Discovering a Career Beyond the Expected Path
Stamper came to Stan State to study music and completed a Bachelor of Music with an emphasis in vocal performance.
Like many students in the arts, she initially imagined that success would follow a familiar path, such as performing or teaching. Her professors encouraged her to think more broadly.
“I was encouraged and inspired by them to find all kinds of different strengths and passions that I had,” she said.
Faculty members introduced her to administrative and communications work supporting the arts. Those experiences helped her recognize that a music degree could prepare her for roles beyond the stage.
Stamper said one of the most difficult parts of choosing a career was letting go of the belief that success had to look one particular way.
“If my path was evolving and I wasn’t taking the exact steps I thought I was supposed to take, was I letting someone down?” she said.
Over time, she learned to view a changing direction as growth rather than failure.
Her experience offers students a broader perspective on academic preparation. A degree can lead directly into a profession, but it can also provide a set of skills that become valuable in fields a student had not originally considered.
How Mentors Helped Her See New Possibilities
Stamper credits faculty mentors with helping her discover those possibilities.
Daniel Afonso, director of choral studies, recruited her to Stan State after meeting students at local high schools and creating opportunities for them to audition, attend music programs and apply for scholarships.
Those opportunities helped make her Stan State education possible, and Afonso continued mentoring her throughout her undergraduate experience.
She also received guidance from Joe Wiggett, who coordinated vocal studies and served as director of the School of the Arts at the time.
As Stamper worked on campus, Wiggett helped connect her with communications and marketing responsibilities supporting art, music and theater programs.
Those projects introduced her to writing, graphic design, event coordination and arts administration. They also helped her see how creative skills could be used to support other artists and organizations.
“I’m really grateful for their mentorship and support,” she said.
Stamper encourages students to ask faculty and staff about their own career paths and the professionals they know.
“Talk to alumni. Talk to your faculty and ask them, ‘Who should I be connected with?’” she said. “Show up, be present and ask questions.”
How Campus Employment Became Career Preparation
One of Stamper’s first professional opportunities grew directly from her work as a student assistant.
An administrative support coordinator in the office where she worked went on maternity leave, creating an opportunity for Stamper to step into a professional staff role temporarily.
Because she already understood the office and its goals, she was prepared to take on greater responsibility.
“That was something really special about being a student assistant on this campus,” she said. “Staff, administrators and faculty integrate student employees into the work they’re doing and value input from students.”
The experience helped Stamper discover that she enjoyed working in higher education.
It also allowed her to practice skills that would later become central to her career, including writing press releases, coordinating events, creating visual materials and supporting communications.
For students, her story demonstrates that campus employment can offer more than financial support. Student positions can expose them to professional environments, help them build relationships and allow supervisors to see what they are capable of doing.
Building Leadership Through Student Involvement
Stamper was involved with Sigma Alpha Iota, an international music fraternity for women.
The organization helped her develop leadership, teamwork and organizational skills while creating friendships and professional connections that continued after graduation.
Although the fraternity was connected to music, the members she met went on to work in many different industries.
Her experience reinforced the idea that a student organization does not need to be directly connected to a future job title to remain valuable.
Clubs, fraternities, honor societies and other campus groups can help students learn how to collaborate, organize projects and work toward a shared goal.
“When students take advantage of those opportunities, it will really give you a step up into your career,” she said.
How Should Students Define Career Success?
Stamper encourages students, particularly those studying music or the arts, to define success for themselves.
A sustainable career does not have to look the same for every graduate. Some students may pursue performance or teaching. Others may use creative skills in administration, communications, production, business or community organizations.
“Ask yourself, ‘What problem do I want to solve? What is a goal I have personally for myself?’” she said. “Then build a plan.”
She also advises students to care for themselves while pursuing demanding creative work.
Music and other arts disciplines can require long hours of practice, physical endurance and sustained concentration. Rest and well-being are part of producing strong work, not distractions from it.
For Stamper, career direction became clearer when she looked for work that made her feel energized, allowed her to grow and placed her on a collaborative team.
