I spent my freshman year coming to The New Hampshire (TNH) contributor meetings and leaving, having no idea if I could see myself being part of something like this. I was expected to reach out to strangers and interview them? That sounded so scary and crazy to me.
I ended my first year of college without ever posting an article for TNH. Going into my sophomore year I decided to try a journalism class to get a little more comfortable. I took Tom Haines’ 21st Century Journalism class and absolutely loved it. It was because of that class I became a journalism major. I loved the idea of getting to step into someone’s world and learn about something they care about. The only thing holding me back was, once again, interviewing. I decided it was time for me to step out of my comfort zone, if I wanted to make a career out of journalism I needed to face my fears. Tom recommended I take Newswriting, a course assigning you to write four articles, each requiring multiple interviews. Needless to say, this class completely helped me conquer my fears, so much so that it helped me pursue my dream of studying abroad in Dublin, Ireland in the fall of my junior year.
While abroad I met so many people and learned so much about life. It assured me that journalism was the major I was meant to do. As my time in Ireland was dwindling I started looking at Handshake for some on-campus jobs, because as you can imagine I spent all my money over there. This is when I came across the posting for a staff writer at TNH. I submitted my resume and a couple of samples from Newswriting and my application was in. Before I knew it I was back at UNH, accepting a position with TNH and enrolling in an Advanced Reporting course. I was covering subjects ranging from the latest club on campus to how climate change is affecting lobsters in the Gulf of Maine and I couldn’t have been happier.
As my junior year was ending I knew I wanted to be an editor during my senior year. I had also just applied to be a communications intern for UNH Athletics. This is when I started talking to Spencer Marks, sports editor of The New Hampshire at the time, about how he likes the internship. From there, we started talking about TNH and how he needed a sports co-editor. Immediately, I knew that was something I wanted to do. My senior year became very sports-heavy. Being one of the TNH sports editors, interning with the UNH athletic department and being in a sports writing class my senior spring, sports definitely took over my coursework.
This made my senior year feel like a dream come true. I had always grown up playing sports but never thought I could make a career out of it. Through these experiences, I got to go to post-game press conferences for the hockey games, interview all the men’s basketball players, meet New England legend Jack Edwards and so much more. I could not be happier with my journalism journey at UNH. Although it may be different from a normal route, I would not change a thing.
With my senior year, and this farewell, coming to an end I would like to thank a few people for supporting me throughout my time here. Firstly, my parents, who have encouraged me throughout my whole life. I am forever grateful for the life they have given me. Their support has been unwavering and I can not thank them enough. In addition to my parents, my siblings, who have been there every step of the way. My friends at UNH, at home and all over the world, I am so thankful to have met you all and for the memories we have made together. My professors at UNH have guided me immensely and pushed me to the best of my ability. And to my TNH coworkers: I can not wait to see everything you all do, I am confident you will continue to impact the journalism world.
My advice for the future of TNH and UNH in general: embrace all the experiences, be confident in your abilities, and work hard. Thank you UNH!
