By Kerry Hayes | Staff Writer
Are you a current Salve Regina student looking for a way to meet new people? Do you love to write, or are you looking for a creative outlet for yourself in between your classes? Is there a story out there that you’ve just been dying to tell? Are you looking for somewhere to go on Tuesday nights at 6:00 p.m.? Sit back, relax, and let me tell you just ten of the many reasons you should be joining Mosaic!
1. Fun loving community of passionate writers
The staff writers and editors at Mosaic are just about the most welcoming and fun loving on campus. If you love to write, why not surround yourself with other people who love it too? Joining your campus newspaper is a way to instantly connect you to other students around campus who share the same interests as you, whether it’s through covering an event or game, researching story topics, or pitching ideas back and forth in meetings. If you’re looking to meet new people, look no further! Joining Mosaic will give you a chance to form bonds with people who may be outside of your major.
2. Mosaic isn’t just a place for English majors
Mosaic publishes stories about campus activities, sports, security, politics, events on Aquidneck Island, social media, current events, and so much more. You don’t need to be a great writer to join Mosaic, or for writing to help you in your future careers. A newspaper is one place on campus that any student, no matter what their intended career path is, could benefit from being at. If you’re studying sciences, you can use your stories as a chance to improve your research, if you’re studying politics, you can use your stories to stay updated on current events, if you’re studying education, you can use your stories to practice effectively communicating with people.
3. It offers a creative outlet for your passions in life
A campus newspaper is more than a place to report on campus events, it is a place where students have a voice. By writing for Mosaic, you get to share your ideas, your opinions, and develop those ideas further.
4. Improve your writing
Although Salve Regina’s Writing Center is a great way to improve your skills and develop a writing style, take it one step further by showcasing your work through Mosaic! The amazing editors will work with you on your stories and give you opportunities to improve your writing and develop a better idea of what your style is. Whether you need to work on short essays, application and resume writing, journalistic writing, or formal proposals, writing more frequently improves it all! Writing for your campus newspaper gives you more confidence when it comes to vocabulary, clarity in your writing, or even public speaking and voicing your opinions.
5. Learn more about journalism
I know, I know. Not everyone at Salve Regina University wants to be a journalist. Heck, not everyone currently in Mosaic even wants to be a journalist one day! But the journalism industry is really interesting and important to understand because chances are, no matter what you end up doing in your career; you’re probably going to be dealing with media at some point. So why not learn a little bit about it ahead of time?
If you DO want to go into journalism…Mosaic is the place for you! While working at Mosaic, you will be able to the world in which you want to be in! Working at a campus newspaper gives you the opportunity to see how a newspaper functions, from meetings and pitches, to editing and print, you are able to see how it works. Writing for your campus newspaper is like taking your training wheels off early, by helping you understand the functions of a newsroom ahead of time.
6. Expand your resume and strengthen your portfolio
Being a writer or reporter for your campus newspaper looks good on any future applications you may have and on any resume. Whether you’re an English major, a business major, or anything else, the way the most newsrooms work is similar to any professional environment.
In addition, any of the writing that you do for us can go directly into your professional portfolio. So, if you have noticed that your portfolio has been looking a little bare, come to a Mosaic meeting and we can fix that!
7. Learn more about time management, responsibility, and confidence
Mosaic is a student-run newspaper, so down the line, you have the opportunity to increase your responsibility and leadership. Working on a campus newspaper, is the perfect way to develop your writing skills. Regardless of major, writing for Mosaic will give you a well-rounded set of skills that will help you to market yourself to future employers. While not everyone will end up with careers in journalism, the research skills, ability to meet deadlines through developed time management, clarity in writing skills, and basic communication skills will be helpful in any career.
8. Get in touch with the Salve community
Mosaic reports on an array of different topics, and that includes most events going on in and around Salve Regina’s campus! If you are looking for a good way to get to know the Salve community, reporting and writing about what is happening here is a good way to start! Once you start to write about events happening around campus, you’ll be surprised at how frequent they are and just how much is happening at Salve. From sporting events, to discussion panels and everything in between, there is always something going on that needs to be covered.
9. If you don’t like traditional reporting, no worries! There is a place for Mosaic for everyone!
Whether you like reporting, photography, or creative writing, there is a place for you at Mosaic. So, you say you’re a social media junkie? Help us with our Facebook pages and Instagram takeovers! So, you’re really into photography? Submit your work to us! Are you into sports? Go to a game and cover the story! You love fashion? Tell us about your new seasonal wardrobe or how to update your closet on a budget! You found a new band in the area? Go to a show and write us up a review! Has there been a pressing matter you’ve noticed in the media lately that you think Salve Regina should be paying attention to? Come to a meeting and pitch an Op-Ed! Whatever you have to say, we want to hear about it!
