Getting Involved with Writing in College

I've been posting my articles from the WCU Quad because I want to show examples of how I've become more active in publishing my writing as an undergrad. Sure, it's not the New Yorker, but it's a start. As I'm seeking internships, most of the applications request writing samples, and publications from college student newspapers are great to have as clips.

Undergraduate conferences are also opportunities to present intensive, focused writing and research that often takes place outside of the classroom. I had the opportunity to present a research paper at the English Association of the Pennsylvania State Universities Undergraduate Conference this past year. Although my paper had been for a class, I was able to revise it and delve even deeper into my research area as I prepared it for the presentation. Plus, as an English major, having an outside conference activity listed on my resume shows that I have the motivation to pursue independent projects.

Of course, most colleges have their own publications that feature writing in specific areas such as literary reviews, criticism, creative writing, etc. WCU has a publication entitled Daedalus that features fiction, poetry, art, and photography from students and faculty. The Swarthmore Review is another example of a publication, entirely edited by students, that features poetry from the general writing community.

All in all, there are multitudes of opportunities for college writers to get their work noticed within the academic community. From writing articles for the student newspaper to presenting research at conferences, aspiring writers have numerous resources available to them for getting feedback and improving their skills.

Here are the links to some of the organizations mentioned:
Swarthmore Literary Review: http://www.swarthmore.edu/literaryreview.xml
English Association of Pennsylvania State Universities: http://www.eapsu.org/