Veteran Matthew Rice is from North Manchester, Indiana, and he is studying media production and communication and political science. Matthew previously attended a Division I university from 2009 to 2013 with a major in journalism and enlisted in the Navy as a naval journalist from Sept. 2013 to June 2020.
Matthew was drawn to Olivet because it was a smaller, veteran-friendly school. “Returning to the ‘school house’ setting has been beneficial to me as a whole,” he said. “For the past seven years, I have been involved in the professional journalism world from a military perspective, and it is nice to return and further my knowledge in the career field and help younger generations in their learning of journalism.”
As a nontraditional student with practical experience, Matthew comes to Olivet with a different perspective on things from recent high school graduates. “My first round, I got swallowed up in the ‘college life’ and my studies took a huge hit. I never was in academic crisis, but this time around I can see a huge increase in my grades because I am taking it more seriously,” he said. “I love journalism. Ever since I was introduced to the field of writing and reporting in high school, I have found a passion in the career.
“Building off that, I attended college initially with the idea of working for a major newspaper production post-graduation. After my junior year, I had this need to enlist in service. It only got better after I joined and became a naval journalist. There, I actually began using the skills I had learned as a civilian and continued my training from top professionals in the journalism community.” Matthew was able to meet and learn from professionals who worked for Nikon, Canon and the Associated Press.
“My love for journalism really took off during my time in the Navy, and it was by working with major news corporations from all around the world that I knew I had to come back and finish my degree,” he said. “Now my goals vary from entertaining the idea of being a professor of journalism, to striving to be an editor for a publishing company or going into public affairs.”
On campus, Matthew is the copy editor for The Echo, the College’s student-led newspaper. “I have a strong relationship with my professors and fellow journalists at The Echo,” he said. “I am constantly getting chances to help in my degree field with my professors and communicate with and teach my fellow journalists at The Echo.
“Every professor I have had thus far has been extremely open to aiding me in whatever I come to them with,” he said. “This relationship between students and professors is why I encourage Olivet as a wise choice for higher education.”
Learn more about The University of Olivet by contacting the Office of Admissions at 800-456-7189 or admissions@uolivet.edu.
This feature was written by senior Leah Miller, marketing and communications student intern. She is a writing and history double major and a music minor, a field commander of the Marching Comets and a member Alpha Lambda Epsilon Literary Society. After college, she aspires to use her writing to educate people about different cultures and work to normalize embracing differences, potentially in a field related to intercultural relations.
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