How to become a reporter
By: Sara Bajaj
Tags: Intern, University, Newspapers, News Channel, Reporting

An exciting and fast career, journalism may be a nice acceptable recent grads UN agency have an interest in current events and captivated with storytelling. If you’re considering a career as a journalist, then you’re most likely speculative the way to start. as an example, is there something you’ll be able to do to hone your writing skills and acquire employers to note you? Absolutely!

Here square measures the steps to require if you wish to become a journalist.

Earn your bachelor’s degree

One of the keys to beginning a career in journalism is earning your bachelor’s degree. looking at the kind of journalism you wish to pursue (for example, investigatory journalism or broadcast journalism), you must choose a serious which will assist you to find out about that specific style of journalism whereas conjointly providing you with a way of the broader print media landscape. Majors to contemplate embody journalism, communications, and English.

Tip: If you’re inquisitive about reportage on a specific subject, like politics or technology, contemplate taking up a double major or a minor. this may assist you to develop specialist data of your subject whereas conjointly giving your the reportage skills you would like to reach the sphere.

Develop your writing skills

In addition to obtaining your bachelor’s degree, it’s vital to hone your writing skills by writing extensively across a broad vary of subjects. There square measure 2 nice ways to try and do this:

By beginning a weblog wherever you’ll be able to develop your voice as an author and By pitching and writing articles on a contract basis. this may assist you to build up your portfolio whereas conjointly serving to you grow your skilled network.

Tip: making a private web site is another great way to showcase your work and establish a web presence. this can be fast and straightforward to line up with templates like those found in WordPress and Squarespace and can cause you to stand out from the gang once it’s time to search out employment.

Establish connections with reporters and editors

Networking is vital in any field and it’s particularly important in communications-focused fields like journalism that consider robust skilled networks. the simplest thanks to approaching networking is by reaching bent to reporters and editors you admire and asking them to line up a time to speak (either on the phone or in-person). Once you connect with them, tell them a small amount concerning your expertise and skilled goals and raise them for any recommendation which will assist you to start.

Tip: perpetually follow up when a gathering or call to let the person apprehend that you simply appreciate their time which you found worth within the meeting. this can be a good thanks to keeping affiliation|the link} going and to develop a long connection.

Intern with a newspaper, magazine, or media company

An important step in any journalism career, AN place can assist you to gain exposure to the sphere whereas conjointly providing you with sorrow what a the day-after-day lifetime of a journalist feels like. As AN intern, you’ll be fact-checking stories, collaborating on story ideas, and perhaps even serving with the ultimate redaction before the piece gets printed.

With new publications continued to appear on AN virtually day after day, the sphere of journalism has several opportunities for recent grads. By following these steps, you’ll make sure to line yourself up for achievement as you start your career as a journalist.

Next, get a lot of career tips for internships and entry-level jobs like the way to Use Social Media to Network on-line and notice answers to common interview queries like wherever does one See Yourself in five Years?