Carol Guzy
Washington, DC USA
"Take every experience, every part of your history, and put it all together to do good for the world. Ultimately, the goal is to be a person of great human decency."
Career Roadmap
Carol's work combines: Art, Journalism, and Being Creative
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
I listened at first and pursued nursing early in my career, but I kept coming back to art. That's where my heart and passion has always been. However, being a nurse has allowed me to be more empathetic in my journalism.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Associate's Degree
Registered Nursing/Registered Nurse
Northampton County Area Community College
Associate's Degree
Photography
The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
Born into a working-class family in Pennsylvania; she lost her father when she was a child and watched as her mother struggled to support her family.
2.
She had always had a passion for art, but was convinced that she couldn’t make a practical career out of it.
3.
Originally went to college to be a nurse; has an associate degree in nursing from Northampton Community College.
4.
Her friend gave her an SLR camera so she decided to take a photography class at her community college—says, “The first time that I developed a print, that was the defining moment.”
5.
She enrolled at the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale to study photography—says she discovered her niche after taking a class in journalism.
6.
Has worked as a staff photographer for The Miami Herald and The Washington Post; she now works mainly as a freelancer.
7.
She has won the Pulitzer Prize four times—one of only four people to do so, and the only journalist to have achieved that feat.
8.
Says her nursing background has made her a better photojournalist: ”It gave me the foundations of compassion and empathy...if you don’t have those things then you can’t tell someone's story.”
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Society in general:
Don't pursue a career in art, you won't make any money.
How I responded:
I listened at first and pursued nursing early in my career, but I kept coming back to art. That's where my heart and passion has always been. However, being a nurse has allowed me to be more empathetic in my journalism.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
The freelance world is quite difficult to make a steady living in because the work is hard to come by and nothing is guaranteed.
I've received treatment for some medical issues.
I've lost a lot of people that were close to me and have had to navigate the hard feelings and struggles associated with that.
Growing up, I wanted to be an artist. Watching my parents struggle financially growing up, I decided to pursue nursing instead. Eventually, I came back to art because that is my true passion.
People tend to think photojournalism is glamorous, but it isn't. It is really grueling and emotionally challenging. You always have to be "on" and ready to capture a moment. I do long-term projects and sometimes live in horrible conditions.