This is what you would learn in a Journalism course !!

Formal education in journalism is required if one wishes to pursue a career as a journalist. Often combined with mass communication, the course teaches and hones many skills necessary in the field of journalism. There are certain principles any budding journalist cannot do without. And because educational institutions realise that there is a huge gap between knowing and doing, good journalism schools do more than just teaching. They ingrain the following principles in the minds of the students in order to prepare them well for a challenging career ahead:

1.       Accuracy

Accuracy is one of the fundamental points that differentiates a good article from a bad one. A news report with inaccurate details can tarnish the reputation of the reporter, and even the news channel/newspaper itself. Make sure you get your facts right before framing your report.

2.       Mention the sources

Mentioning the sources the facts, figures, and statements have been taken from lends credibility to the story and the reporter both.

3.       Objectivity

As a reporter, your work is to report the things as they are, without stating your personal opinions. Because it is difficult for students to report events and stories without being influenced by their personal views, the best journalism graduate school inculcates the habit of being objective by repeated training.

4.       A balanced story

One also ensures objectivity by providing details from all sides. If all facts are mentioned from only one angle, you are being subjective without actually taking a side. And even after making all possible efforts if you are unable to get the information, then mention that the other side was unavailable or unwilling to comment.

5.       Stay clear from conflict of interests

Journalism is as professional as it gets. Doing something like writing about something that appeals to you or using sources your news company has tie-ups with without specifying it is not advised. If discovered later, the audience will question your integrity.

6.       Never plagiarise

Stealing someone else’s content and publishing it under your name is the last thing you would want to do as a journalist. It is extremely easy to recognise plagiarised content nowadays and you can really endanger your career in journalism by doing so.

These are just few of the principles you would eventually learn in your journalism school. In case you have opted for a journalism plus mass communication degree, you would also get to learn a lot more about mass media and mass communication. Hope you do well!

Why Mass Communication is Popular?

When it comes to the arts field, there are unlimited courses and degrees one can pursue if they want to enter this area, and ultimately want to pursue a career in the creative profession area. And almost every few months or a year there is one more new course, one more new degree that is introduced and gives students an even wider range to choose from, and perhaps build a new path for themselves.

Mass communication as one of those revolutionary courses, that was thought to be just a passing frenzy, that wouldn't really establish itself as a good course, since it couldn't really guarantee a good career afterwards, but in today's time, it is one of the most popular courses for students out there.

Mass communication and journalism has become the perfect course for all those students, who are not yet sure of what path they truly want to take, or what career or field they ultimately want o join in. But yet they are sure of the fact that they don’t want o take the same beaten down path, and instead wan to explore something new and challenging, and mostly in the creative or communication field.

A mass communication degree is obviously related to communication and that too with the masses as in to the general public. It can either be done on an undergraduate level or post graduate one, or one can also try a diploma course of it, if they want to pursue a normal degree yet want to get a professional certificate on any of the many sections of this degree.

Mass communication and journalism is a very popular course for many, since one can at the same time, learn a number of different profession from public relations, to marketing, to journalism or publishing or any other such career. 

Skills to become the Perfect Journalist!

If you are planning to be a journalist, there are certain skills that you need to proficient in. if you are truly passionate about the career, and then make sure you develop all those skills so that you come out successful out of the journalism colleges. Check them out!

Good grasp on language

Journalism and mass communication is all about effective communication. He should have an impeccable sense of grammar and must have a good vocabulary. The skills should not be only verbal, they should be as good in written as well because journalism is nothing without penning down of events.

Confident and courageous

Shy people do not make good journalists. If you are out there and on the go, then you are a journalist in making. You will need to interact with new people on a daily basis so being shy and introvert wouldn’t be of much use. You will need to come out of our shell and step out in the practical world! You will have to be bold as being timid would not lead you anywhere. There are controversial cases, risky events that you need to cover; you cannot back out because you are scared.

Knowledge and research skills

A wide knowledge base keeps you up-to-date and better equipped to talk and ask about a particular topic. Research skills too, must be strong as you will often require to dig out information which traces long back in time about a specific event. Follow news, read newspaper and be active on social media sites so that you are at par with the world’s happenings.

Creativity

A creative approach in writing is always appreciated. You must add a hint of creativity in whatever you ask and write. There are creative ways of framing questions in an interview, to write a report, etc. So before you apply to the best Journalism graduate schools, brush up your creativity!

Mass communication is not limited to journalism !!

Mass communication simply refers to the act of communicating with a mass of people! But people often confuse mass communication with journalism. The fact is that both are closely related but there are still a number of differences between the two concepts.

There are multiple fields of Mass communication and Journalism is one such field. Mass communication is a wide concept involving the delivery any type of message whereas journalism is specifically about delivering the news and information of the world to the people. Journalism takes support of print media and digital media to do so.

If you also were under the impression that mass communication careers revolve around being journalists and reporters and carrying mikes in your hand to deliver news and events of the world, here’s a list of some of the other fields of mass communication that you can take up as professions.

·         Advertising: If you think about it, advertising also involves reaching out to mass. The motive here is different but the concept remains same- making public aware of something- here, products and services. So give the creative side of your brain a chance and try making ads!

·         Public Relations: It is not as straightforward as advertising, but on the same lines, works around promoting a product or an organization. Unlike advertising, PR is an earned media and here you have to convince the reporters and editors that you’re good. A positive media attention is what’s required.

·         Social media: In the era of internet, what could be better than digital as a tool to reach out to audience? Facebook and Twitter have become the parts and parcels of our daily lives. So if you’re technologically savvy and are comfortable enough to interact with audiences, profiles like social media strategist would do a lot of good to you!

So even if you’re not good with news and information, there’s a lot that you can do with a mass communication degree.

Time management tips for journalists !!

Mass communication is all about reaching out to mass. Communicating with mass may have multiple purposes. Sometimes, it is regarding the promotion of goods and services, and sometimes, it is about carrying the news and events of the world to them.

Whatever the purpose may be, if you contain the skills and passion required to become a part of this field, applying for the best colleges formass communication in India should be the primary step of the procedure. You need theoretical, technical as well as practical knowledge to make a career in this field and therefore, it's important to become a part of a recognized institute.

The field of Journalism requires staying updated about the news of the world and update the mass about them too, through media. Without a doubt, the job of a journalist is hectic and requires a lot of multi tasking- from following the source to making arrangements for publications. So once you have graduated from one of the Journalism colleges in India  and earned the title of a journalist, it's important to learn to manage time. Here's a list of some of the things you should follow to ensure an effective time management.

·         Use notepad: If you're a journalist, you have to have a notepad to write words and outlines. Often we feel  we'd remember a thing, but journalism keeps you bus enough to forget even daily routines.

·         Plan in advance: If you have to a plan about today, make it last night. If you wish to plan about tomorrow, tonight is the right time. The fact is that if you start making a plan for the day in the morning, most of the time would already be exhausted and you would only repent about it.

·         Spend time with yourself: In this profession, you're going to be around constant clatter. It's important to spend 10-20 minutes in the morning in peace to get the clarity of the task of the day. This would also make you capable of facing the noisy environment.

·         Keep margins: Always keep margin to avoid the impact of unforeseen accidents. Prepare 3-4 hours in advance for the presentation. You'll find yourself more in control of the work.

·         Don't miss appointments: Keep a separate note for all the arranged appointment so that you don't miss any. A small phone call may become a big opportunity.   

On the whole, take charge of your time and manage it efficiently so that it doesn't fly just like that.

Want to Make a Career in Mass Communication?

Does topics of politics, sociology, economics and law interest you?  If the answer is yes, then a career in mass communication would be a great option. Mass communication is basically a profession in which messages are sent across various communication channels by an individual or a group of people. These channels of communication include radio, television, print or social media.  Mass communication can be of different types, for example, there is advertising, journalism, politics and public relations. In public relations communication is made to influence opinion of the public for a particular product or service. If you want to make a career in mass communication, you should first do self-evaluation to see whether you have the necessary skills required to excel in this field. A creative bend of mind and excellent communication skills area must to achieve success. This is because one needs to address and explain issues to a large group of people. Apart from this, one needs to have patience as a lot of hard-work is required to reach at the top level.

For all those who want to make a career in this field a mass communication degree is a must. The degree opens a number of career options for individuals, like television, journalism, radio broadcasting and public relations. With a bachelor's degree in mass communication, one is eligible to work at entry level positions. There are master degree programs as well which offer specialization in specific arenas such as TV production, international communication sports communication and cinema. There are institutes that offer short term and diploma courses in mass communication. Besides this, there are projects, field work and internships, for which you may have to pay extra. Some institutes also offer distance learning options, which allows you to work and complete your degree side by side. These courses train students in practices such as news editing, television production, field reporting and gives them the right knowledge of media laws and ethics. Compared to other degree courses, a course in mass communication is generally expensive and the annual tuition fees may range from sixty thousand to two lakhs a year.  

Nowadays, journalismand mass communication courses are also conducted online. Though a regular program is always a better option as it gives you hands-on experience, but for those who cannot attend regular college programs, distance learning and online programs are the best option. After completing the course, they can work as a television reporter, advertising manager or news broadcast analyst in any leading organization.

  

The Many Reasons to do Mass Communication Course !!

The area of mass communication has in the recent years, blown up by the massive interest in this field by youngsters. The fact that it is largely a creative field, not really connected to the tougher and common subjects, like English, science and maths, had made the students excited to venture out into these unknown topics. 

Also the tremendous growth in the communication technology and media has really opened up a lot of job opportunities for graduating students. The whole world has become assimilated into one unified global village. And that is one of the main reasons that the study of mass communication as not only a course, but also a career path has become important.

There are many excellent mass communication colleges in India, that boast of professional faculty, new and unique teaching methods and courses that might not be available everywhere else. Now, one of the misconceptions now just parents, but also students have is confusing mass communication with journalism. It is true, that journalism is a part of it, but that is not all there is to it. 

Mass communication is essentially what its name suggest, the ability to communicate to the masses through the different platforms available in our reality. Here are a few reasons why one should opt for this course:

1.    Many Choices:

As one completes school, they are immediately bombarded with questions on what they are going to do next, where will they be studying, what they will be studying. And many a time, a student has no idea what exactly they want to do. For them the course of mass communication is excellent, since it will allow them to traverse through the different parts of mass communication. One can choose to pursue journalism, and apply for the top journalism colleges in India, for their higher studies, or they can go into film making and media industry.

2.    Bookish Knowledge Not Required:

It is true, that while one needs to study and give exams in this course only, but for the most part the emphasis is on the practical knowledge. Group projects, presentations, getting to do the field work are more important here. But at the same time, one should not devalue the textual knowledge and give balanced attention to both. This course is more like a professional course and as such, it will teach by making the students actually work in that environment.

3.    Community Bonding:

One learns how to work with large groups and teams in this course. Since the ultimate aim is to communicate to the masses in a way everyone will connect, thus a lot of the courses in the degree of mass communication require big groups and team work.