The semester is finally coming to a close and for my final project, I have to interview five people for an article with a word count of 1,000-1,500 words that features an event or individual.
Reading this you may think, well no big deal, nothing compared to the finals I have to study meticulously for. Although you may be right on that depending on who you ask, stepping out of your comfort zone to interview five random individuals and conjuring up all their points to make a story is not as easy as you may think.
With my workload as a journalism student alone, I have constant readings and papers to write that take weeks to prepare and finish. A big project like my final is something I have to work on as I write this article, interview my subjects, plan out the structure of my story, and meet with my professor to make sure I am on the right track because once I come up with a plan, starting over is no longer an option.
During my freshman year, I thought I could skid by just doing my work on time and getting A’s in all my classes, but I caught on early how that was only half of it.
Nothing is as important as networking and building your portfolio in the field of journalism.
It’s harsh to say you’re nothing without a published work on a site or publication as a journalism student, but without it the risk of not getting a job postgrad is detrimental. I mean realistically, who is going to hire a journalist with no published work and little to no experience? NO ONE.
My lack of “studying” and the worry about knowing ample information for tests and finals comes in the form of having a portfolio and background that’s good enough.
I constantly worry about whether I am doing enough for publications to notice me when they go over my resume and portfolio. Being in two organizations, having a leadership role, ample published works on a site, and a year of internship work in the communications field still feels like too little for me.
Having all this under my belt and constantly under pressure with my workload and extracurriculars, I always wonder if this is all for nothing, and that is the pressure of being a journalism student.
I have all this experience and my work is right there for everyone to see, but this is a field where little money is to come and the chances of getting bigger are slim. The craft and the underlying desire of wanting to put the truth, my truth, out there is evident, but if others see my capability is something I will not know until I start applying at publications.
This journey of being a journalism student is not an easy one by far, yes the workload may be easy, but the ultimate need to have other things under your belt to look appealing to publications is the exhausting part.
I have already concluded that I have to work two jobs and ultimately do my minor, photography, freelance because doing both at the same time either as a photojournalist or just doing photography as a side hustle will ultimately bring in more funds. A lot of journalists today simply send out their pitches for publications to pick up, not tied down to one company because they most likely also have another job on the side.
The feeling of not being as good as your counterparts and other people in the same field is a resting burden on your shoulders that only gets easier as you rise to the top. But once you’re at the top, then you suddenly have something to prove as people start to wonder why you got there in the first place.
The journey is extremely long and stressful, so try to encourage and uplift your fellow journalism and communications peeps because they’re doing a lot to get their name out there for everyone to see.