To: Ms.

Diaz
From: Lexi Conklin
Date: February 7th, 2015
Subject: Your Future Depends on Today: A Rhetorical Analysis of UNM Anderson Ad Cover
Letter

Rhetorical Situation
Developing a rhetorical analysis based off my previous paper proposal was much simpler than I
imagined. Most of my ideas and concepts in my LSA were greatly influenced and expanded to
form the framework of my MWA. Having a reference to pull ideas and sentences from, helped
me understand the importance of creating a well-organized document designed to fit the
requirements of a rhetorical analysis. When creating this advertisement analysis, I had to dig
deep to find rhetorical tactics that werent as obvious as others, so I could expand my findings in
an effective essay. It was difficult at times as I begin to find myself with little information to
build off of, especially for the analysis of pathos because my advertisement greatly lacked that
tactic. At some points in my writing I felt as if I was forcing the idea upon the audience instead
of easing into it as I found in the ethos analysis, which didnt allow the essay to flow as well as I
would have liked it to. Through this writing process, I have recognized my weaknesses that
would include occasional choppy or fragmented sentences, so I plan to improve my writing style
by the end of the semester. I believe the purpose and the audience of the writing prompt defines
the main components of the rhetorical situation, especially the idea of expanding the topic and
not going off on a tangent. This became a part of the makings of my MWA as I constantly
refrained from going off topic particularly with an analysis because at times you just want to
write about every small detail that you find in the resource which is not always necessary.
Hopefully I understood and utilized the task and rhetorical situation correctly according to what
you prefer.
Areas of Interest
Some areas in the assignment I was unsure about was the paragraph that explained briefly what
the rhetorical concepts were before going into detail about them. Did you want the paragraph to
be a summary of how the tactics could be used in general terms or did you want it in terms of the

specific advertisement I was analyzing? Another area of interest I would like more feedback on
is in the logos analysis paragraph. Do you think I should have added more examples of how
logos is being used in the advertisement to have more evidence to prove my point? Or should I
have expanded and gone into more depth about how logical it would be for students to utilize
this career service? I wasnt sure how much more complex you wanted the analysis to be for
each rhetorical tactic. Everything else in the paper I understood completely, those were mostly
the minor concerns I had for this MWA. If you have any more additional feedback for me on
how I could improve my writing skills that would be very helpful too.
SLO Progression
I believe I have made successful progress towards SLO C and SLO G through this assignment
and the previous low stakes assignment. In SLO C, I approached every stage of the writing
process including planning through preparations, composing a rhetorical situation, revising
among the feedback, and reflecting on the finalized product. Each procedure, I realized, feeds
into the next to ensure that the final composition is accurate and strong in this rhetorical analysis.
SLO G utilizes the reflective stage of the writing process as I examined my resource in a means
of my own discovery within my career interest. Exploring future opportunities while analyzing
multiple perspectives within a paper proposal and a rhetorical analysis helped me focus on minor
details that can impact the decisions of a future career. As I use these student learning outcomes
more and more to compose every piece of writing that Im asked to do, I believe my progress
will greatly increase each time.

Lexi Conklin
Ms. Diaz
English 120
February 7th, 2015
Your Future Depends on Today: A Rhetorical Analysis of UNM Anderson Ad
Career programs are intended to advise, recruit, and give personal guidance to students
interested in a particular field of study. How do programs successfully advertise their
effectiveness in order to persuade students to apply or join? Rhetorical strategies are used in
advertisements to help appeal to students interests regarding a specific career/training program.
The Anderson School of Management Career Service program accurately advertises the
individual success of each student, while providing direct advisement on various business
concentrations in order to structure an ideal guide for future plans. This advertisement utilizes all
the main rhetorical appeals ethos, logos, and pathos to allocate this career opportunity by
effectively drawing in the viewers.
The Anderson Career Service advertisement briefly summaries the high points of the
program through the perspective of a previous student explaining how her experience jump
started her business career. The video is centered mainly on the speaker talking while the film
occasionally fades into various collages of images representing her time at the Anderson School.
Among the context of the advertisement, the subject bounced back and forth between the
speakers personal accomplishments and how well the career service program could benefit the
individual success of every student seeking advisement. These two aspects played an effective
role in the rhetorical features of the advertisement as it appealed to multiple student positions.
The ad is directly targeted towards students currently attending The University of New Mexico
that may be interested in a business or management profession who want to utilize the career

services. This is not a broad commercialized advertisement, so it portrays a more local or

personalized feel structured to fit the needs of each student.
Rhetorical tactics such as ethos, logos, and pathos are being used frequently in the
advertisement to persuade the opinion of the audience. Ethos is an ethical appeal structured to
convince the audience of the authors credibility or character in order to earn the audiences trust.
Logos is derived from the logical appeal to provide proof and reason to an argument, which may
include references to studies, citing facts, using theoretical or abstract language, and making
comparisons to the opposing view through metaphors and analogies. Pathos gives the emotional
appeal of the argument to persuade audience using vivid meaningful language, inspirational
quotes, and stories of emotional events.
The rhetorical concepts in this advertisement are used to persuade the audience to engage
their interests in a particular topic. The ethos tactic is utilized frequently in the ad to value the
credibility of the programs prestigious representation broadcasted through the perspective of a
previous student. Another persuasion approach used commonly was the logos appeal that was
structured as a reasoning mechanism to prove how well this program could benefit students
business careers. Pathos was used the least in the advertisement as there was only a very slight
emotional connection between the viewer and the speaker in the video. The ethos and logos
tactics positively influence the audience in order to convince them to take part in this program or
to further look into it.
The main rhetorical concept that was applied the most in the advertisement was ethos as
it highlighted the credibility of The Anderson School of Management in various references stated
and implied through the speakers personal experience. Although the Anderson School Career
Services is the subject of the advertisement it doesnt fail to value the success of one student in

particular to help support the publicity of the company. Advertising the achievement of a student
boosts the programs credibility from the success of one students future to the next. This
advertisement is not produced through a direct authority figure within the program, but is
structured through the viewpoint of a former student giving a clear explanation of her personal
experience and her defining credentials. This could be used to sway the opinion of the targeted
audience in numerous ways by appealing to the speakers good moral character which
inadvertently persuades the audience to trust or believe what the speaker is describing to be true
or accurate. The ad refers to this moral character through the speakers appearance and her
demeanor. Obviously the audience wouldnt know personally if she is a moral person, but her
first appearance she makes in the advertisement causes the audience to judge what kind of person
she may or may not be. In some occasions, ethical appeals can be applied in the visual aspect of
an advertisement when the audience is forming their judgment on the credibility of an expert or a
student. This means there are less obvious rhetorical tactics that can be used in an advertisement
that an analysis can depict. As this specific video is designed to advertise the success of a college
career program, reputation and credibility will be utilized the strongest to appeal to the viewers
best interests.
The logical standpoint of logos was used very effectively in this video by many reasons
why the Anderson Career Services would be a beneficial addition for advisement as students
proceed through the business school. For instance, as the speaker claims that the Anderson
School of Management is prestigious in their business representation and provides a variety of
career concentrations that could apply to many interests. She is describing her argument through
a logos standpoint to support this advertisement by giving the audience a precise idea of what
opportunities could arise for them in the business school. Appealing to a common reason

especially in the terms of a college student usually persuades their opinion as seen in this
advertisement. It is logical to recognize the importance of seeking advisement when it is
concerning a persons career, so wouldnt it be reasonable to take advantage of a provided career
service designed to help students succeed? Usually logic is implied within the context as the
argument or advertisement is easily reasoned with to make their point seem like it is the best
alternative. Logos are utilized frequently in this advertisement to appeal to the viewers common
sense and can be seen as the determining factor of whether or not the viewer will proceed with
what this program has to offer.
There was a minor use of pathos that emotional evokes the audience watching the
advertisement, but overall it was trying to signify a professional and proficient argument strictly
appealing to logical and ethical reasoning. There were slight promises of personal
accomplishments and times of enjoyment shown through the occasional image of the speakers
experience in the business school. These images portrayed a lighthearted emotion that the
audience is naturally drawn to, which indirectly invites them to take part in the same experience
the speaker went through. These were the only obvious signs of emotional references concerning
the advertisements claim, but that doesnt mean they were necessarily less effective than the
ethos and logos appeals.
Persuasion strategies appeal to the audiences judgment in an advertisement as they either
consider the future benefits of joining or utilizing a program or considering to ignore it all
together. With the internet being such an accessible resource every small fraction of information
can be evaluated, so advertisements and commercials are easily shared from one person to
another. This applies to this advertisement as well, as it has the potential to recruit dedicated
students willing to build onto their future business careers among its great accessibility. This

program opportunity encourages and influences students to take part in it through the
advertisements effective rhetorical tactics.