Magdalena Andersson

Student

“There are about 250 Swedes at SMC. Pretty impressive for a country of only five million people.”

“Back home, a lot of people know about SMC,” says Magdalena Andersson who came here to study broadcasting. “I have friends who studied here years ago who told me what a great school it is. And that impression stayed with me.” But feeling footloose, Magdalena first launched on a career in the travel industry, taking tourists on tours all around Europe. “It was all, ‘Hi! I’m Magdalena and I’ll be your guide. Just off to the left, you’ll see the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa,’ etc. So I decided that it was time to get an education. And if you want to go into broadcasting, LA’s the place.”

Magdalena—who rides horses, swims, and plays a lot of tennis-points out one obvious advantage Southern California has over her native Sweden. “When I left, it was minus 30 degrees Celsius back home. I’m not sure what that is in Fahrenheit,” she says with a laugh. “But it’s definitely cold enough to make you want to leave.”

With current plans to get an AA degree and then do a local internship, Magdalena says she is eventually headed for a career in TV. “I may have to start out in radio,” she says, “but I really want to be involved with television, maybe doing programs about other countries from around the world.” And she anticipates a quick academic career. “I’m only going to need my AA degree to get a good job in broadcasting when I go home,” she says. But right now she’s busy learning the ropes at SMC from the best source there is: other students.

“Asking other students a lot of questions is the best way to find out what’s going on and who the best teachers are,” she says. “And I find one of the best things about SMC is that everybody here is so willing to help you find the answers. All you have to do is be willing to ask.”

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