Beyond Sports Provides Unique Opportunity for Gamecock Swimmer
July 10, 2018
Jack Smith‘s summer internship is giving him a new experience every day and has already led to some unique opportunities. The rising senior on the South Carolina swim team is interning at the WACH Fox 57 television station in Columbia as part of the Athletics Department’s Beyond Sports Professional Development and Summer Internship Program.
“I’ve never taken a broadcast journalism class in my life,” Smith said. “I am doing more of the promotional side of things; seeing how they make the commercials, promotions, editing and graphics. This is more of what I enjoy doing, but I still get to go out with reporters and do some of the really cool stuff such as getting footage of Air Force One landing here a couple of weeks ago. I had the chance to watch the [gubernatorial] debate here in Columbia as well. So, I’ve jumped around and have a full circle of experiences.”
Although he is public health major with a minor in media arts, Smith’s internship has exposed him to a lot of different experiences that will help him in the future.
“I’m focusing a lot on the media arts right now, but public health can still tie in to that,” Smith said. “I’m learning a lot about the software and equipment that I need to know a lot about and the different ways to go about video editing. I’m learning the adobe software and all of the things they use for the news.”
I’ve picked up a lot of skills that I wouldn’t have thought about that are really going to help me go farther in the future.
Jack Smith
Whether it’s learning about editing software or lugging around heavy equipment in the summer heat while out on a video shoot, Smith’s internship experience is providing a broad education.
“It was long day,” Smith said of covering the President’s visit. “I was at the airport for about eight hours. There were rain delays. I had to get searched 10 different times by 10 different large individuals. Then when the plane landed, everyone was scrambling. It was a very cool experience.
“That same week there was the Miss South Carolina pageant. So, I watched them make a lot of the graphics and promotions for that. Then I watched the event and sat in the production trailer as the broadcast went on. That was cool to experience the event going down from behind the scenes.”
South Carolina student-athletes have to apply to be a part of the Beyond Sports program which focuses on professional development, in addition to the summer internship. The participants attend weekly educational professional development events. One of the main goals is to provide student-athletes with a meaningful professional development and work experience, while also helping them to be better prepared for professional life after college.
“It has really set me up for the future,” Smith said of Beyond Sports. “The networking opportunities and the people I’ve had the chance to meet are great. The networking seminar we had a few weeks ago was really good. We met around 20 different people that work in different fields, and it was all about learning how to speak to people and keep a conversation going and maintain connections to benefit yourself in the long term. I’ve picked up a lot of skills that I wouldn’t have thought about that are really going to help me go farther in the future.”
