A youthful eye

Preparing for J-School at U of MO

A few days ago, my parents and I drove almost 500 miles to get to Missouri for a college tour. My mom didn’t like the drive at all, but I loved it once we got to the city area. It was a very long and tiring drive, but it was completely worth it to see where I will be living. I also saw a Walmart truck, so that was a good sign. I developed an unusual affinity towards Walmart’s semi trucks when I was younger.

When I first stepped onto campus, I was almost immediately put at ease. I was no longer anxious to see my new home because everything was extremely safe and secure, but also warm and welcoming. My dad did have to teach me how to correctly read the map I was given though because I was pointing us in the wrong direction. That was a tad embarrassing, but in my defense, the map was placed vertically and I did not know you had to read it horizontally.

My parents and I both love how Missouri has a safe campus, even though it is very large. I will be going from a town of 3,500 to a city of about 127,000 which increases during the school season. The campus is closed off to outside traffic throughout the school day, so there are no cars allowed on the campus streets. While I was watching the students walk around campus, I felt like I was transferred into a movie. It looked as though everyone was moving at the same speed and moved comfortably. It was crazy, but I loved it.

Now to the reason for my tour: the Missouri J-School. I was the only one who signed up for this tour which I found a little odd because the University’s main attraction is their Journalism program. The University of Missouri was the first school to have a Journalism department and they are also the number one Journalism school in the nation.

The J-School came up with the Mizzou Method which teaches their students to learn by experience. They teach this method by having their students work alongside professionals in their field which sounds amazing, but their students also have mock work days. This allows students to get a feel as to how a real work day will feel after graduation.

I walked into the newsroom of the Missourian, which is a campus newspaper that goes to the city, and it looked exactly like it does in movies. It was loud, but at the same time it was very quiet. There were meetings going on and everyone was working on something. I saw someone editing pictures and another person editing someone’s writing, it was all just amazing. The Mizzou Journalism School definitely left me a little speechless.

I am beyond excited to start my new adventure with the University of Missouri-Columbia. I cannot wait to see what it will bring.