pursue a graduate degree after talking to my mentor,” said Ruff. “I was also excited to pursue a graduate degree that differed from my undergraduate degree and broaden my scope of learning.” 

Expanding her educational experience allowed Ruff to bring her bachelor’s and master’s degrees together in the Food Nutrition and Health Educator position for Nebraska Extension she will fill after graduation.  

“I wanted to combine my nutrition and health background with communication in the hopes of doing community wellness programs in the future, and now I’m able to do just that,” Ruff said.  

The achievement of a master’s degree marks many significant milestones for Slater. In addition to obtaining a higher level of education and being one of the first to graduate from her program, her graduation embodies a significant familial priority.  

“Education has always been an important value in my family, as I am a first-generation college student,” said Slater. Achieving her master’s degree, then, became a point of family pride. “I wanted to pursue higher education to make my family and myself proud.” 

As has been the case for many Loper alumni, making the decision to return to UNK for an additional degree was a relatively easy process for both students. 

“I got my undergrad at UNK and knew there wasn’t a better place to pursue my master’s,” Slater explained.  

For Ruff, relationship building was a key part of her decision to pursue another degree at UNK.  

“My favorite thing about UNK is the close relationships I have been able to make with my classmates, professors, and other online students,” said Ruff. “I love UNK and am glad I chose UNK to pursue both my undergrad and graduate programs. Even though I am an online student, my professors did a great job making me feel like I was part of UNK and not just an online learner.” 

While learning and applying the skills she learned in the program, Slater was also able to form relationships with the faculty and students.  

“I really enjoyed the small cohort. I’ve been able to get to know other students and really work alongside them while pursuing this degree,” Slater said.  “The faculty is also top notch, and they always want to see you succeed.” 

In addition to the connections formed with classmates, the malleability of the master’s program was a highlight for Ruff.  

“The Public Communication program has a lot of flexibility and variety,” she said. “I felt like I could choose classes based on my interests.” 

UNK is also making changes to the Public Communication program in the 2023-24 catalog to allow for even more program customization. While three required courses make up the core of the program, students—with the help of an advisor—can choose nine credit hours of specialization courses within the department and 12-15 hours of elective courses that can be in other disciplines. Students complete the program with either a thesis or practicum.  

Ruff decided to pursue the practicum option by conducting a communication audit of the internal and external communication processes for the Office of Graduate Studies and Academic Outreach. 

“I am a hands-on learner and would recommend the practicum to prospective students because it is a great way to test your knowledge and put your communication skills to use,” she said. “I like that I had the flexibility to make it my own project. I was able to create a project that I was interested in and pick my own communication topic.” 

With the end of the semester drawing near and the Spring commencement ceremony coming soon, Slater reflected upon her time at UNK with fondness and gratitude in one simple statement: “Thanks UNK!”