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Snap at the chance But I said that in my application form. The interviewer eyes me coldly: he wants more. The dream of being a media guru, unravelling the latest government initiative with a shrewd clip, slips away. I will do just about anything, Sir, if only you will give me a chance, Sir, give me that job, the training, the first step - I want to say. He wants blood. It was particularly painful watching my performance slip from poignant to pathetic; I had lost a valuable chance to get onto one of the very few trainee journalism places on a bona fide newspaper. The Midland News Association (who cruelly rejected me after my lacklustre performance) and the Liverpool Echo are among the handful of regionals which still train in-house. My own local newspaper, the Kent Messenger, used to send all new journos to a Hastings training centre on a block-bought scheme. They are now reconsidering their approach and have already had several offers from people willing to arrange training independently under the New Deal. The Argus in Brighton recruits directly from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) course at Brighton College, or from smaller weeklies. As companies start to realise the lengths to which potential employees will go to secure that crucial first job, the less they are willing to sponsor you. Because colleges around the country are now offering courses - under the auspices of the NCTJ - more candidates are applying fully qualified. Lambeth College
is one Further Education institution offering professional pre-entry
courses to graduates. Students are given training in practical journalism,
law and shorthand. If you have the talent, they will equip you with
the basic skills. The best sponsorship route is the Government's New Deal. New, in that it now offers taxpayers' money to pay for the training previously provided by news companies. This is available to anyone claiming benefits for six months or longer at the discretion of each New Deal officer. Beneficiaries retain their benefits and have to pay just £10 towards course fees. This career route is, of course, only preferable if your funds are limited. As with most things in life, there is now a two tier system in operation. If you can find £3,500 and a year's living expenses it is possible to bypass the entire regional journalism experience. Universities such as City offer postgraduate courses which can inject you straight into the nationals. The Scott Trust, owner of the Guardian, sponsors a limited number of places at City University. Other than this the Mirror group is now one of the only national papers which trains journalists rather than poaching from locals and other nationals. Whichever option you choose, it is still highly competitive. That means you have to impress interviewers. Writing for, or even editing, your campus rag is just the beginning. Work experience at the local - at home and at college - is imperative; at every stage you will need to present a range of "cuttings". First of all, buy Richard Keeble's The Newspaper Handbook and practise writing news stories. Entering the world of the practical hack has never been more difficult. At the same time, the drive for profit in the newspaper market has meant attacks on unions, greater job insecurity and less pay. Some papers are employing fewer journalists and relying more heavily on news wires, making the job more akin to clerical work than private detection. So before
you start, make sure you know the answer to one crucial question: why
do you want to be a journalist? Brendan Montague is a journalism student with the NCTJ at Lambeth College, Vauxhall.
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