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Your work as a student reporter can be rewarding as you both explore issues of interest to the university community and prepare for a professional role in the news media after graduation. Here are some helpful tips to help you navigate the campus and develop your stories.

• Give yourself plenty of time to find sources for your stories. University faculty and staff are great sources of information but are not always immediately available. Day-to-day work demands, the time it sometimes takes to gather the information you’re looking for, and the possibility of a source having scheduled time away from campus should all factor into your planning.
• Research current information on the university’s websites. A great way to research a university topic before interviewing a source is to visit the appropriate campus websites. A considerable amount of time is often devoted to these sites to make them helpful. Becoming well-versed on a subject of interest will help make your questions more direct and insightful.
• Check in with the university’s news media specialists. The university’s News Media Services unit helps journalists with information to further develop their stories and find subject-matter experts.
• Public Records Requests. Depending on the nature of your request, you may be referred to the university’s public records request process, which gives you the opportunity to define the types of documents you’d like to review. More information about this process and the timeline is available online.