It may not seem like a year will go by quickly but it surely will. It won’t seem like it at the time as you trudge through snow up to your waist but you will be so busy that one year will seem like nothing in the end. If there is one piece of advice I can give you it’s that you need to decide exactly what you want to do early in your time at Newhouse. You should devote both semesters to your goals. I wanted to edit so I made sure to take classes that taught After Effects and Pro Tools, for example. This isn’t like undergrad where you can wait around to discover your interests. Knowing what you want will help you greatly down the road, believe me. IN a few months you will feel the panic of internships or jobs but if you know what you want to do then you at least have a direction. I knew I wanted post-production so I made sure to reach out to contacts in that field. Use the career services to get in touch with alumni in NYC or LA so you can learn from them how to break into the industry. I know that it can easily feel like you have a lot of time right now but you shouldn’t waste a second of it. Work on any project you can to get experience, contact people as often as you can, talk to professors about their contacts in the industry and for advice.
Using alumni contacts I was able to land an internship in my field at at small company. If you can, take that trip to LA or NYC in January to start networking. The editor I work with is someone I met at an alumni reception. You never know where a contact might lead. Don’t be afraid to reach out. The worst that can happen is that you never hear back, then you’ll just be in the same position. You have nothing to lose. In a few months you’ll suddenly be faced with the prospect of facing the real world and it can be quite difficult if you have no idea at all where to turn.
Use the time at Newhouse to learn as much as you can about your interests. If you want to write, take every writing course possible. If you want to do post, learn every program you can. You can’t go in every direction. Even if you want to study several things, there are just two semesters available to you. If you join a class and hate it, don’t be afraid to drop and get in something else. You need to come out of Newhouse with knowledge and skills that you can apply towards a job. Classes like FIlm Business and TV History can give you a strong foundation but you have to decide what you ultimately want to do with your life.