I still remember frantically searching for a club or organization to join freshman year as Gobblerfest was coming to an end. Kaley Roshitsh, the founder of our chapter, eagerly approached me and began to explain Her Campus and its mission to empower as many women as they could. From that encounter, I became as involved in my chapter as I could. I am proud to write this as the current Campus Correspondent of Her Campus at Virginia Tech. This organization has given me lifelong friends, irreplaceable memories and quite a few skills that I was able to apply during my internship and job search.
- Street team
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The first team that I joined was the street team, which handles event planning and bonding activities for members. I quickly learned the importance of networking and maintaining relations between individuals and brands. This led to me being brave enough to reach out to professors for recommendation letters, attend career fairs and contact brands in hopes of working with them. While I was certainly terrified the first few times, I know that Her Campus gave me an extra boost to even consider doing any of the previously mentioned tasks.
- Social media
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Next, I decided to join the social media team because I was well aware of the importance of Instagram in the eyes of my peers and future employers. I was immediately introduced to apps such as Canva and Lightroom to ensure the cohesiveness of our feed while allowing members to creatively edit photos. The editing and content creation the social media team taught me helped me to secure an internship this past summer creating content for a real estate company.
- Writing
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I was never a big fan of writing; it has always been much easier for me to ramble for an hour than to spend five minutes writing down what I’m thinking. However, Her Campus brought me out of my comfort zone and has allowed me to address topics that I otherwise would not have had a chance to. It has allowed me to release some of my built-up stress and address issues that I believed people had been silent on for too long. Writing has made me much more confident in my ability to express myself, both verbally and nonverbally.
- Editing
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When I edit articles, I am able to see the writing styles of the immensely talented authors in our chapter. I love to see the passion they have in their writing and the hard work they put into perfecting their work. Editing has drastically improved my ability to formally contact professionals now that I understand the various elements of writing and their importance. I am more than guilty of misspelling words on a daily basis, but being an editor has helped to lessen those occurrences.
I am incredibly fortunate to work with members that are so talented and creative. They push me on a daily basis to improve myself and our chapter. This family of mine has grown to fifty-eight brilliant ladies, and I cannot wait to see what the semester holds for us.