Kate Carnahan graduated from Ball State University in 2017 with a bachelor’s degree in English. She is currently pursuing a master’s in Management and Leadership from Western Governors University while working as a transaction coordinator with The Dauby Team of Keller Williams Capital Realty. In her free time, Kate still enjoys writing fiction, spending time with friends and family, and fostering dogs and cats through her local shelter.

 

 

 

 

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What did you study while you were at Ball State?

I majored in English with a concentration in creative writing and a minor in screenwriting. I had dreams of moving out west to write for television or movies, but life steered me in a different direction.

What is your career now?

I am currently a buy-side transaction coordinator for The Dauby Team, a large real estate team through Keller Williams Capital Realty in southern Indiana.

What led you to your current career?

I graduated from Ball State in only two and a half years, so I was quickly thrown back into the “real world” without a straightforward plan of what to do next. I ended up moving back home and began interning at my local Habitat for Humanity nonprofit. After a couple of months, I was hired on at Habitat full time as the communications manager and worked there for a little over two years. I was ready to make a career change in 2020 and found the Dauby Team was hiring for a transaction coordinator. I wasn’t sure if this was something that I wanted to do because I didn’t think it was a “writer’s” job. But I’d recently purchased my own home and my brother is an agent so I was familiar with the real estate world, and I quickly fell in love with my job.
I have a wonderful team that encourages me daily and I love helping buyers purchase their dream home. This wasn’t something I ever imagined myself doing, but I’m so grateful for where I am at this time. I can’t say what the future might hold, but I’m very happy with what I’m doing and the skills I’m learning along the way.

What does a typical week in your position look like?

Once our team’s agents have buyers under contract on a home, I take over the transaction from there. I manage anywhere from 15-50 transactions at a time (depending on the state of the market), which includes frequent communication with buyers, lenders, listing agents, title companies, inspectors, etc. I talk with clients on the phone regularly and maintain a lot of business through email. I assist buyers in setting up home inspections, stay up to date with the lender on the progress of the loan, and set up closing when the time comes. I help input information into our databases and manage files for all the buy-side transactions. Every week I’m making phone calls, sending emails, organizing files, and more.

What are the most valuable skills you learned in your major?

Majoring in English has helped me become a much more effective communicator. My job requires both verbal and written communication and because of what I learned through my degree I am proficient in both.
My major also helped me become much more comfortable with feedback and constructive criticism and this comes up in any career as you are learning and navigating the position. I pay close attention to detail when auditing legal documents pertaining to each transaction and this also comes from my background as an English major.

How are the skills you learned as an English student relevant to your career and life today?

Because I am a writer at heart, most of my emails go in-depth and I often “over-explain” things. I believe that it’s always better to over-communicate than to under-communicate, and because I have an inclination to write, I end up providing a bunch of information that other people might just leave out. My correspondences are often filled with detail and personality instead of just flat, one-line responses and I’m sure this flourish comes from my background as a writer.

What is your advice to other Humanities students?

Don’t limit yourself to what you can do just because you’re an English major. Some outsiders might think your only options are either becoming an English teacher or best-selling novelist when in reality there are so many careers where you can thrive because of your unique skillsets. I was once told that if you can write and speak well, you can do pretty much anything. Hang onto your talents and your passions, but also don’t feel defeated if you find yourself landing in a completely different field.

You can connect with Kate on LinkedIn. 
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