The University of Indianapolis’ Professional Edge Center is collaborating with the podcasting class, COMM 317, to produce a career-focused podcast titled “The Edge and Beyond.”
Director of Healthcare Careers Stephanie Kendall-Dietz said the idea for a Pro Edge podcast had been discussed for at least two years, as podcasts have continued to grow in popularity.
“We like sitting around talking about career-related topics, so when [General Manager of UINDY-TV and WICR and Assistant Professor of Communication] Rick [Dunkle] had the class, that was just the perfect opportunity to really get it off the ground,” Kendall-Dietz said.
The podcast aims to provide timely career advice to college students and young professionals, not just those at UIndy. Topics will include professionalism, tattoos and piercings in the workplace, interviewing, navigating a first or second job search and getting resumes through AI screening tools, according to Kendall-Dietz.
“The job market’s changing quickly,” Kendall-Dietz said. “One of our goals is to make sure anybody interested [in a job] gets current, up-to-date information about what’s happening in the world.”
Dunkle said while he was making the syllabus for COMM 317, the collaboration began when Pro Edge staff reached out about producing a podcast.
“When I met with the Pro Edge Staff and heard what they were doing and that they were focusing it towards students and families, it felt like we were already going to be the target demographic, so it just made sense,” Dunkle said.
Producing a professional podcast aligns with the class’s learning objectives and gives students experience in content creation, marketing and distribution, according to Dunkle.
“More than 50% of the country listens to podcasts monthly, and that’s only growing,” Dunkle said. “There’s so much growth potential here. All companies are looking at it as a way to give a different image of their company.”
Senior communication major Caden Colford, who is enrolled in COMM 317, said the collaboration has allowed students to be creative in a classroom setting. Colford said communication between the class and the Pro Edge Center has been strong during brainstorming and production sessions.
“I feel like the people in Pro Edge have been really good at taking criticism, and we’ve been pretty good at giving it,” Colford said. “We’re starting from the ground up. We have our concept, and we’re trying to build the format.”
The Pro Edge team and podcasting class recently recorded their first episode. Kendall-Dietz said students have played an important role in shaping the project.
Kendall-Dietz said the podcast will answer questions submitted by students and listeners to theedgeandbeyondpod@gmail.com. The first episode of “The Edge and Beyond” is expected to be released in April on major streaming platforms, according to Kendall-Dietz.
