Internship Profile: Communication

In 2007, Adrielle Harvey completed serving as a summer intern at the Topeka Capital-Journal, one of the state’s major daily newspapers.Harvey began her internship in late May and continued until mid-August. Her news and feature articles were published on a near-daily basis. Several of her stories have also been picked up by other papers in the state, including the Salina Journal.

Harvey is a communication major with an emphasis in journalism at McPherson College in McPherson, Kan. As a sophomore, she served as editor-in-chief of the college’s student newspaper, The Spectator and will continue in that role in the 2007-08 academic year.

Harvey’s experience at the Capital-Journal bears out the value that internships can have for college students needing to confirm career choices and develop work-place skills.

“This experience is exactly what I need to continue my growth in journalism,” Harvey recently said. “It helps me to recognize some of my strengths and weaknesses so that I can improve those areas that need improvement.

“I know I am meeting my goals, and I believe I have a great idea of what my career path will be upon graduation.”

Internship Profile: Communication

Tracy Roberts – McPherson Sentinel

"My expectations of an internship were that I would go in and do the work nobody else liked, like filing. To my surprise, I went to work editing news briefs right away. Within the first week, I was learning to take photos. I learned how to conduct interviews by observing my editor and quickly put those techniques to work on my own interviews. It was exciting to see my interviews published on the first page with my photos, in color and my version of the events. I have also learned how to use page layout computer programs and I have come to know what the editor expects and how to write the stories so they won’t have to be corrected.

This internship exceeded my expectations both in what it offers for experience and my abilities. I am one to take a challenge head on with confidence and it has been a good thing that they have trusted me with a lot of responsibility."

Internship Profile: Communication

2005 - After interning in 2004 with news radio, Michael Warner decided to finish out his senior year with an internship with The Hutchinson News as a sports writer. “I gained confidence quickly writing sports features and also adjusted to talking sports with coaches and players in interviews. I sharpened my ability to take quick notes thanks to my experiences recording basketball games,” said Michael.

Michael felt that his internship experiences, writing for the college paper, “The Spectator” and the classes that he took in creative writing, journalism, graphic design, English and editing have given him the knowledge and experience to take him far in the future.

2004 - While completing a summer internship at EBC, Inc., in central Kansas, communication major Michael Warner was exposed to various elements of radio broadcasting – writing and announcing news, sales promotion, and public service issues. He quickly learned there was a difference between radio writing and newspaper writing.

His greatest challenge was overcoming “microphone fright” as he strived to relay news accurately during a live broadcast. He learned to think quickly and focus on the words he was saying. Michael also refined his communication skills as his job required conversations with people of different ages and personalities. Two of the most rewarding experiences for Michael were storm chasing with his news director and meeting the state governor.

Michael’s internship confirmed his career goal of being involved with some aspect of the media, whether it is print, radio or television. As he defines his post-graduate plans, Michael stresses that flexibility is the key. He intends to pursue a second internship during his senior year in the area of print media.

Internship Profile: Communication

Writing for “The Spectator”, the McPherson College campus newspaper, isn’t a lot different than writing for the “Wichita Times” a monthly Wichita tabloid. Kara Reiff spent most of the 2002-03 academic year working for McPherson College Alumna and Wichita Times publisher Cynthia Mines. Kara started at the Times by writing short news briefs and ended up writing front page features. Kara was surprised at how prepared she was for the challenge of writing for a widely published paper. She noted that “people really just want to tell you their story.”

The highlight of her internship was during an interview at the Wichita Botanic Garden. She was covering a new theraputic garden that was designed for the disabled. The Botanic staff member she was interviewing pushed her through the garden in a wheel chair to give her the full effect. This experience boosted her confidence and reassured her that she could write for a living.