Chelsea Matiash

Chelsea Matiash, a 2010 graduate, left a lasting impact on University of Miami’s student newspaper, The Miami Hurricane, before taking the Big Apple by storm. Today, she is a photo editor for The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in New York City, where she edits for print, digital, and social media.

Chelsea graduated from the University of Miami School of Communication with a double major in visual journalism and art history. She found her passion for journalism as the editor-in-chief for The Miami Hurricane, which she says was the highlight of her college experience.

“There was nothing more thrilling than a redesign, winning award competitions, and even beating the Miami Herald on breaking local news,” says Matiash

As Chelsea’s former professor at the SoC, Jim Virga watched as she inspired students to better themselves working hard to create a better version of The Miami Hurricane.

“Chelsea was hard working. She cared. She was talented. She knew the time it took and the effort it took to understand the subject matter, which is what’s important. I believe she left an impact on any student who saw her grow from being The Hurricane’s photo editor to its editor-in-chief and then moving on to the Associated Press and The Wall Street Journal,” said Virga.

Dr. Samuel Terilli, department chair for the Department of Journalism and Media Management, recalls Chelsea as being a student who elevated the class discussion as a result of her knowledge of the issues and ability to articulate her ideas.

“Chelsea was a standout in class. She wasn’t afraid to tackle complex issues and never afraid to disagree or argue with me. I am one of those professors who enjoys a good argument,” says Terilli

After graduating, Chelsea pursued graduate coursework in multimedia at the University of Miami before working with the Sun Sentinel in Ft. Lauderdale. Chelsea moved to New York to begin working as a photo editor for The Associated Press, where she covered everything from sports to news. As the photo editor, Chelsea traveled all over the world working on assignments that included covering the 2012 London Olympic Games to New York’s Fashion Week.

Today, Chelsea is an editor and contributor to the WSJ’s photography blog and photo journal. Chelsea’s greatest experience thus far has been running the WSJ’s photography blog, because it has really helped her refine her storytelling skills from writing and editing to web presentation. She also works as the curator for the WSJ’s Photography Department’s twitter account, which posts photos and stories daily.

As an alumna, Chelsea encourages all students to ask themselves, “If you aren’t going to do it now, then when?” This question was a resounding theme for Chelsea when she felt like procrastinating on assignments or choosing a career path. Asking herself this question helped her realize the reason she was in school allowing her to tune into her career.

“From having great supervisors at the student newspaper, to understanding members of the equipment room and professors that pushed me to where I needed to be, I don’t think I would have succeeded as quickly without the exact, sometimes stumbling, usually fun path, I took at Miami,” says Chelsea.