Student SPHere 2008-09

I wasn't 100 percent sure about this whole interning-at-the-Star-Tribune thing when I signed up to do it at the end of last semester, but I'm having a fantastic experience so far. I love rolling up my sleeves and doing real-world work to balance all the time I spend in a classroom, and it's great to see how the two connect.

I'm technically doing a directed study in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication so I can get graduate credit, but I'm really taking an undergrad practicum course that places students in the Strib newsroom for 14 hours a week. We also meet weekly at the Strib to check in and hear from people working in different areas of the company: multimedia, union stuff, columnists, etc.

Situated in the health team, I've reported, written and pitched my own stuff alongside a bunch of great journalists who have been doing this for years. I was pretty nervous the first week, wondering why in the world someone slipped up and decided to let little old me play journalist.

But I've really gotten into the swing of things the last few weeks and am quickly getting over my fear of talking on the phone in the middle of the newsroom when people can hear me, my frustration when sources don't pick up their phones or call me back and my total inability to tell a story in 500 words instead of 1,500. And I'm remembering why I majored in journalism in college -- because you get to very quickly become a quasi-expert on a totally new topic every week. Which is fun!

So far, the pieces I've had published include a story on the nutritional impact of the economic recession, one on high-deductible health plans and health savings accounts and a little story on the cost of operating health data centers (think electronic medical records) in Minnesota.

And I just wrapped up interviews for my next story that I'm super excited about. Stay tuned!