After completing one full semester of college as a Broadcast Journalism major, the most important lesson that I have learned is that I am in the right field for me. Through the different learning experiences I have had and through long thoughts and discussions with my advisor and family about my future I am confident with my major choice.
Half way through the semester, I was not completely sure about broadcast being the communication concentration I wanted. I originally chose it because I loved being the anchor for my high school news show. The pressure of deadlines, the nervous feeling while counting down until show time, and the thrill of being live in front of thousands of people made my passion for journalism grow and I soon had my heart set on majoring in broadcasting.
Once I began college I realized how much work it actually is to be part of a production. It takes many hours and an entire crew to produce a decent segment. The taste of broadcasting I got in high school was sitting behind a big desk on camera and reading from a teleprompter. That is not at all the case in college and in the real world. It takes a lot of work. I questioned myself not because I didn’t want to do the work, but because I didn’t understand what kind of work it was. I always was a writer and was used to that perspective of it, but I didn’t have any filming or editing experience. Working with people who have a lot of experience was a little intimidating for me because I didn’t know what I was doing.
Over the course of the semester my knowledge of what it takes to be a broadcast major and my skills increased greatly. For the first half of the semester I focused mostly on The Interlachen. It was something familiar because I was on the yearbook staff in high school and was the editor of my paper. It was within my comfort zone. I worked a little on writing and learned about taking pictures. I learned how to use the equipment and work with different lighting. I learned to work with a large staff, including editors who had much to teach me. After midterms, I was told about a new show the Business Department wanted to make and put online for prospective students. When Dr. Tracy asked me to interview and anchor I was really excited about it. Once we started shooting I knew that I was in the right field. I was able to make up all my questions, set up interviews with all the professors’ busy schedules and ultimately interview them on camera. Now I’m in the process of transferring the interviews to the computer and beginning to edit it until it is presentable and ready to go online. I love being a part of something like this. Knowing that people from all over will be able to see it and learn about the school from something I created, with the help of others of course, makes me feel great. This is the passion that I’ve been waiting to feel. I love it and know I’m in the right major for me.
Besides this major lesson, I also learned the technical skills I can use to be successful. I am now familiar with different equipment. I now know that some lessons are learned the hard way; like always make sure the camera batteries are charged. I am comfortable interviewing people who are both younger and older than me. Before I thought that an interview was just me asking someone questions. Now I realize that it’s a conversation while getting answers. If it wasn’t for the business interviews I would have thought I liked anchoring more than interviewing. I learned that I need to learn from those older and more experienced than I am and that I have to work hard to get where I want to be. It is dedication that will get me far in this field.
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