Rachel Martin
Host, NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday
NPR
Milestones
My road in life took a while to figure out.
Majored in politics.
Went abroad after college - to Japan to teach English and learned to value international experiences.
Got an internship at the NPR station in San Francisco.
Moved to NY to get a master's degree in International Affairs to try to be a foreign correspondent.
Went to Afghanistan as a freelancer.
Took a variety of short term assignments that eventually led to a job hosting an NPR show.
Keep following my journey
Education
High School
Bachelor
University of Puget Sound
University of Puget Sound
Career
Host, NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday
I host a national two hour weekly public affairs radio program.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Journalism
Radio
Communicating / Sharing Stories
Day to Day
Most days I am doing a combination of things. On certain days, we have editorial meetings to talk through the week's news and decide what to put on our show the coming weekend. Every day I have at least one interview with a guest, usually three or four. So I spend a lot of time preparing for those by reading and writing questions. When I'm not in meetings or preparing for or conducting interviews, I'm working with my producers to come up with great ideas for future shows.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for college students
Look for opportunities to get some journalism experience - at a school paper or community newspaper. Or look for volunteer opportunities at your local NPR station, anything that can help you get a great internship when you graduate.
Recommended Education
My career is not related to what I studied. I'd recommend this path instead:
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"It's really hard to make a living as a journalist these days. It's too unpredictable, too unstable and the odds of being successful are really low."
