Student Stories

Metcalf Memoirs: Madalyn Frigo

As the summer internship season kicks off, the College media team has gathered reflections from a few students in each UChicago Careers In... (UCI) program who held Jeff Metcalf internships this past summer. Here is what they had to say about their experiences.

Madalyn Frigo, Class of 2014Major: Comparative Race & Ethnic StudiesPrimary UCI program: JournalismName of internship: Content Producer at Sun-Times Media, a Wrapports CompanyInternship location: Chicago, IL

Q: What attracted you to the Metcalf internship that you have been doing this summer?

A: I was interested in working for a media company, such as Wrapports, that was innovative and producing news through both print and online outlets. The idea of writing travel-related news for a website was also new and exciting for me.

Q: How does your major or other coursework at UChicago relate to the kind of work that you are doing for your Metcalf?

A: The type of work I do at Wrapports is quite a bit different from the subject I am studying. However, I have always enjoyed writing and researching, and I like to take classes that have a focus on Chicago. During my internship, I write a lot about what is happening in Chicago, as well as research places to visit in Chicago and other cities in the Midwest. This internship also happens to combine skills that I have gained from my previous internships, which had to do with marketing and journalism.

Photo courtesy of Madalyn Frigo, Class of 2014

Q: What has been the most challenging aspect of your Metcalf, and how have you dealt with or overcome that challenge?

A: My most challenging aspect of my Metcalf has been attracting people to the website I write for. WeekAway was just recently developed in 2013, so I have been working with the WeekAway team on building viewership, members, and businesses that want to be featured on the site. I have been able to combine both my marketing and journalism experience from my previous internships to think of ideas that will attract people to WeekAway and keep them interested.

Q: What is the most interesting, memorable, or unique experience/assignment you have had while working in the capacity of your Metcalf?

A: I've really enjoyed working in an office with so many UChicago alumni, and from such a wide range of graduation years. It's really interesting to see how people who recently graduated and graduated a while ago are working together at such an innovative media company.

Q: What is the most important lesson you have learned or the most rewarding experience you have had?

A: I've found working at Wrapports to be very rewarding, because I'm able to see how such a large company works to produce a great amount of news content. Instead of being isolated in an office, most of the people who work at Wrapports work in an open office space, allowing me to hear what's going on in different departments and learn about things that aren't exactly in my field of work.

Q: How would you sum up your Metcalf experience?

A: I feel like my Metcalf this year has been the perfect fusion of my two interests and my last two internships. My first year I had a marketing internship with a non-profit, and my second year I had an investigative reporting internship with CBS2 News. I enjoyed both of them, but I especially liked how being a Content Producer at Wrapports has allowed me to use skills I acquired from both of those internships. I think writing and producing news for the Web has been a great experience for me, and I have thoroughly enjoyed writing travel-related news content. I've really enjoyed working at Wrapports and meeting such great people, working at a great location, and having fun while doing my job.

For more Metcalf reflections, check out the overview articleTo read the profiles that Career Advancement collects, click here.

UChicago Careers in Journalism, Arts, and Media (UCIJAM), a program of Career Advancement, "provides essential professional development opportunities to help students launch successful careers in these fields." To that end, UCIJAM offers Jeff Metcalf internships, which are paid, substantive internships exclusively for UChicago undergraduates. For more information, visit the Metcalf Internship Program website.

Metcalf Internships are available to College students throughout the academic year, and especially during the summer internship season. To learn more about currently posted Metcalf Internships, log into your Chicago Career Connection account to search for opportunities, and to make an appointment with a Career Advancement adviser.