Assignment of the Day

This post is to be about what I've learned in the class so far, and the journalism and mass communications major in general.

I can say I have learned quite a bit about technique. As I was preparing for college, I wrestled with the fact that although I was a good writer and could probably pick up everything I needed from working in the field, there probably wasn't going to be someone there to hold my hand through the hands-on learning process if I jumped right into it in the "real world." There is no way I would have gone through the entire Associated Press Stylebook on my own, for one. That thoroughness would have been lost had I not gone through the JMC program. I didn't expect to learn as much as I did about the field. I wanted to be a copy editor, so I considered going for English, but I got what I needed from the English minor and definitely learned a lot about the other parts of being a journalist. I know now that if my editor needs me to cover a story, I'll have the tools to do it and still be able to return to my copy desk at the end of the day.

As far as this class specifically, I learned how to make this blog, and will be learning the basics of Web page design for my capstone project. Most of the writing was similar, but we did finally read William E. Blundell's The Art and Craft of Feature Writing, which is amazing. It could apply to more than just feature writing, but it really breaks things down and shows the formulas and patterns that go into writing a good story.

If I were to give any advice to future students starting in the JMC major, I would tell them how essential it is to get to know their adviser right away and push for information whenever they're not sure about what they need to be doing when. They've helped others through the program, so they will be some of the best resources for getting the most out of your time here. Make sure you know the requirements and choose your extra classes wisely. Pay attention from the beginning because everything you learn builds off of JMC 100. It's similar to learning math--if you don't get the basics down in Kindergarten and keep working from there, you're going to have to work even harder down the road. Don't forget to have fun too. This is one of the most free and most personally challenging professions, but the rewards of sharing the news and the things that matter to you are pretty priceless.