Do you love to write? Do you love Penn State? Does the prospect of your writing and pictures being seen by hundreds of thousands of people excite you?

It’s that time of year again, folks. Onward State is hiring for the upcoming semester and looking for new folks to join our team to help tell the Penn State story.

Onward State is Penn State’s blog. We were founded intent on providing a combination of commentary that is fair, authentic, and sometimes humorous; analysis that is critical and irreverent; and news that is relevant and accurate.

Onward State covers pretty much anything that goes on at Penn State or in State College. Sometimes, that means covering Penn State sports, Board of Trustees, student life activities, breaking news, or the latest happenings in Old Main. Other times, that could mean writing about cocktagons, spending a day with a miniature Joe Paterno statue, riding in the NUTmobile, or even camping out on Old Main Lawn. Heck, we’ve even had a staffer stand for 46 hours, live-tweet, and eat 15 Bryce Jordan Center hot dogs over THON Weekend. We do it all, and we have an absolute blast doing it.

For a better look at what exactly we do, you can take a trip through our expansive archives.

As a member of Onward State, not only will you have fun, but you’ll get invaluable experience, too! By writing published articles and contributing eye-catching, engaging visual content, our staffers pick up real skills and obtain tangible examples of their work. Onward State has alumni at notable outlets like the Wall Street Journal, The Athletic, the NFL, and more for a reason.

If you produce content for Onward State, people will see it. Onward State is one of the largest student-run media outlets in the world, and it boasts an audience of hundreds of thousands of like-minded people who are eager to read about Penn State and express their opinions.

Don’t feel like you have to be a communications major or a lifelong Penn Stater to join Onward State, either. Onward State is made up of students of all different majors from places all over the country. All we ask is that you come eager to get involved!

There’s a place for everyone at Onward State…as long as you’re not boring and are ready to bring creative ideas to the table. Penn State students of all ages are encouraged to apply — especially freshmen!

If any of this interests you, give Onward State a try. Applications to join our staff are due by noon on Sunday, September 4. You’ll find the application, as well as a breakdown of our staff, below.

Writers

Onward State’s main focus is telling the Penn State story and generating honest conversations in the hopes of enriching the university community and experience.

As a writer, you’d be writing the words we publish on our site each day. Our writers cover everything around campus and in town, including student government, THON, the Board of Trustees, Penn State sports, downtown businesses, and State College protests. We even take some deep dives with Penn State history lessons. We will never tell you can only write about one topic. You’re never just a basketball writer or just a crime reporter. In fact, we encourage you to broaden your horizons and dabble in several different topics.

If you didn’t write for your high school paper, that’s not a problem. We’re not professional journalists — we’re curious students committing acts of journalism. For nearly 14 years, Onward State has welcomed folks from all majors and walks of life that share a passion for Penn State.

As a wise Onward Stater once said, you can teach anyone proper grammar or how to write a basketball recap. We’re looking for people who are eager to start conversations and keep others informed. Ultimately, we want people who want to make to use their voice to make Penn State a better place.

There’s only one requirement: You must wholeheartedly stan the Oxford comma.

Visual Staff

Our visual staff continues to get bigger, and for that matter better, than ever before. If you think your work deserves to be seen by a wide audience at Penn State, there’s a good chance we agree.

Our photographers shoot events and show off Penn State in many different capacities. This includes everything from shooting football games from the sidelines to capturing the magic of THON or big-name concerts like the Jonas Brothers or Luke Combs.

Members of our visual staff also help us create viral content for our hundreds of thousands of social media followers, like the infamous “icepocalypse” video or Friday Night Lights intro. We’re always looking for creative video ideas, such as Penn State Christmas Caroling, asking students what song they’re listening to, or having blind ice cream tasting contests.

Additionally, we’re always trying to add more flair to make our graphics more engaging. Whether it be for Penn State football or for THON, we love sharing graphics to engage our audience.

Podward State

Podward State is an Onward State-produced podcast that releases weekly episodes on Spotify and YouTube during Penn State’s fall and spring semesters. Each episode features discussions about all things Penn State, including sports, news, student life, entertainment, and more.

Founded by Matthew Ogden, Matt Paolizzi, and Mitch Stewart, Podward State has grown over the past few years and is now produced by several members of Onward State’s all-student staff. Our podcast has welcomed guests like Trace McSorley, Franco Harris, and even the Willard Preacher.

Tech, Analytics, TikTok, & Literally Anything Else

While writing posts and snapping pictures is our specialty, we’re always looking to improve our blog in other aspects. As technology advances and trends change, we’re always looking for help and new ideas to transform Onward State into a modernized hub for Penn State news.

Whether you’re an SEO specialist or just want to put the stuff from COMM 310 to good use, we’d love to add additional members to our team to transform our digital experience and make the Penn State story more accessible than ever before.

In years past, we launched a TikTok page and founded our own Penn State football ticket exchange. But there’s much more to be done, and the possibilities are endless.

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Like what you’ve heard so far? Please consider applying today. If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to managing editor Gabe Angieri at [email protected]. We hope to see you on our masthead soon!