Student Testimonials

Kelsey Anfenson

I wanted to express my gratitude for the opportunity that was provided to me. The Entertainment Management program opened doors that I never would have had a chance at seeing. This has been one of the most valuable courses I took during my college career.

I am a very self motivated person. However, towards the end of my college career I found that I lacked direction. When I discovered the Entertainment program I found a place that not only intellectually challenged me, but also sparked my personal interest. This course not only provided me with direction on where I wanted to start my career but also became an outlet for me. It allowed me to apply my strengths in a way that the traditional classroom didn't facilitate.

Not only did this classroom provide a valuable learning experience it also provided me with the opportunity to be an intern upon graduating. I worked for three months with Maria Brunner at Insight Mgt. I gained valuable knowledge during this time. This gave me the chance to see what working in the industry was like. I was given the chance to learn before I fully entered the business world. Upon the completion of my internship I was hired by Maria to do tour marketing.

Had I not taken this class none of this would have been possible. My eyes have been opened to an entirely different world. As a Montana native I was unaware of all the opportunity that was available to me. This program not only allowed me to explore this through the class room but also through hands on experience. I am truly grateful to you for all the support,guidance and opportunity you have provided me with. I only hope that this program will continue to grow, and affect students in a similar way in the future.

Shannon Boschee

For much of my life, I wanted to be involved in the Entertainment Industry. When I was a sophomore at The University of Montana, I chose to participate in the Walt Disney College Program as a step toward making my dream a reality. At the time, it was the closest I could come to being in a big city and working in entertainment. Upon my return from the Disney program, I learned a new program had been created at The University of Montana. Unfortunately, the program was only accepting juniors and seniors. As a result, I did not qualify for the class that year. Since I could not attend class, I decided to participate by offering to help with the marketing of the class on campus.

I was able to participate in the Entertainment Management Program in my junior year. Through the class, I met both Bob Wagoner, GM of the MetraPark Arena in Billings, MT and Marlene Hendrickson, Advisor for UM Productions at The University of Montana. By the end of the first course, I had a marketing internship at the MetraPark and an administrative assistant position for the following year at UM Productions. I participated in the marketing of the 1st Annual Spring Thaw, an Entertainment Management and student ran event, where I was able to apply what was learned in class. I came into the program knowing very little about the entertainment industry but by the end of the program I had gotten a taste of several facets of the industry. For the first time, I was able to tour a venue and learn about its many functions. This tour would play a major role in my success at the MetraPark.

During my senior year, I landed a job with the Kristen Lee Agency, where I helped with the marketing of various theatrical artists. I continued to stay involved in the local entertainment scene as much as possible. During this semester the program played an even greater role in my success, because I was also the assistant to the Entertainment Management Program. In so doing, I was able to assist the various instructors. Through this experience I better understood what to expect from my current employer and what the industry was looking for. I was a team leader for the 2nd Annual Spring Thaw raffle where we applied class fundamentals to make the raffle a success. I was also one of the first six students to get their Media and Entertainment Management certification.

Upon graduating, I accepted a job in Los Angeles working for Mike McGinley of SRO Consultants and Kelly Macleod, an independent contractor for major bands. As you can see, the Entertainment Management Program has not only given me the knowledge needed to succeed, it has also opened several doors of opportunity, which has provided hands on experience in the entertainment industry. This program makes it possible for someone who is born and raised in Montana to compete with people who grew up in LA or New York. I currently aspire to work as a tour marketer or in venue marketing. The entertainment management program has given me the opportunity and the experience to make these dreams come true.

Andy Eastman

The Entertainment Management program was among the best of the coursework that I studied at the University of Montana. It played an integral part in my career pursuit, as I would not have had the opportunity to learn from and connect with the key players that I am now doing business with every day.

The UM School of Business’ Entertainment Management Program provided me the opportunity to study and later work in the music industry, which had always been my aspiration. Previously, I had determined that I would have to sacrifice my chances of studying in this field, by attending college in state. An avid musician with a life-long goal of working in the music business, I began at the University of Montana as a student in both the School of Business and Music. I believed that my only approach to finding a career in the industry while studying in Montana was to earn a degree in either business or music and later attend a specialized graduate school out-of-state. While attending Organizational Behavior, the unimaginable became a reality. Dr. Douglas made an announcement that the UM School of Business would be piloting a program that not only focused on studying the entertainment industry, but that many key players from the industry would be traveling to Montana to teach the courses! From that point on, I began down a path that led me to numerous invaluable connections and learning experiences in the industry, which in turn helped me find a position with the William Morris Agency - the industry’s premier talent booking agency.

The Entertainment Management Program provides UM students a priceless opportunity in that it allows them to learn, work and connect with many of the industry’s leaders - an experience that is found at very few institutions across the country. Montana happens to be quite fortunate in that a surprisingly large number of key players from the industry either grew up in MT and/or attended the University of Montana. In lieu of this, the instructors tend to be quite passionate about presenting high quality, realistic material, in a hands-on, “biz-like” fashion. Other than the connections, I found the most valuable experience taken from the courses to be the intense lecture sessions. Taking time out of their extremely fast-pace lives, the high profile professors gave lectures unlike any other classroom setting at UM. In a “no holds barred” format, the students have at their avail the opportunity to not only learn the inside secrets to success in an intensely competitive industry, but the ability to “pick the brains” of these experts. The course is quite rigorous however as the instructors strive to create an environment similar to the intensity of the entertainment industry. Entrance, attendance, involvement and examination are all treated with the utmost importance as students write marketing and business plans for events and venues, and promote and produce a live concert.

If I had not taken the initial Entertainment Management course, I would have missed out on a string of life-changing connections that helped me get to Los Angeles and the William Morris Agency. In the early stages of the program, I was able to land a job as the “Marketing Coordinator” for UM Productions. From there, I obtained another great opportunity, an internship with the MetraPark in Billings as their “Entertainment Management Assistant.” The following school year I interviewed and became the “Concert Coordinator” for UM Productions and I started my own producing business, “Eastbone Entertainment.” Upon enrolling in the third session of Entertainment Management Program, where I was certified in “Media and Entertainment Management,” I began contacting the numerous people I had met through these experiences. Finally, I was called to Los Angeles to interview with the William Morris Agency for a position in the Personal Appearance/Music Department. I am now working in their Beverly Hills office as an assistant to several different booking agents.

Chad Elrod

The Entertainment Management Program at The University of Montana-Missoula was the leading factor that motivated me to transfer to this university and pursue an education in business administration. Being a serious musician as well as a business management major, I naturally have an affinity for the entertainment industry. The Entertainment Management Program at the university has afforded me the ability to explore my curiosities of entertainment business in academic and non academic settings; through classroom participation and internships, for example. Furthermore, this program taught exclusively by leading professionals in the entertainment industry, is a revolutionary course in the realm of academia that gives students, like myself, the opportunity to look through the door and perhaps enter into an industry that is both difficult to enter and vastly competitive.

Upon the completion of nine credits in the Entertainment Management program I earned a certificate in entertainment management, communications, and media. The three courses I took cover topics such as entertainment touring, record label operation, artist management, venue management, and concert promotion, to name a few. There are several skills I have taken with me throughout the duration of the program. First, I can confidently write a marketing plan to successfully promote an entertainment event. Everything from ticket on-sale dates to ad spots on radio stations would be included in such a document. Second, I have learned how to originate tour plans for a performing artist and route that artist all over the Unites States, considering budget constraints, transportation logistics, and performance venues. Most importantly, I have gained exclusive knowledge of the inner workings of the industry from the perspective of practicing professionals that have a passion for helping young people develop their careers and become successful in the entertainment industry.

From the contacts I made with some of the individuals that visited the program I obtained an internship with House of Blues Concerts, Seattle. House of Blues is the third largest promoter of live entertainment world wide. The internship experience allowed me to practice things I learned through the entertainment management program, like settlement procedures, and see the industry from the inside. Through the course of the summer I got to work as a production assistant at a Grateful Dead concert and I sat in on settlements for Don Henley and the mega rock act Incubus (I even got to sign the check on behalf of House of Blues). The internship was an awesome experience.

The Entertainment Management Program at the University of Montana gives students the opportunity to not only explore the entertainment industry, but to meet industry professionals and get jobs in entertainment business. The entertainment business is a small industry and hard to “break into”. This program affords students, like me, the ability to make their dreams come true. It is my firm belief that the entertainment management courses have been the best experience of my college career and have inspired an inner passion within me to develop a lifelong career in the entertainment industry.