Journalism Career Fair

Kyle Melnick

On Monday, October 20, I attended The Phillip Merrill College of Journalism Career & Internship Fair in the Stamp Student Union. I had a great experience talking with employers in the journalism field and seeking an internship for this summer. I was disappointed in the fact that the majority of the employers present involved work in the broadcast journalism field. I plan to go into multi-media journalism, so there were not as many options for me. This was seen when I talked to ABC, who stopped listening to me once I told them I was mainly interested in multi-media journalism versus broadcast. Overall, I was not intimidated by the employers, as I was confident in my resume and have experience being interviewed before.

The first employer I talked to was D.C. Internships. The people representing them at the table were very nice and welcoming about their program. They told me that the internship involves living in D.C. in the summer and working with some of the top journalists in that area. I would also take a class at George Mason University to learn more about journalism. Their internship is interesting and I may apply, however, their journalism internships focus mainly on politic writing, which I am not as interested in as sports writing.

After waiting in a long line, the second employer I talked to was USA Today. They were very friendly as well, and explained to me the positions that sports writers occupy on the staff. They were impressed with my resume, and encouraged me to apply. However, they said that freshman usually do not get internships with USA Today, and that I would have a better chance in the future. Regardless, I plan to apply and seek and position writing for USA Today.

Afterwards, due to my interest in print journalism, I spoke to the Baltimore Business Journal. The people representing the Baltimore Business Journal at the table seemed uninterested in me as I told them about my experiences in the sports journalism field. They stopped looking at me in the eye when I described my sports journalism experience, which made me realize that I would not want to work for them. Their magazine is focused more on jobs and business than it is sports. However, they did say they want some writers for sports business. Regardless, I was displeased with the Baltimore Business Journal and moved on.

Lastly, I spoke with WBOC TV16. I was expecting to receive a similar response from them that I got from ABC. However, they were very welcoming to the fact that I plan to focus on multi-media journalism. They said they were looking for people who can talk in front of the camera, as well as write long scripts and stories. They were very friendly and gave me an application to fill out.

Overall, I enjoyed my experience taking part in the Journalism Career Fair. I have never attended a job fair like that before, so it was an unique first experience. I gained practice in talking with employers on the spot, and learned a lot about different businesses, television stations and publications that I could apply for. This fair was the start for me to find an internship for this summer, and I hope that maybe I found a future employer at this fair. Regardless of what happens, it was a good experience and helped get my name out to publications that I would be interested in working for.