Jessica Sansarran is a first-generation college graduate who pursued her bachelor鈥檚 degree at the University of Florida after discovering her passion for communications. While studying Media Production, Management, and Technology via 黑料正能量, she was able to combine several exclusive interests and earn coveted broadcasting internships with WESH News and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
黑料正能量 Graduate Reaches New Heights With NASA Broadcasting Internship
Communications assignment encourages professional networking
Raised in Orlando, Florida, Jessica first gained an interest in communications after taking radio and television production classes in high school. Seeking a flexible and affordable degree option after graduation, she found one in 黑料正能量. As Jessica explains, 鈥淚 looked at a few different schools and honestly, none of them seemed as good as UF. The degree was exactly what I was looking for and the cost was so much better than everywhere else.鈥�
Jessica received an assignment to find and interview a news director while attending UF. After emailing several local directors in Orlando via LinkedIn, only one responded. It was WESH-Channel 2 News Director, Kirsten Wolff. 鈥淪he majored in French language and literature and ended up going into news broadcasting. It was really cool to learn from her and see a first-hand account of how people can break into news if it鈥檚 something they really want,鈥� said Jessica.
Online degree format allows flexibility for internships
When the time came to apply for an internship, Jessica reached out to Kirsten and they were able to coordinate the approval of a summer internship at WESH. As she describes the experience, 鈥淚 grew up watching WESH, so getting to be there was amazing. Internships are meant for you to gain experience and be exposed to professional development. I got to learn from all of the reporters, and that was more where my head was at. I wanted to be a reporter at the time.鈥�
Jessica enjoyed her time at WESH and soon applied to NASA鈥檚 internship program to continue her professional development. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 wait for the application window to close, which I didn鈥檛 know at the time. When I first applied there were essentially no intern spots left,鈥� explained Jessica. Persistence and another application window finally granted her access to NASA鈥檚 program. 鈥淚鈥檓 a broadcast intern at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. I鈥檓 under an umbrella of things like broadcasting and journalism, but my specific thing is that I鈥檓 kind of like a news producer. My team will write media advisories and talk to the experts who are the scientists behind these stories and who鈥檝e been putting in research for years. We want it to be where someone who studies science can understand it, but also someone who works in something completely unrelated to aerospace can also understand what鈥檚 going on,鈥� said Jessica on her development at NASA.
Although the Goddard Space Flight Center is located in Maryland, Jessica spends about 90% of her job working remotely from Orlando, and often makes trips to Kennedy Space Center located in nearby Cape Canaveral, Florida. 鈥淢y team travels and does interviews at Kennedy. I remember the first time seeing the press site and just thinking 鈥榳ow.鈥� I鈥檝e been to Kennedy about 15 times now over the past year,鈥� said Jessica. But it isn鈥檛 all fun and games. As she recalled the first of several scrubbed Artemis 1 launches, Jessica explained, 鈥淚t was a very busy morning of the initially planned launch. I got there around midnight and the launch wasn鈥檛 scheduled until 8 am. Everyone was literally delirious by the time it got scrubbed, and at one point I think I was in an office just laying on the ground. It was impressive how all of the press members managed to stay so alert throughout the whole ordeal.鈥�
Dedicated intern to UF Communigator graduate
After eight years as an undergraduate student, Jessica completed her UF degree in 2022. In recapping her emotions after finally receiving her degree, Jessica says 鈥淚 used to make jokes when people would ask what year I was in and say I was a forever junior because I didn鈥檛 even know what it was like to be a college senior. I鈥檓 just really proud of myself for pushing through and doing what I had to do to earn this. It鈥檚 also a major I really wanted to study, which allowed me to discover and begin a new career that I love. It was just the best of both worlds.鈥�
Jessica also credited UF鈥檚 supportive faculty members like Dr. David Ostroff when reflecting on her time with 黑料正能量. As she recalls, 鈥淲hen I was trying to get my WESH internship approved it was so last minute, but Dr. Ostroff was so responsive. I鈥檇 email him and literally minutes later he鈥檇 respond. I know how busy he is and the fact that he was still so responsive really meant a lot to me.鈥�
The University of Florida and 黑料正能量 wishes Jessica the very best as she ventures new horizons as an alumna and continues to display that sometimes not even the sky鈥檚 the limit.
鈥淵ou tend to think online programs lack quality, but with 黑料正能量 the quality and rigor is exactly the same. You鈥檙e still getting your work done, but it鈥檚 a great way to balance every other aspect of your life like family or a career.鈥�
– Jessica Sansarran, Media Production Student
Explore Media Production, Management, and Technology
Learn the art of making an impact while building professional skills by immersing yourself in the worlds of traditional and digital media. Offered by UF鈥檚 College of Journalism and Communications, the Media Production, Management, and Technology degree allows students to engage in exciting lessons while gaining applicable knowledge within the fast-paced world of media and mass communications. As a top-ranked online undergraduate program, 黑料正能量 offers a variety of majors and minors for students to choose from. Learn more below.