EDITORS' CORNER
OPINION: What’s the eerie sound on a dark night? Could be a college student
One of the scariest things about working with Gen Z students is the possibility they will turn into a ghost.
No, I don’t mean Moaning Myrtle from Harry Potter. And I don’t mean the fake “ghost student” bots created to scam federal aid. I mean the students who appear to be real but then suddenly disappear into the night, never to be heard from again.
Here are two real situations that I deal with on a regular basis:
Student One:
This is the student who shows an interest in writing and goes through all, or at least some of the steps, of writing an article. In some cases they interview sources, write up a draft, and even get published. But when I try to assign a next story to this aspiring young writer, they go radio silent. Not a “sorry, I decided this wasn’t for me,” or “I am really busy now.” But simply stop responding.
In other cases, they do 90 percent of the work, like writing questions and getting comments, but never turn in a draft, meaning they spend time but cannot get paid for what they do.
Trying to reach them by email? It gets sucked up by an Internet worm.
Phone calls? They only use telegrams now. (Not Telegram, telegrams).
Text messages? Their phone exploded.
Or at least those are some of the spooky endings I could imagine for what happened to them.
Student two:
This student gets on an initial phone call with me and says they are interested but just to follow up in a few weeks after midterms or once the summer is over. No problem at all – since we work with freelance students, The College Fix is fairly flexible when someone starts writing. And since we are trying to prioritize news, it’s better to wait until someone is free then start them on something that might take two months.
So I send a text message, an email, or make a phone call (oftentimes more than once) with a first story assignment, onboarding information, or just checking in to set up a next call. Where do they go? Nobody knows. Are they doing the monster mash? Perhaps.
The bar is incredibly low for professional communication – simply saying that you are no longer interested or available is perfectly fine. And yet some are unable to meet it.
As the air gets chillier out here in the Midwest, and the winds whip through the bare trees, sometimes I might hear a whistling sound going to sleep.
And I will wonder – is that a student, finally trying to get back in touch with me?
