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Laurel Walmsley’s career has zigged and zagged, but she says she wouldn’t change a thing because it has led her to the job she has today. Wamsley was the fourth and final speaker of the fall semester to join students for the WOUB Wednesday speaker series. During WOUB Wednesdays, alumni join virtually to speak with WOUB students who are gathered on the 3rd floor of the Radio and Television Building (RTV) on the 51���� Athens campus.

Wamsley is currently a correspondent at National Public Radio (NPR) on the Business desk, covering personal finance and housing. She grew up in Athens and after graduating from high school, attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and majored in history and political science and minored in creative writing. In January of 2007, Wamsley got an internship at NPR and was eventually hired for a one-year job on the NPR elections desk. When that job ended, Wamsley moved to Austin, Texas and did freelance work. That’s when she learned about a public media fellowship graduate program at 51���� and came back to Athens. Wamsley graduated from 51���� in 2010, but did not immediately try to pursue a public media career. She worked in marketing and public relations, before making her way back to journalism and NPR.

During her conversation with students, Wamsley talked about the importance of honing core journalism skills while in college, even if they don’t seem the most interesting to one’s career field.

“I don't think anything beats news writing. I think really, it's sort of the base of the pyramid of all skills. And if you can do that, just kind of get in your reps,” said Wamsley. “I think you could get to where I am now so much faster if you think hard about the skills you feel like you probably should be acquiring and take opportunities to practice them, even if it's not the thing you like most want to do, or most drawn to doing.”

Wamsley also emphasized the importance of internships and gaining diverse experience, such as taking Spanish classes and learning the basics before joining the news world after graduation.

“I would take Spanish if you have not already. It definitely has held me back from getting certain jobs,” said Wamsley. “It is so important to look at the demographics of the country and recognize that a whole lot of journalism beats are going to be reporting on facets of American life and effects of immigration. Having that tool in your toolkit will help you so much.”

While Wamsley encourages diverse experiences and seizing every opportunity, she also talked about the importance of exposure to not just one’s job, but also one’s life. She says experiencing life can make you a better person and journalist.

“I think there's two parallel paths in life. One is your career, and one is your life. Maybe it wasn't the greatest career move to leave NPR, but it had some real benefits life wise,” said Wamsley. “For example, the late 2000s was kind of a cool time to live in Austin. And I liked the different experience of working for those years in marketing. I was even able to buy a home. I enjoyed my co-workers, and I met a lot of interesting people."

WOUB Wednesdays will resume in the Spring 2025 semester with more WOUB alumni speakers biweekly. 

Learn more about WOUB.