Sabrina is a rising senior at Stanford University majoring in Political Science and minoring in Creative Writing. She interned at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance through ASME so ask her all about ETFs, 401(k)s, Roth IRAs, and any of the other intimidating acronyms you've put off until later to figure out.

 

My shy friends hate going out with me. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve been friends for years and in many ways our differences compliment one another extremely well. But there’s one habit I can’t help but indulge in anywhere we go that drives them crazy: I talk to everyone I meet.

 

I don’t even realize I’m doing it until they shoot me the you’re-doing-it-again look every time. I’ve always had a sort of innate tendency to learn about others. I’m the kind of person that purposely takes Uber Pools — not to save money, not because I have the extra time, but because I like to meet new people and learn about what’s on their mind. When I got to high school and joined the newspaper, I discovered that there’s an entire industry that values my blabbermouth propensities. I’ve been hooked ever since.

 

My career thus far in journalism has allowed me to speak with and learn about so many individuals. I’ve spoken with a student activist at my university who’d survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting last year in a piece for Stanford Politics; with a Bolivian immigrant who became one of St. Louis’ Most Influential Business Women in an issue for The St. Louis Business Journal; with the producer of “This Is Home,” a Sundance documentary about Syrian refugees for a review with The Stanford Daily; with a member of Team USA in the fifteenth annual Homeless World Cup for a feature in The Riverfront Times; with the cult-like followers of now-presidential candidate Tom Steyer for the comedy show Full Frontal with Samantha Bee; and, this summer, with students learning to navigate their financial futures at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. No conversation I’ve had with someone in this field has ever been dull.

 

Though I’m not sure where my next career move will be, I know it’s going to involve communicating with others. As a politics junky, my dream job would be writing at a political media outlet with a focus on features about Americans impacted by newsworthy legislation. Though I do enjoy getting into the nitty gritty of policy proposals, my favorite works are those that put a face on an issue. At its core, I believe a successful piece of journalism requires some element of relatability, some element of humanity, no matter the subject matter. The only way to satisfy this is by talking, understanding, and empathizing with others.

 

Check out my social media handles, website, and LinkedIn to stay posted on where this career of storytelling takes me!