Final Reflection

This is unreal. It feels like just yesterday I was putting my extra-strength Degree to the tests on what seemed like an endless stairwell to the doors of Atlanta Radio Korea. The faint ding as I opened the door startled me more than it should have. I haphazardly walked into the office and dropped into a 90 degree bow fast than you could say hello (in Korean of course). The smile that greeted me were kind but didn't completely absolve all of my fears. After introducing myself, I glued myself to my desk to avoid any further tests on my Korean. That desk would become my second home for the next month to which David (radio personality with whom I did the on-air broadcast) and Haemoon would roll over to in a heartbeat if they had a new concern or idea. It was from that desk that I would hear the faint voices calling 도미니크 ( do-mi-ni-kuu), beckoning for whatever new snack that had been purchased by my boss or brought by Mr. Hmart (a.k.a. the king of free snacks... I am pretty sure he is the manager or something...that's not really important at the end of the day because SNACKS IS BOMB). No, but in all seriousness, I will be forever be grateful for everyone's patience with me. As a self-taught Korean speaker, we all know that my skill weren't necessarily up to par to go on-air; however, because of help from everyone else at the office, I was able to do it. I can't explain the relief of that singular moment when things lost in translation are finally found. From quick conversations over popcorn about what I eat at home as an American to mutual Korean drama appreciation sessions, I was forced to learn new phrases and sentences on the fly. However, I never felt lesser or looked down upon at the office; they adopted me into the A.R.K. family. (It took everything in me not to make an ark pun right there... you're welcome).

Outside of the social experience, I really gained a lot of useful skills in terms of communications. I mean let's take the media kit for instance. I don't think you understand the pressure that I felt making that thing. Me, the intern, was given the task of creating the radio stations English marketing tool on the first day! Yeah! I know. On April 4th,  I didn't know the first thing about marketing and media kits. I didn't know how to build a radio script or what created a good broadcast. The purpose of my senior project this project was not only to better my Korean language skills but also delve into the world of communications and broadcast journalism as a preparation for my major. My time at A.R.K. has been so much more than that. It was my first really experience with office life as well as uber ;-D. I had a lot of milestones while there, and I loved every moment of it.