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July 2008 News

Olympic countdown coverage as Mail salutes Midlands athletes

Birmingham daily is ‘full steam ahead’ with profiles, features and training updates

Journalism honour for Welsh farming reporter

Former Western Mail writer crowned agricultural journalist of the year

EDF Energy London and South of England media awards 2008 open for entry

Dust down the cuttings and prepare your audio and video for our annual celebration of the best in local journalism

Parish meeting abandoned after Newsletter story prompts property outcry

Councillors shouted down as angry villagers wave copies of monthly newspaper detailing development plans

Trinity Mirror prepares to launch new mobile sites

Newspaper publisher plans mobile phone news sites for 12 regional titles

New competition for digital photographers

Magazine launches hunt for top digital snappers, NUJ bullying survey – and more news in brief

Vote of no confidence in regional press editor and Newsquest management

Northern Echo union members express anger over edition changes

Freedom of Information pioneer wants to keep MPs' addresses private

Lord Clark backs a Government order to leave members’ home addresses outside the remit of the Act

Thousands hit Post and Echo websites to see live Tall Ships blog

Liverpool daily titles join forces again to run live blog of Capital of Culture event

Chronicle and Echo holds pilot film competition

Northampton daily showcases next generation of Spielbergs in multimedia contest

Pay deal agreed at South London Press

Salary rebanding and extra holiday part of new deal at Tindle-owned title

Northcliffe Media sees drop in revenue

Advertising down year-on-year for newspaper publisher

Good sport

It will soon be the end of the summer term again – only a matter of weeks – and with it all the problems of what to do with the kids. But first there’s the old standby of school sports

Boys and their toys

What makes grown men play with toy trains and lorries? Now is the season for model railway exhibitions and sales of Corgi toys at leisure centres and village halls across the nation. There are even groups of mature gents who

Early sign language

Did you know that children as young as seven months can learn sign language and start to communicate with you, even though they are not ready to talk at that stage? Find out more and check here for contacts and

Former chief sub-editor awarded nearly £21,000 in damages

Sub sacked for gross misconduct wins claim of unfair dismissal against Northeast Press

Tips on choosing a journalism course

Emma Clark, former marketing and communications manager for the National Council for the Training of Journalists, offers her advice on choosing between journalism courses.
Recently I've attended numerous careers fairs around the country, meeting students of all ages keen to break into journalism - whether that be in newspapers, television, radio or magazines. And of course, all students want to know which journalism course they should go on and whether they need NCTJ qualifications.

A quick look at the trainee job ads on HTFP demonstrates the importance of gaining the NCTJ Diploma in Journalism. Many adverts require candidates to have, or be awaiting results for, their NCTJ Diploma.

Trying to break into the industry without it makes a tough task almost impossible. With the rise in tuition fees, choosing the right journalism course is even more important than ever and students need to be sure they are learning the vocational skills required by employers, enabling them to hit the ground running when they enter the newsroom.

Employers know that an NCTJ-trained applicant will be able to find and construct stories, understand media law and ethics and be able to take down an accurate shorthand note when required. And contrary to popular belief it is not just the regional press looking for these skills, but nationals, online and broadcast too. Recent Sky Sports News schemes, for example, have been looking for practical skills including a minimum of 100wpm shorthand.

Student journalists can complete their NCTJ training in a number of ways - FE colleges and independent centres offer the Diploma in Journalism as fast-track and academic year courses, while universities offer it as part of undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications. All of these journalism courses lead to the same NCTJ qualifications and meet the same standard, allowing students to pick the one that's best for them.

It's no secret that the NCTJ has an exacting standard, and this applies not just to the qualifications but also to the course provider. All NCTJ-accredited courses have to work incredibly hard to meet the requirements in the same way that students have to work incredibly hard to achieve the gold standard. This ensures the NCTJ logo acts as a meaningful kitemark for quality journalism training.