Top communications student awarded Schulz prize
by Linda Hein
Master of Arts (Communication Management) graduate, Felix Riley, has been awarded the the Schulz Communication Prize for 2007, much to his delight and surprise.
The Schulz prize, now in its second year, is awarded to the student with the highest GPA upon completion of either the Graduate Diploma in Communication (Public Relations) or the Master of Arts (Communication Management) with a cash prize of $1000.
Riley began the Graduate Diploma in Communication (Public Relations) in 2004, after a break of five years from study, but was soon accelerated to the Masters program.
He says he wasn’t aware of the prize while studying and "just plodded through" doing the best he could, so was completely taken by surprise when informed of the award.
"I thought it was time I bulked up my qualifications which is why I went back to study. I’ve always believed that you should do something you’re interested in, which I guess helped with the good grades," Riley said.
"I’ve always had an interest in and enjoyed writing, so looked around for available courses to take this into the professional realm.
"It’s a great honour to receive the award and I’d like to sincerely thank Roy Schulz for his generosity with the prize."
Riley says he was very impressed with the programs and lecturers at Magill and their support in a range of writing genres.
"It’s very reflective of an academia that fosters good quality writing; all the lecturers were extremely helpful and open to good prose regardless of style.
"The programs are also a great bridge, providing general education as well as scope for specific career goals."
Riley is now working in wine retail, at Burnside Village Cellars, and while he admits that the role is not the most traditional of communications career moves, says its was too good an opportunity to pass up and takes him one step closer to his ultimate dream.
"I’ve been working in the wine business for years and my long term plan is to build a wine business. Now I’m trying to find a way to combine writing and communications with the wine industry.
"To me it feels like communication and customer service is intrinsically linked and it’s also a really exciting chance to be able to build up a business from the ground up," he said.
Riley says he put his winning prize money to good use, treating himself to a new electronic percussion instrument.