Mass Media

Mass Media (the press, the radio and television) play an important part in the life of society. They inform and entertain people. They also influence the way people look at the world and make them change their views. Millions of people watch TV and read newspapers every day. We listen to the radio and do some work about the house, read a book or drive a car.

On the radio one can hear music, news and various commentary and discussions. A peculiar feature of the American radio is soap opera. It is a sentimental drama which deals with domestic problems but housewives like them. Most people find soap operas boring. Different radio and TV games, such as, for example, quiz programmes on TV also attract a large audience. During these programmes viewers answer various questions.

There is a lot of advertising on TV and radio. Big corporations or individuals own some of the TV and radio stations. The owners can advertise whatever they choose. Advertisements occupy most of the radio and TV time. Advertising promotes business but often annoys the general public. Commercials may interrupt the play you are watching on TV. I think such programmes give people headache instead of relaxation.

But the media also tries to raise the cultural level of the people or to develop their artistic taste. Many radio and television programmes bring into millions of

Choosing a career. My plans for the future

Finishing school is the beginning of the independent life for school leavers. “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I have heard this question many times during my school years and at times it was difficult for me to give a definite answer. I changed my mind as the years passed about which field of knowledge I would like to specialize in. When I studied at the first form at school I sometimes said: “I am good at mathematics so I can be a scientist; I am also good at dancing so I can be an actress; I succeed in singing thus I can be a great singer… But I’d like to be a kiosk-salesgirl but I haven’t got a single talent for this profession”.

Many roads are opened before youngsters after leaving school: technical schools, institutes and universities. It is not an easy thing to choose a profession. As for me I have made my choice. I want to become an economist. My choice of this occupation didn’t come as a sudden flash. During all school years I’ve heard much about it and my grandpa finished the Finance and Credit faculty in Kiev, Ukraine. Unfortunately I read few books concerning my future profession but I understand that reading books helps people in self-education and in solving different life problems.

This profession is rather absorbing and very interesting. I think it is a specific and difficult job. It requires a long period of study at the special faculty. It shouldn’t be taken easily. I am planning to be on full time in the future and not to be a place hunter or a job jumper. I think I shall be commissioned to some new places and to be on leave during the summer period. Though any month would do if it is a well-paid job to have an opportunity to rest somewhere abroad in the warm countries or, for example, to visit the Canary Islands. I don’t want to get the boot and hope that the time for me to retire won’t come soon. I’d like to be something in the enterprise. I’m out of job now and am not looking for it. I’m seeking admission to the University this year. I am in the know there’s going to be a stiff competition and I attended preparatory courses. I’m interested in economics. The lecturers simply carried away the audience. I like the way they delivered lectures. The exams are coming. One can’t help being excited.

It’s a great responsibility and competence in many spheres if we talk about economics: mathematics, logistics, economy, law, psychology and even foreign languages in case I have a chance to work for some foreign firm. An economist has great social responsibilities. An economist has responsibility for the welfare of the workers both outside the working situation and a person's situation in life. Under the economist's rule a firm or an enterprise works efficiently and is able to meet competition in the market place. Every economist must work out his own program of action.

Economy involves a lot of activities: product planning and development, buying, storage, selling, crediting, pricing, traf­fic, distribution, advertising, promotion, auditing and marketing research. A well-qualified economist can earn good money. People are not born but become economists and administrators. Any person can become a good economist if he has a good training. May be I’ll have to get some additional training in the future. I plan to continue studying English and other foreign languages. Self-education is necessary for everyone. I am going to enter the Urals University of Economics, the faculty of International Relationships. It is a state University and I’ll have to write several tests and take examinations on mathematics, Russian, English and History.

Most jobs can be done within the usual office hours from 9 a.m. till 5 p.m., but economist’s work is seldom done and evenings are sometimes spent in reading the additional special literature, calculating and doing sums that are often a hard nut to crack. That develops the intellect, forms the views and character, attitudes to life and to other people. It’s not as easy as it may seem at first. But I think that love for the profession combined with the knowledge I’ll get at the University would be quite enough to succeed in me future work. I’m applying for the International Relationships department and I hope my dream will come true sooner or later.

I am also interested in computers science. It is a whole new world. Many people continue careers of their parents but it is not the case with me. My mother is a teacher and my father is an engineer. My hobby is computer games and computer programming. I have a computer at home and can spend hours working at it. It will be helpful in my future profession you know. It is much easier to do things on computer, for example to do sums in Excel or write a composition in Word because you can change the text as many times as you want and you don’t need to rewrite everything. We are living in the age of information and computers are most rapidly changing sphere of modern technology. I think that the future is just filled with computers.

Russia is going through a difficult period now. Economic restructuring doesn’t lead everyone to success. A lot of people are unemployed. There are winners and losers. There are economists who have to relieve the burden off people’s shoulders and to help them to solve their problems. So I understand the difficulties of this profession. But I believe this speciality is really needed and that is enough to be satisfied with the job. I am sure you need to have a very creative mind to be an economist and that our country needs good specialists to strengthen its economy.