This week, The Globe published a features piece about the third annual Pittsburgh Tattoo Expo. Naturally, a common concern as young professionals about to enter our field came to mind: tattoos in the workplace.

The question of whether or not tattoos and piercings affect the professionalism of an individual has always been up for debate, more so in recent years considering young people are choosing to modify their bodies more than ever before.

Tattoos are seen as mainstream during this day and age, especially here on our own Downtown campus.

Returning to the earliest roots, tattoos existed for different religious and cultural purposes. Nowadays, individuals get tattoos for a variety of reasons: expressive freedom, memorial artwork or pure fun.

36 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have at least one tattoo, and 30 percent of all college graduates in the United States have tattoos, according to the History of Tattoos website.

A number of individuals at The Globe, WPPJ and U-View fall into this category, which brings us back to the question at hand.

Do our tattoos affect our professional appearance or ability?

In our opinion, absolutely not. We are young professionals performing the same tasks we would be performing if we were out in the real world. Our staff, some tattooed and some not, successfully put together a paper every week.

The ink on our skin does not impact our skills in writing, interviewing, producing or editing and it absolutely does not affect the level of professionalism we are able to bring to the table. Our professional talent is affected by our attitude and our ability to actually perform the tasks given to us.

If anything at all is affected by the markings on our skin, it is the people around us with the traditional professional image plastered into their brain.

There’s no need to automatically dismiss someone based on their desired choice of artwork, as they could potentially be exactly who you need in the office. Point Park teaches its students how to thrive after graduation, whether they’re tattooed or not.