What do national newspapers look for when employing new journalists?
This is a really hard question to answer. Different departments look for different skills at different levels. However EXPERIENCE is the key. Most people on The Sun newspaper and website have worked for other national newspapers or magazines or spent a good amount of time in a senior reporting position at a local newspaper. But then again my motto has always been ‘if you’re good enough then you’re experienced enough’ and the odd person does come direct from University/college. When speaking to fellow professionals are there any others who have taken different routes in to journalism than yourself? Yes. I came through websites (first The Guardian’s then The Sun’s). Most people come through local papers. Some magazines. Some people get graduate schemes straight onto nationals. How important is getting a NTCJ qualification? Absolutely vital. I can’t stress this enough. I don’t think it makes you a better journalist per se but it’s a very important foot in the door. What are the best websi