Stop judging me for my Journalism major, it’s just as hard as yours

You’re probably reading this article because you’re either a journalist or someone who thinks Journalism actually is an easy major.  I’ll start by saying that this article isn’t meant to put myself above anyone else or what they’re studying.  I think everyone’s’ major is difficult in different ways, and that whether you’re an engineer or a journalism major, your time here at Illinois is not an academic breeze.

After my third year here I’m realizing that no matter what you’re studying, this school will challenge you. It’s not a piece of cake for anyone.  I knew my classes weren’t going to be anything compared to some 400 level math class, but I also knew they wouldn’t be easy.  I’ve learned though that they’re probably closer to the difficulty of a 400 level math class, but in their own way.

Me and some other journalism students in Washington D.C

These are the things I have to say to anyone who thinks that journalism is a picnic of a major.

Public speaking

I would bet money that a lot of you are hesitant about public speaking,  that you dread when you have to stand up in front of the class and say anything.  I, on the other hand, live for that.  Public speaking has become easily one of my favorite things to do.  I’ve grown so comfortable with it that I rarely ever get nervous anymore.  Because of my classes that challenged me to push past my nerves, now public speaking is second nature to me.

Time 

I bet if a chemistry major showed me their homework it would take me a full week to even understand what it was asking.  But just because the outcome of my work is a single polished piece of work and not pages of calculations, doesn’t mean it can be done overnight.  I recently edited together a three-minute audio story which in total took me four hours.  I’ll spend hours or days working on stories.  From spending time with subjects, doing research, getting interviews, taking photos, recording audio, shooting video and finally editing the piece together into a final product, all of that time adds up.  And it takes a lot of work.

Criticism and rejection 

When you turn in your math homework, your teacher doesn’t give it back to you with comments on the visual appeal of your answers.  Or whether or not the first line of your work got them interested enough to keep reading.  You get it right, or you get it wrong, but you might not get the criticism that can come with some professions, like journalism.  We put our creativity, time, and dedication into our stories, and when you get a poor grade or a teacher didn’t like your work, it can be a real blow to your confidence.  All the criticism and rejection we receive pays off in the end, but it’s hard as hell to hear sometimes.

Casually in the briefing room in the Pentagon

Writing

One of my friends said to me the other day that they hadn’t written an essay since high school.  After I picked my jaw up off the floor, I was honestly just like, “wtf?!”  I’m writing almost every single day. Maybe not essays all the time, I’m writing other things like articles, short papers, and stories for class.  To me, anything math or science related might as well be a foreign language.  But for some people, they feel out of place like that when they’re writing.  Writing isn’t easy, especially when you’re coming up with your own stories.  I’ve written more things in my college career than I could even count, but with every one I can actually see myself getting better and better.

Delivering the news

To any normal person, the news is something you turn on the TV for or read from newspapers or websites.  To me, the news is my life.  Without people like me, you guys wouldn’t have the news. It’s such a normal part of life now that sometimes people forget whose behind it all.  Journalists spend their days finding news to deliver in the best way they possibly can to the public.  A.K.A you.  The world is news-thirsty, and now thanks to technology, the world wants the news right when it happens.  It’s not an easy thing for us to do, but we work our asses off to do it for you guys.

So again, nothing against ANYONE or ANY MAJOR.  I’m just saying that I’m over here working just as hard as everyone else, and I thought it was time everyone was reminded of it.