Why I Joined Her Campus Marquette
When I came into Marquette as a freshmen, I was overwhelmed with the number of organizations and publications to join on campus. I was coming from a high school newspaper staff that limited my ability to express my real opinions. Everything needed to go through a faculty supervisor, censored for appropriate content, which would be distributed to parents, faculty and both past, present and future students. As much as I wanted to continue writing in college, I was hesitant about writing for another structured publication.
At the end of my freshmen year, a group of upperclassmen posted online about creating a chapter at Marquette for Her Campus, the number one online magazine for college women. It was the same website I read articles from when I was getting ready for college myself. I loved how real the articles were, and I felt like the authors could really say whatever they wanted. It was more to me than just a floofy website for college girls looking for date party ideas, however, it was real girls telling their real experiences. It was girls talking about applying for internships, making deeply personal health decisions and worrying about job or healthcare opportunities and real life problems. There was no faculty advisor looking over their shoulders, correcting their opinions. I knew it was an organization I wanted to help build.
Having the room to grow from writer to editor in this organization has not only helped me explore my own interest in writing, but also guide younger girls through that experience as well. I never plan to make writing a career. It will always just be something I love to do. Being able to do it completely free of limitation has been the best way I can imagine continuing to grow as a writer. Watching other girls grow in their own writing has been even better.