This fall I will be starting fresh at a new school, and therefore starting fresh writing for a different college newspaper. While I will still be pursuing a degree in journalism, writing for a college press is not strictly limited to those looking for a career in communication.
Michael Koretzky, adviser to the Florida Atlantic University Press, says "No other extra-curricular activity on campus is better for your career-- no matter what it is-- than the newspaper."
I couldn't have said it better myself. Writing for the student newspaper is no easy task. Every week the staff has to come up with new content that will catch the attention of the student body. Sure, the Student Government Organization may have organized a great concert, but it took them a year to do so. And maybe GSA had a successful fundraiser, but it took months to get it off the ground. The newspaper staff gets a finished product out on the news stand within a week.
Harsh deadlines teach you to stop procrastinating and put you in a pressure situation where you may have to think on your feet to get a story done on time. You gain managing and multi-tasking skills that you may not have learned you were otherwise capable of. And, let's face it, what student doesn't need to brush up on their grammar and writing skills?
As a staff writer for any university press, you gain people skills that you will use throughout your career, no matter what path that may be. I am eager and ready to join a new staff in the fall and can't wait to start seeing my name in print again.
