The CheckerBoard

In short: Work your tail off while you're in college to get all the experience you can, make connections and hope for a lucky break. The thing is, this is such a competitive field - despite the salaries often not being great - that there's almost always going to be someone just as good as you who wants the job you're applying for. But experience and connections can help set you apart from the rest. Too many college students wait until their senior year or after college to start seeking internships and freelance work. Sometimes that works out, but not very often.

But know going in that this is an evolving field that requires several different skills sets, long hours (many of them at night) and a strong desire - some would call it a sickness - to do this job and do it right. It's often a fun job, but it's very demanding and it's not for everyone. Also know you're not likely to strike it rich in this field. Some do, but the vast majority don't. At your first couple of jobs, if you are lucky enough to get a full-time job, you probably will make just enough money to live on.

If you have any more specific questions you'd like to ask, or if there's ever anything I can do to help, feel free to send me an email at the address below in my signature.

Guess I will see you in the fall. I'll be a freshman at UT, Double Major in Sports MGMT and Mass Communications/Sports!

Well, that's the right attitude to have. Also, whole it's good to have an idea of exactly what you want to do, whether it's broadcast, print or Internet, it's wise - and almost required - to get experience in all of them. Sports writers these days do plenty of broadcast work, and working for a website often requires a little bit of everything. Don't spread yourself too thin, but the more diverse your résumé, the better.

Oh, OK. if you don't know what you want to do, it definitely makes more sense to go that route.