*********************************
There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
*********************************
Atlanta, GA | Posted: October 21, 2019
Jenny Strakovsky, Assistant Director of Graduate Studies and Career Education
Summary Sentence:
Video Interview with Campbell Beadles, a student in the MS-GMC program and B.S. in Business about his journey learning Spanish, German, and finally Russian, leading to his current work in the Modern Language Graduate Program.
Full Summary:
No summary paragraph submitted.
Campbell Beadles thumbnail
Student Spotlight: Campbell Beadles, M.S. in Global Media and Cultures
Modern Languages student Campbell Beadles describes his experience in the M.S. in Global Media and Cultures to students at Auburn University. 
The School of Modern Languages has brought together advanced speakers of Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish from across Georgia and the Southeast in the inaugural cohort of the M.S. in Global Media and Cultures. Campbell Beadles came to Georgia Tech from Thomasville, GA, planning only to complete a business degree and work in one of Atlanta's most historic industries: logistics and supply chain. Then he took a Spanish class in the School of Modern Languages.
Three years later, with Spanish in tow, he had also learned German and Russian. By senior year, he had completed a minor in Spanish and a minor in German, and was about to go to Latvia and Russia on the Spring Intensive Track study abroad program after one semester of Russian.
“I never planned to take a language at Georgia Tech, but it was so accessible that I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity. The summer study abroad programs made it easy to immerse myself and very quickly become conversational in the language.”
Campbell’s story is a testament to the power of cultural immersion. "When I arrived in Latvia, I could only comfortably say my name, where I'm from, and 'I eat everything.'" Eight weeks later, he was having hour-long conversations with his host family about Russian culture and history. Having started Russian 18 months ago, Campbell is now a grad student in the M.S. in Global Media and Cultures, one of Georgia Tech's newest degree programs offered jointly between the School of Modern Languages and School of Literature, Media, and Communication. He received a prestigious FLAS Fellowship to study advanced Russian, contemporary Russian culture and politics, and global media.
Campbell's business training is also transforming the School of Modern Languages. As a coordinator of operations for the graduate program, he has worked on market research, recruitment logistics, and communications.
"Campbell brings a business perspective to the team," said Jenny Strakovsky, assistant director of graduate studies and career education. "It's not how the humanities normally operate, and that's a really good thing. There's a lot that the humanities and the business world can learn from each other."
International education is a hallmark of the Georgia Tech experience. Despite there being no language requirement at the Institute, over 50% of students take a foreign language during their undergraduate studies and nearly 60% have an international experience such as an internship, exchange, or study abroad.
"Many of our students want to apply their education in a global context," said Strakovsky. "Studying a language gives them lifelong tools to work internationally, like adaptability, communication, and creative problem-solving."
The M.S. in Global Media and Cultures was launched in 2019. The innovative degree in the humanities prepares students for customized careers and responds to a rising interest in culture, communication, and social good in the corporate, science, and technology sectors.
The new M.S. GMC graduate program has been featured at the Association for Departments of Foreign Languages and Modern Language Association, as well as in the New York Times.
For more information about the GMC program, visit the program website.
