My Career Explanation

Journalist

My career goal is to become a successful journalist. This career will suit best with my personality because I find enjoyment in writing, reading the paper and magazines, and having something new to do everyday. It is difficult to find a job in this area because lots of very experienced publishers who are trying to get a career in this area and where there is very limited availability. There is quite a large range of categories for a journalist you can choose from depending on your capability. Depending on the job, your career can be aimed towards different focuses such as newspaper and magazine publishing businesses, radio networks, television networks and production companies, online news sites, researching for presses, writing scripts for television presenters, supporting local events. But to get to that stage you’ve got to have experience. The subjects at High School would be a good place to start.

Some recommended subjects would be English, Media Studies, History and Classical Studies, and Te reo Maori. English helps you to improve your writing and teaches you different techniques (for the different topics in journalism) which can help you to build a unique writing style. Media Studies will help you get familiar with the editing program and printing department;also television presenting. History and Classical teach you about the different eras in time. It also lends you knowledge of different areas for the information to put on paper (you want to know what your writing is true!). Te reo Maori is mainly for the translation department. If you looking into that type of journalism, Te reo Maori translation has a lot of availability! These subjects will help you get a better understanding of your focus at Polytech.

To become a journalist I will need a national, graduate or postgraduate diploma in journalism, a degree in communications majoring in journalism, a degree in broadcasting. To do these it usually takes 1-3 years full time studying. There are no specific requirements to be a journalist; However, employers look for those qualifications.

As well as the qualifications, you would need some attributes to help you become a journalist. I would say some attributes that describe me are being honest, responsible,. To help me become a good journalist I need to the skills such as good interviewing skills, writing skills, knowledge of the area of specialisation, and good editing skills. I would also need to be enquiring, curious, persistent and patient, with excellent communication skills, confident and motivated, accurate, able to accept criticism, good time managers and able to work well under pressure, as deadlines may be tight. Although it is a huge financial cost completing the degree; it is the only way to get to my career goal. This step is important because at university I will get taught the skills and knowledge needed to become a journalist. Journalists have a very stressful job to complete their work and for this reason I would need to be calm under pressure. Additionally, I would also need to be accurate as whether I get the true facts of the topic are crucial to a business's reputation.

Although these attributes will help in my goal of becoming a journalist, there could always be the chance that there are no jobs available when I graduate. Fortunately the degree I need for journalism can also be used for other jobs such as an author, television presenter, radio journalist and an editor. This means that I will have a better opportunity of getting a job as there are many options. Another reason why having other jobs to choose from is that if don’t get the job of a journalist then I can always apply for many others similar careers .

Overall I think becoming a journalist would be a good career choice for me because I love working writing and editing and I think I would enjoy taking English, Media Studies and History and Classical Studies at high school. One positive thing about getting the journalist degree I need is that it can be used for other jobs after I graduate.