How to get a Journalism job

Becoming a Journalist is not an easy thing to do. It is a very competitive market place and there are not many great jobs to go round. To get to the top you need dedication talent and a great work ethic whilst being able to handle pressure of deadlines on an almost hourly basis. Obviously to be able to work in such a tough industry takes a certain sort of person, but with the help of the tips below, we think we can give you all the advice you are going to need to get a job as a journalist.

1. Take the right courses. Unless you get a very lucky break, you are going to at least need a degree in English or communication, and a straight Journalism degree would be better. If your degree is in anything else at all you will have to take a post graduate course in Journalism in order to be considered for the role.

2. Decide what area of Journalism you want to get into. This is an important thing to do, but just remember that at the start of your journalism career, you will find it very hard to get any sort of role other than a junior reporting role. This will mean covering the most boring jobs! Despite this, any paper is going to want to know what your long term ambitions are, so you should have decided already whether you want to eventually work in Sports journalism, travel journalism, features, sub editing, general reporting or political journalism. There are of course any number of areas in which you can specialise, but most papers will want you to get a good idea of all aspects of journalism before specialising in any given area.

3. Look out for opportunities to shadow professional journalists. If you approach newspaper offices then you might find that you will be able to carry out some work experience. Approach these people when you are nearing the end of your chosen course and there is a good chance that they will allow you to write pieces for the paper while you are there. This is a great opportunity to show them exactly what you can do and impress. Whilst you are there you also have the opportunity of learning from someone who really knows what the job is about and this will help you learn and gain new contacts.

4. Keep your eye on the internet. There are lots of places on the internet where you will be able to see vacancies at local papers. You have to make sure you are in a position to see all potential jobs available to give yourself the best chance of finding the right job for you.

Remember to stick to these simple tips to give yourself an outstanding chance of getting a job in journalism.