GRADUATES: Make Their Mark - Kelli Snyder '12
Senior Kelli Snyder ’12 began her college career as a physical education major. Growing up, she had always been athletic and knew for sure she wanted to work
in the sports field. Physical education seemed to be a good choice. She enjoyed her
classes and found the material interesting.
Unanswered questions remained, however: “How can I be sure that physical education
studies are for me? Is this really what I want to do for the rest of my life?” These
questions are not uncommon among first-year students.
“People expect you to know what you want to do with your life as a freshman and it’s
scary,” says Kelli. “It’s also part of the reason that people change their majors
so often throughout their college careers.”
"McKendree offers a unique option for students like Kelli."
Fortunately, McKendree offers a unique option for students like Kelli. She will graduate
with a new and improved sense of direction through an individually designed major.
“I love kids and I love sports so I assumed I would really love being a P.E. teacher
and educating kids about healthy living and athletics,” says Kelli. “However when
I started job-shadowing a P.E. teacher and actually got a feel for what the career
is like, I realized that I wanted something different.”
"I think it would be an awesome job to do P.R. for a professional sports team."
Kelli had always been attracted to the public relations and marketing aspects of the
sports industry. “I think it would be an awesome job to do P.R. for a professional
sports team. I would be able to conduct interviews for athletes, schedule meet-and-greets,
social events and public appearances for the team. Things like that are exciting to me.” As public
relations officer for McKendree sorority Kappa Sigma Tau, Kelli had gained some event 
planning and marketing experience. She wants to take it to a different level with
the sports industry.
"Kelli worked with her advisor ... to develop her own sports public relations major
..."
To advance her career goals, Kelli worked with her advisor, Dr. Betsy Gordon, to develop
her own sports public relations major that met all academic requirements. She and
her advisor created a class schedule of required courses and electives. “It was fun
and exciting because I knew I chose classes that would be interesting to me and applicable
to my career field,” says Kelli. She loves that her major has been tailored to fit
her specific needs.
“The process of creating your own major can be long but it is worth it. I wanted to
wake up every day and be excited to go to work. With this path I have chosen, I will
definitely be doing what I love.”
