Broadcast Journalism - City University

[Fairyfield]

DD is thinking of this course after her undergraduate studies. Has anyone experience of this course?

Nope but I know people who have done the one in Cardiff, which is very well thought of.

I’ll PM you

It’s well regarded in the industry. She needs to try and get any work experience she can too, to give herself a head start.

no. but it is a pukka institution, not one of these come-latelys.
i should imagine it would have good contacts in the industry, as so much of it is centred on London.
what kind/ level of course is it. how many students do they have each year.

Don’t Salford / Manchester do this course now with the BBC there?

City and Cardiff are the only ones worth doing in my humble opinion.

Sheffield, City and Cardiff are the only ones accredited by the NUJ.

Ds did postgrad at Sheffield in Digital journalism. He worked at The Huff, the Press Association and is currently working for ITN and Yahoo. He is based in Sheffield.

Dan Walker on BBC breakfast did the Broadcast journalism one.

You don’t have to be based in London. The media know all about these courses, and these are the top 3

He got to one out of two for final interview at Financial Times. And down to one out of ten for BBC. They have something like 50,000 applicants ( I think?)

BUT he turned down an interview at the Daily Mail because he hated the ethics👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 He was also offered a full time post in a big national media company. But it’s more lucrative to freelance and he doesn’t want to go to London.

He earns more from his bedroom than anyone else in the house. He’s saving to buy his own house. He left 3 years ago

Hth

And practically all of his year have fantastic jobs, including broadcast journalism.

Ds worked at Sky for a bit too

I think you will now find Media City and Salford university is very good for opportunities. They are BJTC accredited who are also an accrediting body and no one is held back by this.

If we're bragging... my dad wrote the news pages on Teletext and once interviewed Basil Brush!

Think I've hit the heights of journalism achievements with that one.

The NUJ is the Union. It doesn’t accredit courses directly - it approves courses by the NCTJ (print) and BJTC (broadcast).
There are several colleges and universities which offer these courses and I’d advise your DD to only do a course with accreditation. However it’s not true that Cardiff, City and Sheffield are the only ones. They are among the highest regarded however there are many others.
In her shoes I’d be looking at what industry links they have, as this is the best way in. Can they help her find work placements? Do employers come looking for trainees?
I’ve worked in this industry for 20 years and it’s about skills and contacts. But if she wants to make a start, City would be an excellent choice.
Good luck to her - it’s a fabulous career.

DS is currently doing broadcast journalism at City - and even with lockdowns he is having the absolute best time of his life. It sounds as if they are very exacting and work them hard, but he is loving it. Past students include many of the top names in journalism, and they attract an extremely high calibre of speakers and guest lecturers. Pretty much anyone you've ever heard of appear to have a connection to the course.

No experience of the course but I did a post grad diploma at City, and it is honestly the best Uni I’ve ever studied at (and I’ve been to 4 for various courses!). Loved the teaching, never had any issues with library, enrolment etc. And I loved the setting. So close to tubes, walking distance to shopping etc. Fond memories of City.

I did newspaper journalism at city if useful! Great course, lots of ways into the industry

Thank you for all the feedback and useful insight both publicly and by pm.

Has your DD considered the BBC journalism trainee scheme- highly recommended, on the job training and development and a decent salary too.

Thank you. I will get her to look at it.

It is absolutely excellent, as is Cardiff.

The main advantage of the post grad degrees are the contacts that you make in the industry, rather than what they actually teach. I would second looking at graduate trainee schemes, like the BBC, as the best way to enter the industry.