My name is Jennifer McGraw, and for the longest time, I thought I was going to be a musician or an actress. That was until reality smacked me in the face and I realized that I probably would not have had as much success in that field as I thought. Instead, I chose to dive right into the world of journalism - but it wasn't like that at first.

When I graduated high school, I had four years of intensive music theory experience. When I say that, I mean I had bi-weekly vocal lessons with a trained professional at our high school, to where I would perform the songs we were working on in the winter and spring recitals. There was also one time that I had help in my vocal lessons to help me excel in our state's teen arts competitions. (I made it to the state competition and landed second place I think?) Every other day for three years I would be drilled on everything there is to know about music, music composition, and music performance for vocals and piano. During my junior year of high school, I took the AP Music Theory exam - and landed a 4. In my final year in the program, I composed four 2-minute songs. These songs were then performed by live musicians during our composition night recitals. To put it short, I had a lot of music theory experience that would transition well into a music career later on.

I started with two years at my community college. It was about a 7-minute drive from my house, cost me nothing, and the atmosphere would be an easy transition into getting into a bigger school. The only problem is that the college had little-to-no performing arts programs or activities available, so I was unable to commit any time to work on my craft unless I did so in my free time. At that time, I wish I would have put more thought into the degree that would have made the most sense for me, such as a liberal arts degree. Instead, I chose to pursue an associate degree in business administration. Looking back, I don't really regret it as having some background knowledge in business is actually quite useful. It gives you a foundation, and for me, it could give me a foundation into another pursuable degree path at my 4-year college: music production.

Now that I had this idea, I just had to get my portfolio together. For a degree in music business at my 4-year college, you don't have to audition as would you for music performance or music education, but you do need to have a portfolio. I had videos of my recital solos as well as copies of the music I composed, so I added them to my portfolio. I also had a blog that had a collection of all the things I wrote about, but specifically sent in posts that pertained to music.

I had my portfolio in tip-top shape, sent it in with the rest of my application, and played the waiting game.

Just to be told that my application was rejected.

As heartbroken as I was, I still wasn't ready to let go of the idea of having a career in the music industry. So instead of just taking the rejection, I chose a degree at my 4-year university that would allow me to "get in and out" and on my way to a performing arts college in New York City that I'd focus more on. So I chose a degree in public relations.

Fast forward to my first class - which I took that summer after graduating from my community college - and it was called "Basic PR Writing." This course basically was a stepping stone to "Advanced PR Writing" and the senior capstone courses that would be writing intensive with public relations field experience. But I found that this course was...fun? It involved a lot of writing, but that's something that I've always enjoyed. I remember in middle school how I used to write all kinds of stories because it was fun to me. In my senior year of high school, I published my first poetry book. During my sophomore year of college, I published my second. But from the time I learned to walk, writing was one of my biggest passions.

I'm not sure why I never thought that writing would be something I pursue as a career, but I was good at it and people thought so, too. I think I initially wanted to do something with my life that I thought would make me happy, but it probably wouldn't have in the long run. Writing is something that truly makes me happy.

Fast forward again to the Fall 2020 semester - my first semester at the 4-year university. I took five classes, all of which pertained to public relations. I was also a staff writer for our school's newspaper, where I covered mostly sports and arts and entertainment, and the occasional feature. But it wasn't until the spring semester when I found that my second passion and my first collided into what would be the career that I'm actively pursuing now: sports journalism. I tacked on a minor in sports communication after my first semester and another minor in journalism after my first year. Sports journalism is the field I want to work in, whether I'm broadcasting as a color commentator or sports talk show host, or writing about game analysis for different teams.

But I started over. the four years of music theory experience that I had, I didn't give up, but I don't necessarily need that either. The bonds and connections I've made in the music world have ultimately led me to the position that I am in now, and for that, I am so grateful

The moral to the story here is, I was absolutely terrified and heartbroken to start over and pursue another career. I didn't even have to. I was told that I could try and apply again for the music industry degree, but something told me that I'd be much happier as a writer. A sportswriter. A multimedia journalist. It has a nice ring to it. Though it was terrifying to start over, it was so worth it. I started over right before going into my senior year of college, and that's totally okay. You are never "too late" to start over if it means pursuing something that will bring you genuine happiness.

My name is Jennifer McGraw, and for the longest time, I thought I was going to be a musician or an actress. But now, I know I want to be a sports multimedia journalist.