OFFICE OF STUDENT LIFE

To From Subject Date

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Esiquio Uballe, Ed.D, Associate Dean of Student Life Aneta Jelowicki, Karina Escobedo, Susana Nasserie, Hang Pham Magazine recommendation for Deans Office of Student Life waiting room December 12, 2013

Purpose This memo is our recommendation of the most suitable magazine for the Deans office waiting room. Summary Our Deans office provides services for CSUF students that need support toward their professional goals. In 2013, CSUF offers 55 undergraduate and 54 graduate degree programs. About 36,000 students per semester attend CSUF with 57% female and 43% male. Most students schedule their appointments prior to visiting the office (Garcia), therefore students briefly stay in the waiting room. We evaluated three popular magazines, The Atlantic, National Geographic, and TIME magazine, to determine which magazine is able to interest the multi-disciplinary background of students. The magazine criteria we focused on were: 1) varied topics that appeal to diverse demographics, 2) short articles that accommodate brief waiting time, 3) reasonable cost of the magazine (see appendix). Our analysis indicates TIME magazine best satisfies the criteria, therefore, we recommend it as the magazine to subscribe for the waiting room. Discussion Although The Atlantic covers a variety of topics, their writing approach does not appeal to most Deans office visitors. In line with their mission, The Atlantics most concentration is on politics, businesses, cultural, and literatures. Our analysis findings supported that the magazine limits its topics. For example, in the October 2013 edition, the percentage discussion of businesses, cultures, politics and other articles were 14%, 17%, 30% and 39% of total pages respectively. The relatively narrowed topics direct the magazine toward only a specific audience. Thus, The Atlantic would not be able to catch students attention of other disciplines and interests. Secondly, many of the articles run for several pages. For example, the October 2013 edition presents several articles for up to ten pages. Lengthy articles may lure away readers who prefer light reading for their short wait. At last, in terms of availability and price, the annual subscription for $24.50 consists of ten issues (Magazine Cost), not even a monthly distribution. Making it the most expensive subscription cost of the three magazines. Because The Atlantic often presents lengthy articles, targets narrow audience and has the highest cost, we disregard this magazine as recommendation.

OFFICE OF STUDENT LIFE National Geographic is popular for its thorough articles and dramatic photographs. However, we do not recommend this magazine because its editing style does not suit the Deans office waiting room. The magazine contains lengthy articles that often run more than 30 pages to discuss one particular topic. For example, the August 2013 edition discusses African Lions for 66 pages. The magazine elaborates the articles meticulously and presents detailed credible facts such as statistics, maps, and vivid photographs. Another downside of this magazine is its limited topics. Because of its mission, Inspiring People to Care about the Planet, National Geographic weighs its articles heavily towards the environment, earth, and science education (National Geographic Store). Our multidisciplinary background visitors may find the magazine unappealing because of its deep focus on these specific topics. Lastly, in terms of cost and availability, National Geographic issues 12 magazines per year with an annual subscription of $15 (Magazine Cost). It is the second most expensive publication amongst our reviewed magazines. Because National Geographic has lengthy articles, limited topics, and has the second highest subscription cost compared to the two other magazines, we eliminated this magazine from our recommendation. TIME magazine proves to be the ideal magazine to subscribe for the waiting room because it fitted all criteria. First, the wide variety of topics is able to spark interest in almost every reader. The content ranges from Breaking News, to headlines and stories about the United States, politics and world news, as well as Business and Technology, Health, Science, Medicine, Fitness and entertainment. It is necessary to provide content with a broad topics range because in the waiting room, one may encounter a variety of students with different interests. Second, most of the articles are brief and informative. It provides light reading that are perfect for the brief times most visitor spend in the waiting room. For example, the December 2, 2013 edition presents their major article discussion such as the Race for the Cure (politic), Why China Needs More Children (business) and What Boys Want (society) within four, three, and five numbers of pages respectively. Lastly, in term of cost and availability, the price is reasonable with a low $30 for an annual subscription one receives 53 issues, thus meaning a new issue once a week (Magazine Cost). With this in mind, when one receives a new issue each week, the information and articles will be up to date. Also, one can keep multiple issues in the waiting room for several weeks so that students can compare interests from one magazine with an issue that was released earlier. However, some may say that the TIME magazine articles may be one sided, that it might offend different parties and does not fully focus on education. We think it is still the best magazine choice because it provides a broader range of topics that is able to give each reader a better understanding about a variety of issues. Overall, TIME magazine presents itself to be the best magazine to subscribe for the waiting room. Recommendation Out of the three evaluated magazines, the TIME magazine met all criteria. The magazines content provides audience with the most topics. We believe, students will pick the TIME magazine because it is not directed towards a specific genders or cultures. We also believe, TIME magazine will expose students with opportunities of other interests, which possibly enhance their personal and academic development.

OFFICE OF STUDENT LIFE Works Cited Garcia, Yvett. Personal interview. 19 Sept.2013. Magazinecost.com. Magazine Cost ,2013. Web. 19 Sept.2013. Mission Statement The Atlantic. The Atlantic. 2011: 1- 15. PDF file. Nationalgeographic.com. National Geographic,1996-2013. Web. 20 Sept.2013. Shop.nationalgeographic.com. National Geographic Store, 2013. Web. 20 Sept.2013. Times.com. TIMES Magazine, 2013. Web. 19 Sept. 2013.

Appendix: Magazines TIMES 5 5 4 4.67

Criteria Variety of Topics Length Price Average:

National Geographic 1 2 2 1.67

The Atlantic 4 3 2 3.0