While Syracuse University student Courteney Larocca was in New York City for the Newhouse in NYC program, she had a mentor from the media world — Michelle Toglia, who is the sex and relationships editor for web magazine Bustle and a S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications alumna.

“I also had my first ever internship with ELLE magazine, where I worked in the fashion section,”  the senior dual magazine and sociology major said, “but I quickly realized that was not what I wanted to do.”

After discovering that fashion journalism wasn’t what she wanted to pursue, Larocca was offered an exciting opportunity by her mentor. Toglia took her to see the Bustle office and she “absolutely fell in love with it.”

Larocca loved the office so much that she asked Toglia about internships and was ecstatic to learn that she could possibly do a summer internship there.

“At Bustle, they never treated me like I was an intern,” said Larocca. “I wrote about 30 stories during my time as an intern which included breaking news stories, evergreen stories, articles about the launch of Instagram stories, a Pokemon Go story, stunt journalism pieces and much more.”

A memory that Larocca will perhaps never forget was getting the chance to interview Chloe Lukasiak from “Dance Moms” for a profile.

One of Larocca’s favorite moments in her summer internship came when her editor called her into her office and offered her a permanent job with the publication.

Larocca now has a paid job with Bustle and will continue to write stories throughout senior year and after she graduates from SU.

Larocca believes that her success all comes down to her education at Newhouse.

“Throughout my years at Newhouse, my professors have always pushed me to be a better journalist. There is so much to being a Newhouse student that I don’t think people get,” Larocca said. “The support I received absolutely paved my way for my summer internship.”

Larocca also had advice for any worried students out there who are scrambling to find an internship for the summer of current semester.

“If you put your mind to it and you take advantage of every opportunity that’s thrown at you, you will do totally fine,” she said.

Published on September 6, 2016 at 9:16 pm

Contact Saniya: ssmore@syr.edu