In the beginning.

Hi there, my name is Cassandra, and I have a confession: I can’t tell you exactly how I discovered Ed2010. I want to say there was a lot of Googling involved, but other than that, I just don’t know. 

What I can tell you is that over the course of my approximate five-year love affair with Ed, I’ve met some of my best friends, developed an amazing network of super talented people, co-founded the coolest organization at UNC-Chapel Hill (CAFME, of course), learned the ins and out of the industry, interned at six magazines and nailed a job as an editorial assistant at a national women’s magazine.

I started CAFME with LaToya (who is now one of my best friends thanks to Ed!) in the fall of 2006. In the beginning, all I had was a little experience at a few campus publications and a local internship at Carolina Woman magazine. By the time I graduated, I had worked for the Daily Tar Heel, the Blue & White and Kaleidoscope, and I had interned at Jane (RIP), Portfolio.com (when owned by Condé Nast, RIP) and NC State alumni magazine. After graduation, I added two more internships to my resume—People and SELF. Now I’m an editorial assistant at FIRST for Women magazine, and I research and write about beauty, accessories, nutrition and health. My desk is full of beauty products and snacks. I can’t really complain!

It wasn’t exactly a walk in the park, but if I could do it, then you can, too. You’ll have to work hard and be very persistent. There are going to be ups and downs. Luckily, you have an incredible support system. Learn from the adventures of your fellow interns on this blog and make friends with all of them. The people you meet at CAFME will be some of the most important people in your career and in your life.

And I’m here for you, too! Ask questions or just say hi on Twitter, Facebook or e-mail.