How I Found My Niche Interning at WHUR 96.

3 FM

Working for WHUR 96.3 FM was a surreal experience.

Before I received the internship, before I got an email for an interview, there was the application
process. While pretty simple, I wasn’t sure exactly what area I wanted to intern in. I envisioned
myself as an on-air talent seeing as how I love hosting and see myself in that field. Even though
I envisioned this for myself, God had other plans. I applied for on-air talent, digital media, and
programming hoping one of these departments would further expand my experience.

Fast forward to the interview process, I received an email from the Director of Digital Content,
Robin Akinwale, stating she would like to arrange another interview. The interview went well, but
I personally felt as if I wasn’t prepared for the many tasks she said her interns have. I didn’t
consider myself a good, or even half a good writer and started to doubt myself.

To my surprise I got the internship under the digital content team. I was pretty nervous at first
but Robin quickly reminded me that she wouldn’t have chosen me if she didn’t see potential in
me and if she didn’t like my writing.

My first week working for her went well, even with the few bumps along the road. I quickly
learned the ends and outs of Wordpress, the station’s demographics, my writing style, and
much more. Robin helped me every step of the way.

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By my third week at the station, she saw my improvement and I could see her trust in me
growing. I started writing four to five articles a day and majority of them were published. I finally
began seeing my growth as a journalist. I began to feel comfortable in my writing style and saw
my skills advancing.

Working at the station gave me a glimpse into all aspects of radio and what I will be doing after
college.

I have gotten to experience not only the digital part of radio but also what it is like to host and
interview, I even got the chance to dive deeper into videography. I have been able to help cover
events at the station by getting b-roll, photos, and interviews to form and create my own
package.

This internship was amazing because I’ve not only been able to further perfect my craft and gain
experience, but I have had tons of fun while doing so. Employees at the station have welcomed
me with open arms and I have met amazing celebrities along the way.

Interning for WHUR, being in that type of fast-paced environment, elevating my writing skills,
and gaining connections, was the least to say amazing. It will forever be an internship that gave
me not only journalistic skills but life skills as well.

I would highly recommend this internship, whether in the digital content department or another,
to any School of Communication’s student seeking improvement in their craft. The station taught
me a sense of confidence I didn’t have before, time management, organization skills,
professionalism, and most importantly gave me a better outlook on my niche in the
communications field.