My name is Alyssa Bradford and I am a senior Speech Communication major with an emphasis in Public Relations! This past May I received the opportunity to do an internship through the Speech Communication program with the Business Development team for Greenleaf Center. For those of you who may not know, Greenleaf is a behavioral health and chemical dependency treatment center located in Valdosta.

Why would a Speech Communication major do an internship at a treatment center you ask? Many people do not realize how vital communications is and how it applies to a broad spectrum of industries. After working in the health field throughout college I have come to love it. I have decided I would like to use my major to become a patient advocate and to help better physician-patient relationships. My internship with Greenleaf provided me with the opportunity to gain real world experience and to decide if this would be a career path I would like to pursue after college.

The Business Development representatives and I traveled all over the southern region of Georgia from St. Simons one day to Albany the next. We visited hospitals, doctor’s offices, and even schools! Our job was to spread the word about Greenleaf and the services the center has to offer. We also acted as a medium to take feedback from the community and professionals back to the center for improvement. After just a few short weeks I knew statistics, important contacts at hospitals, and back roads to towns I never even knew existed.

Being a business development representative meant being able to communicate with people of all professions, ages, and cultures and knowing when to talk and when to listen. My time with Greenleaf reassured me that I have chosen one of the best majors, especially the one that was right for me. Not only did I gain skills I will be able to use in my future career, but I also gained an experience that I will forever cherish!