Deadline pressure may send some writers into a panic, but Dominican-born City College graduate Marlene Peralta thrives on it. “It pushes me to be more pro-active,” she said. Peralta discovered her love for journalism while reporting for a campus newspaper on the struggle between Palestinians and Israelis. Unfamiliar with the issue, she researched and interviewed people on both sides. “It was my first real reporting (experience),” she said. “It was the kind of story I want to do, about people connected to a larger conflict.” Her reporting bio includes experience with Spanish newspaper El Diario/La Prensa, the Associated Press, and New York Newsday. It’s still not enough. “An education is the only way to be ahead of a lot of people,” she said. Her goal is to work for a Spanish-language news station. She said the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism’s affordability and curriculum will help her reach her dream.