10 Signs You’re A Journalism Major At Kent State

In high school, you wrote for your school’s newspaper, ran operations or anchored for the morning announcements. Maybe, you always dreamed of having a career as chic as Carrie Bradshaw’s. Or perhaps, you believed a degree in journalism can take you on adventures wilder than Hunter S. Thompson (only true journalism majors know who he was) had. Whatever the reason may be, you decided to major in what some may call a “dying” field. Here are 10 signs you’re a journalism major at Kent State.

 

1. You wait until the day or hours before to start a paper.

Your friends gasp at you in horror when you tell them you haven’t started your essay for College Writing. You’re used to writing on deadline, so a three to four paged double-spaced paper due in two hours is a breeze for you.

2. You’re either for or against the oxford comma.

You have two options: Kent State has black squirrels, a beautiful downtown, and a diverse group of students. Or, Kent State has black squirrels, a beautiful downtown and a diverse group of students. Which side are you on?

 

3. You know the time it takes to get Starbucks in between classes.

If you ever had a gap in between your classes at Franklin Hall, you probably took a trip or two to Starbucks for a much needed caffeine fix to help you recharge.

 

4. You had internship envy.

During the summer, your friend got to intern at CBS News in New York City, while you were stuck at home taking orders from rude customers and smelling like french-fry grease.

5. You don’t understand how other journalism majors are NOT involved in student media.

Here at Kent State, we have a wide variety of student media organizations; Black Squirrel Radio, TV2, KSU Independent Films, The Kent Stater, A Magzine, Uhuru and the Burr Magazine, just to name a few. It’s nearly impossible to not find an organization that peaks your interest as a journalism major at Kent State. Being a part of student media helps you gain experience and looks great on a resume.

 

6. People always ask if you want to write for a newspaper after graduation.

As journalism majors, we all appreciate newspapers because of the time and effort it takes to produce each issue. While we respect the industry, some of us have career goals that lie elsewhere. Some people plan on taking the broadcast route and become reporters or work behind the scenes. A degree in journalism is not limited to television, newspapers and magazines. Some people even use their journalism degrees as a stepping stone to law school.

 

7. You utterly despise people with bad grammar.

Every time you’re on social media, you want to jump through the screen and remind people the difference between “you’re” and “your.”

8. You dread winter.

The walk to Franklin Hall is rough. As a Kent State student, you’re annoyed when you get emails that all of Kent’s regional campuses are closed, and you pray that you’ll receive an email saying that all classes before noon are cancelled. With no such luck, you take the slippery and dangerous path down to Franklin, because every year, the workers at Kent always seem to forget to salt that area of campus.

9. You read the flyers posted in the Student Center and in Franklin.

If you took reporting, you remember having to write a story each week that pertained to your beat; plus, don’t forget the multimedia and profile pieces. Unfortunately, with beats like the honors college and ROTC, it can be hard to find story ideas. You resort to taking a trip to the bulletin boards in the Student Center. You’re diligent on trying to find an event that goes with your beat buried in the flyers for apartments, jobs and textbooks for sale.

10. Social media is your best friend.

As a journalism major at Kent State, you have at least two Twitter accounts. One of them is for personal use, like sharing memes, photos of your friends and ranting about how mad you are about turning in three-page writing assignments that are only worth five points. Your other account is dedicated for professional use. Your profile includes @KENTSTATEJMC and links to the student media organizations you work for.

What else is unique to a journalism major at Kent State? Feel free to comment below and share the article!

Featured photo source: theyellowcabinnevis.com and magicinthebackyard.wordpress.com