After graduating in December of 2005, Tyler Campbell left Ball State to pursue his passion in politics and public service. Presently, Tyler is the Chief of Staff at the Indiana House of Representatives and loves serving the people of Indiana. For him, Ball State gave him invaluable opportunities that laid the groundwork for his professional career.

Time as a Student

Tyler entered Ball State with hopes of becoming an educator, but quickly switched to a double major in political science and legal studies. After poking around and talking with students and professors, he decided to pursue the paralegal program as well. His classes and professors were each challenging and exciting as they expanded his knowledge about the world of political and legal science. His professors poured into him and pressed him to become the best version of himself. They got him in touch with the Indiana House of Representatives and helped him secure an internship there after he graduated. Overall, Tyler’s four and half years at Ball State made him feel incredibly prepared to go into the professional world and to pursue his law degree.

Tyler’s favorite class and the one that helped him the most was his advanced legal studies writing course. “This class was great to help me hone my writing. I learned how to be concise and make complex things understandable.” This course helped him excel in law school as he was able to get his ideas across easier. According to him, the skills he learned in this class are things he uses everyday. “Communication is everything. I am amazed how much Ball State classes prepared me for the law program.”

Outside of the classroom, Tyler was an equipment manager for the football team. This position was not only fun and fulfilling, but it also taught him some very important lessons. “My time with the football team taught me how to mentally handle studying and working full time. It forced me to balance my time well.” Time management skills have become integral parts of Tyler’s day-to-day. He is so glad he learned time management skills while at Ball State because without them, he stated that the wakeup call to the real world would have been very difficult. “Learning those skills in college makes the transition so much easier.”

Career Journey

After graduation, Tyler moved on to complete his internship at the Indiana House of Representatives. This experience was invaluable to him as it opened up so many new professional opportunities and allowed him to network with people all over the country. Tyler has been at the House of Representatives ever since, dating back to August of 2006. Eventually, he returned to IUPUI to receive his law degree, which he completed through night classes, balancing working full-time and studying.

His first position in the House of Representatives was a legislative assistant, which he did for a little over a year. After that, he transitioned into the role of a policy analyst. To get this position, he supplied his interviewers with a writing sample from his advanced legal studies writing course. The interviewers were impressed, and he quickly got the job. Following that, the policy director position opened up which he applied for and worked in for a couple of years. After completing his law degree, Tyler was promoted to the Deputy Chief of Staff for the House and has since been promoted to the Chief of Staff. He has held this position since the end of 2017 and has been there for two different Speakers of the House of Representatives for Indiana. He has greatly enjoyed his work at the House and has loved all of the opportunities for professional growth that his position presents him with.

Advice for Students 

Tyler recommends to anyone looking at getting into the world of politics and government to consider the Indiana House of Representatives internship. For him, the months he spent as an intern were a launching pad for the rest of his career. This experience is fast-paced and allows students to get exposed to a number of different issues. In addition, it provides opportunities to network with countless organizations and people, even outside the field of government. Through this internship, students can get a taste of what it would be like to have a career in this field or get exposure to new areas that they didn’t even know about. He wants to encourage students to take advantage of the opportunities that are offered outside of the classroom. “The skills you will learn from any opportunity beyond class will help you in the real world immensely.”

Overall, Tyler loved his time at Ball State and is excited to bring his kids back to campus so they can fall in love with the campus just as he did.