Sports Journalism

[nsulham]

I'm late to the party but I'd just be echoing what most people here have said.

Do it all. Do whatever you can. Write for the paper, get a radio shift, do stuff with the school television if at all possible.

In college I wrote stuff for the paper, co-founded our school's sports broadcasting club and also had my own radio show. After school I covered sports for a couple papers and now I work at a TV station as a production assistant, although I also anchor sports for a 24-hour channel we have. If there'a a sports media medium, I've probably done it at some point.

If working in sports media is what you REALLY want to do, go for it and go all the way or else don't go at all. Don't listen to what others tell you because yes, there are drawbacks....TV is HARD to get into on-camera right away unless you've got the goods or the background; newpapers and radio there just doesn't seem to be a real bright future in.

Regardless, push yourself and do whatever you can. You'll be that much more well-rounded and thank yourself later.

[BronXBombers51]

Thanks guys. Would you, or anyone else, happen to know anything else about the sports management thing? I'm really leaning towards doing a double major, even if it means taking summer courses or a 5th year. Are there any advantages in the media world having a degree in management as well? Again, in a perfect world I'd be Peter Gammons or Tom Verducci but I realize how hard that's going to be. I don't want to be stuck with a mediocre job and I don't want to be forced to move around the country to take better jobs.

Does a sport management degree help me in that regard? Will I have a better shot at a good job after college? Will it help me at all in the media/writing world? Is it worth going for?

Thanks guys, and if you don't know, that's fine. I'm just trying to get as much information as I can. If I'm going to go for the double major, now's the time to do it since I'm already slightly behind in their program (and I haven't even completed 1 semester of college yet.)

[Art Vandelay]

I don't want to be stuck with a mediocre job and I don't want to be forced to move around the country to take better jobs.

If these are major concerns for you, you may want to pursue another field. Of course, there are always exceptions, but for the most part, you will start with a serious of mediocre jobs and have to work you way up to a better job. A process that often requires moving multiple times.

Also, I don't know about sports management in particular, but having additional degrees will never hurt, even if they aren't necessarily directly connected to what you want to do. Most employers like to know that you have a well-rounded education and have studied more than just the field they are hiring you for. However, no degree will be as important as your experience (whether it be from your school's newspaper/radio/etc, jobs, or internships) and having a portfolio of your work.