Alumni Spotlight: Mark Beaven, '14

Mark Beaven earned his BA in Sociology at EKU in 2014, studying generational differences in the workplace as well as serving as an undergraduate research assistant participating in a community and economic development project in an Eastern Kentucky community. From there Mark earned an MS in Sociology from Oklahoma State University where his focus was on public perception of oil and gas development in a small Oklahoma community.

Currently, Mark is working as an Analyst for Newell Brands in Atlanta, Georgia, where he examines consumer data for the purposes of product improvement and development. By better understanding the consumer, his analysis enables the company to work to meet those consumers’ needs and expectations.

Mark writes, “Sociology is a way of looking at the world and making sense of everyday phenomena. My experience as a research assistant at both the undergraduate and graduate level, as well as the various papers and projects I have worked on as a student, allowed me to develop marketable research and creative thinking skills that many companies and organizations are looking for. It’s one thing to report data, it’s an entirely different thing to tell a story with it, and that’s the difference a sociological imagination can make.”

Published on August 26, 2016