[flickr id=”9259971830″ thumbnail=”medium” overlay=”true” size=”medium” group=”” align=”none”]I have been spending three days a week at WBEZ as an arts & culture reporting intern. It’s an amazing experience at one of the best NPR stations in the country. I have reported on everything from immigration issues–to the demolition and re-zoning of historically significant buildings–to suburban graffiti. I have also had the chance to produce a story for the StoryCorps series, and I am working on my first full-length feature. One of Katie’s WBEZ stories 

This week on Marginalia, I wrangled a few other busy students from the Journalism MA program to get them to talk about their summer internships.

Meaghan Archer – This summer I have been working at the Better Government Association as an investigative intern. I help the investigative reporters research their stories, which sometimes includes diggin’ up dirt at the Daley Center or the Federal Building, or compiling information into our own “databases.” I have met a lot of great people and reporters who have taught me a lot about investigative journalism and I know there is still lots of learning ahead!

Meaghan contributed to the research of this story!

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Yvette Cruz – I got my internship at the Las Vegas Review-Journal through NAHJ  (The National Association of Hispanic Journalists) because they wanted to diversify the newsroom. I started in June and I’ve really loved every minute of it! Nothing beats working in a real newsroom–except field reporting–which I’ve also gotten to do. I’ve mostly been working on features, but I’ll soon get a chance to work on the city desk and then put my Spanish to the test by writing for El Tiempo, a weekly paper by the same publisher.

One of Yvette’s stories at the Las Vegas Review-Journal

Reema Amin – As a general assignment intern at The Daily Herald in Arlington Heights, I cover anything under the sun–in the Northwest suburbs, that is–including school board meetings, new businesses and court cases. Interns are treated like entry-level reporters and are expected to meet deadlines and pin down well-rounded, accurate stories.

One of Reema’s stories from her summer internship.

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Jennifer Tranmer – As a part-time intern at The Daily Herald in Elgin, I’m doing a little bit of everything. Because I am the only intern [for this area], I cover whatever they need–from feature stories about festivals to hard news stories about decreased funding for local organizations –they’ve been keeping me very busy.

I’m getting the chance to shadow reporters and go out and report on my own. I write on average about three stories a week. My editor has been working hard to send me out for everything: council and board meetings, breaking news stories and even a butterfly exhibit. Like I said, a little of everything.

Within my first few weeks, I got a front-page spread, I covered the life story of a well-known public figure and addressed critical issues in the area. My favorite stories have been about grass-roots activism within the community: despite limited resources, local citizens have been developing partnerships to promote a greater message about improving their community.

One of Jen’s Daily Herald stories

This was just a small sample of the internships held by students of this program. As you can see, we have a talented cohort! I can’t speak for the rest of the students, but I know that I wouldn’t have been able to get this internship without the help and guidance of the faculty and staff in this program. One person you definitely need to connect with when you get here is the internship coordinator, Jennifer Halperin. I can’t wait to see what internships the incoming students have next summer!