Reporting from Washington is definitely not the worst decision of your life. Still, when you enter into your first week of the Medill DC program you want to run for the hills, as long as the word “capitol” is not involved. Orientation nearly scared my class straight back to Chicago. Our “to-do” list involved a seemingly unmanageable amount of work, not to mention that our professors were speaking some strange language that most of us had only had an elementary understanding of—politics.
Still, after locker-room pep talks about why we came over muffins at Au Bon Pain and calls to parents that reminded us that they were looking forward to us growing up and getting a job, we stayed. We surprised ourselves at how much we could actually take on. From meeting deadlines for our beats to learning as much as we could about the military and writing more stories in our “Covering Conflicts” class, our days were full, and our weekends hectic. In the end, we are all alive and stronger.
Here are some of the things that kept us going:
1) Getting a great beat
Choose your beat wisely. As the Faith, Ethics and Spirituality reporter, I was pleased to find that not only did I enjoy the stories that I was writing, but I had a plethora of ideas for future stories. This is mostly because the topic is something I’m completely interested in and passionate about. This might be the last time for a while where you actually have a say in what beat you get. Just think about how much better your writing will be if you are at least curious about the topic you choose.
2) Getting published
Yes, you will pitch your stories to real clients, and there’s a great possibility you will be published. Not one of us has walked away without some very lovely clips to show future employers.
3) Getting experience
As I stated earlier, most of us knew little about politics before coming to D.C. Being here, we were immersed in and outside the classroom in a setting that breathes it. Whether you are already well-versed in the rhetoric of Washington or a newbie like me, the organizations that you are able to interact with in D.C. are closest to the ever-changing environment of policy and protest making for a unique experience.
4) Getting exercise
For some of us, this piece was a matter of personal sanity. Though there is very little time in the program to get exercise, take advantage of whatever downtime you can find to do so. You’re mind and body will thank you. Running seemed to be the most common choice among my classmates because you can do it within your own schedule and you don’t have to pay for it. It also gives you a chance to breathe in fresh air after working on stories in the newsroom all day.
5) Getting a job
I didn’t mean to trick you with this title. I do not have a job yet, but I do believe the odds of finding one soon are very promising because of my D.C. experience. While most of us admittedly found it difficult to job search and keep up with our demanding schedules, D.C. has equipped us with great clips published in respected publications. Now it seems that it’s just a matter of setting aside some times to piece it all together. Many of us have made time to prepare our portfolios or resumes in the midst of researching stories and waiting on sources to call back. Once you have all that together, the search begins.
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Jená Lowe is the Faith, Ethics and Spirituality reporter for Medill News Service. After receiving her master’s from the Medill School of Journalism in December, she will be looking for a job in Chicago, or other cities with good food, where she can use her video and/or writing skills to do wild and creative things in journalism.