Smith was a 21-year-old part-time student and nanny living in San Francisco when she decided on a whim to audition for MTV's long-running reality TV series, "The Real World" and "Road Rules". She and two dozen finalists were housed together for a casting special leading up to the selection. During her stay at the casting house, Smith came into conflict with finalist Ellen Cho. Smith was ultimately selected as a cast member for "The Real World", which would be set in New York, the first season of the show since 1992 to be set there.