Get inspired by what our UC Davis communication majors are doing in their careers. The College of Letters and Science, which houses this major, also collects alumni stories that show the many paths its students have taken since graduation.
Chinsin Sim ’14
As an undergraduate, Chinsin Sim wanted to be a role model for the Cambodian community in Stockton where he grew up.
With the help of teachers and mentors, Chinsin had applied for college, an uncommon path for Cambodian immigrants in the region, and UC Davis was always his top choice.
Chinsin coupled his coursework with programs at the UC Davis Center for Leadership Learning. He spent his summers interning with Intel and spent a quarter working for the company’s government affairs team in Washington, D.C.
After graduating, an internship with Logitech turned into a full-time job offer with the company’s Talent Acquisition and Employee Communications team.
Chinsin now works for Robinhood, a stock-trading application in Palo Alto, where he helps recruit top talent to the company.
“Growing up, my family didn’t have a lot of money, and investing in the stock market, quite frankly, was never even a remote possibility,” Chinsin says. “Robinhood broke down those barriers and gave me the tools to be on the same playing field with zero-commission fee trading. I wanted to be a part of that mission.”
Read more about Chinsin’s story.
Brandon Padilla ’16
For Brandon Padilla, a communication and managerial economics double major, it only took six months to prove himself an important asset for Anheuser-Busch, a beer-brewing company. He began as a sales representative, overseeing accounts and ordering office products.
His passion for sales and business was first discovered through a job as a front-desk receptionist for the Cal Aggie Alumni Association. After a little over a year, he was promoted to a business partnership position where he worked with partners of the alumni group
Brandon’s education became the backbone in helping him decide he wanted to grow his career in business and sales.
“My strong educational foundation has already contributed so much to my career; not only did my major help me network, it introduced me to different industries that I was interested in working in,” Brandon says. “At CAAA, the hands-on experience helped build my communication skills and taught me to get out of my comfort zone.”
Communications gave Brandon the tools to interact with clients at an organizational level, and managerial economics gave him comprehensive exposure to problem solving and critical thinking skills.
Read more about Brandon’s story.
We’re looking for more contributors for this blog. If you are a graduate who would like to share your career story, contact blog editor Susanne Rockwell at sgrockwell@ucdavis.edu.
Maria Akhter ’18, an economics and comparative literature double major, is an intern for UC Davis Strategic Communications. She enjoys using writing to connect with her campus community.