It’s not often a vacancy comes up for an epic job that will be the coolest and the most challenging role you undertake in your life. There aren’t many jobs where you can say you’ve edited a magazine, produced 30 publications, managed a department and overseen the work of nearly 200 volunteers in one year!
Just like a lot of other jobs, this role can be whatever you make of it. Except you have 20,000 students relying on you to make sure a great magazine is around every Monday morning to distract them from lectures. You have a team of staff and volunteers just as dedicated as you are to produce a great magazine. They are all just as excited as you are for the next issue. And you have an entire city to be the playground for all this to happen.
I plan on pursuing a career in journalism after this, but that’s not to say the next editor should do the role with the same aim. Critic benefits from having a fresh face each year. Critic just needs someone who can listen to students and then help them speak for themselves.
I am going to be so sad to end my role here — aside from learning I can actually be more creative than I ever thought, I have met the most incredible people during my time at Critic. People only walk into the Critic office or email me if they’ve either got something to say or they have nothing to say but want to be able to tell someone else’s story. As we’re lucky enough to be able to do that, we can welcome every single person.
I’m ready for my next adventure though. I started uni intending to be the next Meredith Grey, straight out of Grey’s Anatomy. Every time I watch Grey’s, I actually reconsider that idea for all of about 48 minutes (the length of an episode). Then I realise she’s actually acting, McDreamy is dead, and I’d rather write a series like Grey’s or, even better, tell a true story and create a piece of work people really start talking about.
Anyway, enough on me. If you’re thinking about applying for this, just do it! Another year in Dunedin won’t kill you, I promise. This is the longest I’ve ever lived anywhere, and it’s actually a pretty cool city once you become a yo-pro. Not really — everyone still thinks you’re a student, which is exactly what they should think. It proves you’re still in touch with the kids, yo.
If you’ve got hesitations, ask. Speak up. You’re not in this job alone. In fact, this year of Critic would have been a photocopied Word document with a shitty editorial if I didn’t have such an amazing bunch of staff and volunteers who share the passion each week!
Love you all. Love them all. Love love love.
Josie xxx
Josie Cochrane
Critic Editor
