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Journalism

Journalism is a new degree course producing the first cohort of graduates in 2010/11. Numbers graduating were small so findings should be treated with some caution as one or two graduates in any one category may disproportionately affect the total numbers.

The majority of Journalism students are interested in a career in this field. The degree is accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists and provides training in news writing, Teeline shorthand, public affairs and law.

In 2010/11, six months after graduating:

88.9% of graduates with a first degree were in employment

The transferable skills developed through this degree discipline are relevant and marketable in many other career areas. Careers in publishing, journalism, marketing, advertising, events management and public relations are also relevant. For those who wish to enter Journalism the first step after graduating is usually to achieve relevant entry level work, predominantly in the local and regional sectors. This is a notoriously highly competitive sector and many graduates find that initially they have to combine this with a part-time or casual job in an unrelated area such as retail, administration and hospitality to fill in the gaps while they develop their strategy for entry into their chosen field.

In 2010/11 Journalism graduates were employed in the following positions:

• Radio Presenter
• Marketing Assistant
• School Mentor

The graduate labour market remains competitive and relevant experience is increasingly required for graduate level jobs. For those without related experience job search strategy is often about getting a ‘foot in the door’ in order to compete for graduate positions later.

A growing national trend is for many students to delay their job applications until completing their studies, preferring to focus on achieving the highest grade possible. This can result in some graduates initially continuing with their part-time job while they explore their options after graduating.

It is important to note that the DLHE survey provides a snapshot of a very short amount of time (six months) after graduating and while many have progressed into relevant graduate jobs others are taking time out, travelling, waiting to start a course or continuing with their part-time job while they explore their options after graduating. Many graduates have moved on in their careers since completing the questionnaire.