Becoming a Journalist with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE

I vividly remember the first time I realised I wanted to become a journalist. I was a Secondary 3 student, spending my school holidays being shuttled between career fairs and polytechnic immersion programmes as everyone around me seemed eager to answer one daunting question: "What do you want to do after secondary school?".

For me, the answer came surprisingly naturally. I've always loved writing. While many of my classmates dreaded essay assignments, I genuinely enjoyed them. There was something exciting about creating stories from scratch, experimenting with different writing styles and finding just the right words to bring an idea to life.

That passion eventually led me to Republic Polytechnic's Diploma in Mass Communication, where I specialised in Journalism, before continuing my studies in Communication at SIM–University at Buffalo.

In early 2024, I finally got the chance to dip my toes in the life of a journalist when I landed an internship placement with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE as an editorial intern, and to say I was excited would be an understatement. As someone who had always been fascinated by the communications industry, creative marketing campaigns and the stories behind successful brands, this felt like the perfect place to learn.

My first week was a blur of adjustment and learning to cope with the steep learning curve. I remember thinking that publishing a complete news story in under 30 minutes sounded almost impossible. Between verifying information, interviewing sources, writing, editing and ensuring every detail was accurate, I wondered how experienced journalists managed to do it every single day.

The good news was, just like many things in life, repetition slowly built confidence ✨

By the end of my first month, I found myself comfortably writing multiple stories before noon, something I would never have believed was possible just weeks earlier. The deadlines hadn't become any less demanding, but I had learnt how to think faster, write more clearly and trust my instincts without compromising on accuracy.

Beyond the newsroom, I've also had the privilege of attending industry events and meeting professionals from across the marketing, media and communications landscape. Listening to their experiences and witnessing the creativity behind campaigns gave me a deeper appreciation for the work that happens long before a story reaches its audience.

My time at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE gave me a glimpse into the realities of journalism: the urgency, the responsibility and the constant pursuit of accuracy. It was challenging, fast-paced and, at times, overwhelming but I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Looking back, my internship has truly trained me on how to write quickly, how to ask better questions, identify the stories worth telling and communicate ideas in a way that was both timely and meaningful.

For someone who once dreamed of becoming a journalist while walking through career fairs as a teenager, it was incredibly rewarding to finally step into that world, even if only for a few months.