For my practicum, I spent time as the field hockey beat writer for Testudo Times. Testudo Times is a publication that delivers wall-to-wall news and the best game coverage around, regardless of sport, for Maryland Athletics. My job the past few months was to cover the school's field hockey team for the publication. Maryland field hockey is an historic program, winning eight national championships and appearing in 19 Final Fours. My position, while it required a lot of hours of work, was a great one. In the coming days before the two matches the team would play each weekend, I would hop on a Zoom press conference call to ask head coach Missy Meharg and certain student-athletes questions about the team. I would use the answers to those questions to wrap up my research about the weekend's matches and write in-depth previews about them. Perhaps the hardest part about the job was writing stories about the game as it was happening, so it could be ready to publish within minutes of its finish. I improved greatly throughout the season, and thought my stories were top-notch by the end of it. After the story was initially published, I would enter a postgame Zoom press conference and insert quotes once that was done to finalize the story. While the team ended 8-7 and did not make the NCAA Tournament this season, it was an unforgettable and irreplaceable work experience.
I was able to find and identify my practicum through networking and the help of friends. One of my close friends Matt -- who is a junior -- has a major role in the sports media world at the University of Maryland. He helped me get my foot in the door at Testudo Times and ultimately help me fill my practicum requirement. My advice to future Media Scholars on identifying a practicum site is to network. Building relationships with others is invaluable, and it may not only help you find a practicum, but help you with opportunities for the rest of your life.
I learned a ton from my practicum. I think the most valuable thing that I learned was to be deadline-oriented. If you put your mind to something great and have a certain target date to finish it, you can undoubtedly conquer it. That is the mindset that I had, and it helped me with each thing I had to write. To bounce off that, I also think I learned how to deal with people in a work setting. While it is during the COVID-19 pandemic and everything was virtual, the relationships I built cannot be underestimated. They helped me grow as a person in terms of being more mature and dealing with adversity thrown in front of me. There were times when my WiFi connection was dwindling or live stats were not working, but I got past those issues and became more mature because of it. Below, I am going to attach a few examples of articles I have written for the publication. They are pieces that I am proud of and worked extremely hard on.
No. 12 Maryland field hockey explodes past No. 6 Rutgers, 4-2
No. 12 Maryland field hockey weekend preview: No. 6 Rutgers
Maryland field hockey Big Ten tournament preview: No. 4 Iowa (Part III)
No. 12 Maryland field hockey explodes past No. 6 Rutgers, 4-2
No. 12 Maryland field hockey weekend preview: No. 6 Rutgers
Maryland field hockey Big Ten tournament preview: No. 4 Iowa (Part III)
I could have chosen any three articles to upload, but I chose these three because they each identify different types of writing I had to do. In Maryland's 4-2 win over Rutgers on April 15, I thought I may have written my best story all year. I uploaded this as the only game recap because I think it is a prime example of the improvement I made throughout the job and it paints a perfect picture of the match. The other two articles are previews, but they are formatted differently because one is a first-time matchup and the other is a rematch of a game that has already taken place. Each required hours of research and despite them being formatted differently, I think they do an amazing job of previewing the specific games. Each and every one of my articles that I wrote I am proud of and I know I put my best foot forward in writing them. My practicum fit my passion for sports and writing perfectly.
Moving forward in my career, I have made it clear that I want to work in sports media. Whether it is writing, radio or television, I know I have the work ethic, the knowledge and the passion it takes to have a successful career. My practicum experience is extremely applicable to my life and career moving forward because it is the first team I was on the beat for a sports team. I look to work my way up from field hockey to the biggest and brightest spotlight possible, and I know the work I put forward is an amazing stepping stone towards eventually reaching my goal. Anyone who followed along on my Twitter and my writing all season long knows how much work I put into it, and that will translate into any job I take on in the future. My career moving forward would not be possible without the valuable experience and incredible work I put into my practicum.
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I plan to graduate from the University of Maryland, College Park in May 2023 with a degree in Communication (Public Relations). This fall, I will also embark on the first credits of my general business minor that I have added to my repertoire. I will continue to be an active brother in Tau Epsilon Phi while keeping close tabs with all my family and friends. Despite the coronavirus pandemic striking our world, my first two years in College Park have been a blast. Post-graduation, I am hoping to enter the sports media world. My practicum has obviously been a big help, and I seek to add more invaluable work opportunities to my resume in these next two years. I will continue to network and if I keep at it, there is no doubt I will be successful one day.