By Hannah Osborne
P1 Learning is a two-week “pop up” curriculum designed to educate college students on a career in broadcasting focused in broadcast sales. This program can be easily integrated into the class curriculum or act as a standalone course. P1 Learning and the Georgia Association of Broadcasters hope that the program provides students that are unaware or hesitant of their career prospects in broadcast sales a renewed confidence to begin their careers.
P1 Learning was co-founded by Speed Marriott and Katey McGuckin-Woolam in 2007 to provide “Real World Training Solutions,” to “on-the-go” professionals, and now, students. P1 Learning prides itself on the accessibility of the program “anywhere, anytime,” making the program specifically catered to the needs of their clients. P1 Learning, and the GAB, works with course professors in order to best align the content to the needs of the students.
The Georgia Association of Broadcasters sponsors the program for Georgia colleges and universities, and for the past three years Dr. Dale Van Cantfort of Piedmont University has taken advantage of the service for his students.
“No matter what you plan to do in the world of mass communications, a solid understanding of sales is essential to your success,” says Van Cantfort of the program’s content value. “The P1 program gives you a great start to building your professional sales knowledge.”
The program consists of 10-minute instructional videos accompanied by brief quizzes to ensure the understanding of the content. The provided program can be aided by meetings with members of the P1 Learning staff and industry professionals.
At Piedmont University the program is a 1-hour practicum course that often needs some extra encouragement by Van Cantfort for students, unaware of the career benefits, to take.
“After they complete the course, I have heard comments like, ‘it was one of the best things I did at Piedmont,’ or ‘the contacts I made with professionals in the industry through this course directly lead me to an internship/job,’” says Van Cantfort.
The GAB completely foots the cost of the program for colleges and universities to ensure that prospective future broadcasters receive the resources they need to be successful in the industry.
“I have participated in the program for the past 5 years,” says President of the GAB, Bob Houghton. “The program is extremely important to our industry and the GAB appreciates the value of the program and is investing our dollars and time towards this program.”
The program is an excellent source of exposure to the professional world and a great head start for students preparing to enter the world of broadcasting.
