Written by Valerie Lick

Some students listen to the radio. Eva Herinkova is on it.

Eva, who will graduate in 2020, is majoring in Journalism and Electronic Media. She is also considering an additional major in Hispanic Studies and is in the process of auditioning for a minor in Percussion Performance. Percussion isn’t just Eva’s academic course of study – it’s a big part of her life. One extracurricular that she speaks highly of is the Percussion Society. “It’s an organization for mostly Music majors,” she says, “but there are other people too. A little bit of everyone, really.” The club does events both on campus and around Knoxville. Eva is also involved with Spanish Club on campus and interns for the Marble City Radio Company, where she’s live on air every Tuesday and Thursday morning.

Eva’s favorite experience at UT so far has been working with the radio station, especially during this most recent semester because she’s been able to choose songs and talk to her co-hosts more often. Eva is also happy she got involved on campus saying, “I’m glad that I’ve been pushing myself to find clubs I like and getting involved in stuff that interests me.” Between her classes, her organizations, and her job at the Pride Center, Eva is making the most of her time at UT.

While Eva hasn’t studied abroad with a university program yet, she did take a language course in Prague while she was staying in the Czech Republic with her family. “There are 47 people in my family who speak Czech,” she says. “So I was like, ‘It’s about time I learned this.’” Eva is in the process of applying for a study abroad program with the College of Communications in Sydney, Australia – an 8-week internship with a media company. She also hopes to study in a Spanish-speaking country in the future.

A Knoxville native, Eva came to UT for its strong – and affordable – journalism program. She chose to be a member of the Chancellor’s Honors Program because of the smaller sizes of Honors classes, as well as their more challenging curriculums. “It can be tough, but it keeps me interested!” she says, laughing. Those efforts are paying off; she thinks Honors classes have improved her ability to write and research. When asked why she chose to become an Honors Vol, she paused before responding, “It pushes you to work a lot harder, focus on what you’re doing, and really think. It teaches you skills that you’ll need in the long run.”