by Kavin Carter, Class of 2018

Providence Christian College recently partnered with The King’s College in New York in offering interested students an opportunity to attend a semester long course in journalism through the New York City Semester program.

The New York City Semester at The King’s College, led by Professor Paul Glader, gives students a fun and educational experience. On their campus in Manhattan’s Financial District, students are able to engage in stimulating programs and have a chance to learn from a different variety of high-quality professors.

The program also allows students to do an internship in one of the local news and entertainment outlets. This gives students real-life experience in the field of journalism, as well as allowing students to gain networking opportunities that could prove to be invaluable when applying for jobs after college.

Amy Mc Arthur

Providence Senior Amy MacArthur (center) is currently on the New York City Semester program.

Amy MacArthur is a senior at Providence and is one of our first students to be enrolled in this program.  “Professor Paul Glader heads the collaboration with Providence and The King’s College and is my professor for Entrepreneurial Journalism. He’s an amazing innovator, inventor, and an even better journalist. Classes here are a lot like Providence- they’re highly academic and the discussion never stays in the classroom. I’m currently writing a mixed medium blog for his class which focuses on food culture in Manhattan and Brooklyn and how each neighborhood has its own flavor/culture/history.”

For her internship, Amy is interning at American Spa Magazine, “It’s crazy, but I’m learning a lot. Each day brings different tasks, from website editing to writing excel documents, to fact checking, all while writing a piece a day for various parts of their website. I love the tough learning curve at the magazine, even if it throws me for a loop sometimes! Humbleness is very important.” she said.

This semester for Amy has been all about putting into practice everything she learned in her past three years at Providence.  “I don’t think I would have been as successful at making this huge transition in the city if I hadn’t first had my experiences in student leadership, the classes that constantly pushed me to ask the difficult questions, and the mentors who have shaped and continue to shape me at Providence.” she said.

Amy in NYC

Students on the program can take advantage of seeing a lot of live tapings; Amy has been to Good Morning America, Steven Colbert, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

Providence’s goals of experiential learning and engagement with the community have been an important part of molding what she does every day in New York. “Exploring the city, seeing the art, taking classes, doing an internship, but also simply taking a step back and looking at what God is doing in this massive city.” said Amy.

The most inspirational part of her experience so far has been how she has seen Christians active in the city and workplace.  “There are Christians working on Wall Street, at the New York Times, at Newsweek. It’s been such an honor to study under them and to meet people who embody the Christian life while working in the field of media and journalism. They’re speaking truth, and they’re not doing it hiding in “Christian media”, they’re just that good” she said.  “I want to be like them someday, in my own way.”