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July 2012 News

Regional daily bids to save battalion from MoD cuts

Petition started to save 300-year-old Army unit

NUJ faces industry backlash over new press laws

Journalism professor threatens to tear up membership card

Bright move for oldest journalism college

A senior political journalist has been made a visiting professor of journalism at Britain’a oldest journalism school. Martin Bright, former political editor of the New Statesman and now performing the same role at the Jewish Chronicle, is to be a

Press owners unveil plan for beefed-up watchdog

Last-ditch plan to salvage press self-regulation

Jobs set to go at South West dailies

Restructure includes merging news and picture desk functions.

Weekly unveils new look to readers after revamp

Move follows redesign of sister title

Former journalist’s first novel published at age of 80

Book published to mark milestone birthday

Law Column: Treading carefully around Olympic laws

Our regular look at legal issues facing the industry

Olympic flame sparks 21pc sales increase for daily

A North-West regional daily scored its highest sales figures for more than a year after the Olympic torch relay passed through its patch. Sales of the News and Star, Carlisle, were up 21pc at 18,126 on 21 June against a

Jobs go as Johnston Press closes Sunday newspaper

Move will ‘focus resources’ on sister title

Publisher to refund newsagents over pricing error

Mistake led to paper being sold for 30p less than cover price

Editor hits out over Olympic sponsorship red tape

Local firms prevented from sponsoring papers’ coverage

Staff save weekly’s offices from flooding

Old door used as barricade against torrent

Queen thanks regional dailies for Jubilee coverage

Letter sent after titles’ supplements sent to Palace

Fine papers which breach code says union

NUJ boss to speak at Leveson Inquiry this week

Sport pages axed as newspapers change format

Three titles relaunched in magazine style

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.