Journalism Student Survey

1. What ideally would you like to see added to your journalism course curriculum?

Response
Count

123

answered question 123

skipped question 21

Response Text
1 More incorporation of online; a look at developing storytelling methods; a look May 11, 2009 7:00 AM
at what the future of journalism might hold; how journalism makes money.
2 More investigative reporting. More beat reporting. More reporting and more May 11, 2009 7:08 AM
liberal arts classes to hone a niche. Also news literacy.
3 Though not every class needs to be mandatory, I want to see more courses May 11, 2009 7:23 AM
on Web skills, including building Web applications, and
business/entrepreneurial skills. I am happy that my college has merged its
broadcasting and print tracks to allow students to learn more than one
medium more easily.
4 reporting other sports rather than football/soccer, its too popular. May 11, 2009 12:12 PM
5 HTML and CSS skills, social media (not just for PR based modules) May 11, 2009 12:43 PM
6 More web based training May 11, 2009 12:51 PM
7 Broadcast May 11, 2009 1:06 PM
8 I'm at a 2-year school, so naturally there's a lot missing. There is NO course May 11, 2009 2:18 PM
in media ethics and law. New media should be more integrated into all
classes. Right now there are only two news-writing classes, neither of which
requires anything beyond written stories.
9 I want the course to have a six month placement. During the second semester May 11, 2009 2:48 PM
for example we can have a placement in a local radio station or newspaper.
10 A mini cours eon MAC computers May 11, 2009 2:51 PM
11 more freedom to write creatively and not strict guidelines. a basic stucture is May 11, 2009 2:52 PM
fine but too much harms the writing and often many pieces lack an edge and
interesting angles lost
12 A module focusing on Arts and Entertainment. Although this is offered in the May 11, 2009 3:05 PM
third-year, I think it should be offered earlier.
13 not sure May 11, 2009 3:12 PM
14 A sport based module May 11, 2009 3:12 PM
15 Visit(s) to an active newsroom May 11, 2009 3:12 PM
16 I would like the opportunity to sit the NCTJ sub-editing test at my institution. May 11, 2009 3:14 PM
17 More time dedicated to broadcast media, currently only have one half day May 11, 2009 3:15 PM
session a week. More time dedicated for work placements
18 More web! That's where journalism is going, but so many seasoned journalists May 11, 2009 3:17 PM
are refusing to accept that.
19 more writing skills and less of learning things from a book to do exams May 11, 2009 3:17 PM
20 More new media. May 11, 2009 3:19 PM
21 Audio and video editing and recording. An online interaction module. May 11, 2009 3:20 PM
22 More focus on web-based skills. May 11, 2009 3:28 PM
23 Programming classes, database classes, and more just specialized reporting May 11, 2009 3:45 PM
classes.

1 of 5
 Response Text
24 More on interviewing and personal interaction (e.g. body language) rather May 11, 2009 3:45 PM
than electronic interaction (e.g. Twitter)
25 I think more work with the online medium, blogging and similar skills are May 11, 2009 3:59 PM
important ones that sort of get glossed over.
26 Entrepreneurial courses, PR courses. May 11, 2009 5:02 PM
27 HTML, CSS, web design (we learned only the most basic HTML tags). May 11, 2009 5:28 PM
Business, entrepreneurialism, marketing yourself.
28 buisness skills and freelancing tips May 11, 2009 6:03 PM
29 More emphasis on the news today. What the newspapers are printing today, May 11, 2009 6:15 PM
how the times covers a story and how this differs from the same story in the
sun.
30 Shorthand - we only studied Teeline Fast for the first year, and now I feel that May 11, 2009 6:15 PM
I'm lacking in this important skill.
31 Broadcast Regulations May 11, 2009 6:17 PM
32 Some basic teaching on a variety of subjects, such as business, the economy, May 11, 2009 6:17 PM
politics etc. While they may not sound appealing, it would help build
confidence should one ever be required to report on aforementioned matters.
33 More photomanipulation May 11, 2009 6:17 PM
34 More online skills - we have an online 'news site' which we have written for as May 11, 2009 6:18 PM
part of our course. But we only started writing for it in the second semester.
35 feature writing May 11, 2009 6:31 PM
36 More HTML/CSS training, better InDesign and/or Quark training. May 11, 2009 6:32 PM
37 Shorthand; not having to pay for the privilege of being taught it. May 11, 2009 6:37 PM
38 More broadcast specific May 11, 2009 6:39 PM
39 More emphasis on news-gathering and writing, and combination of social May 11, 2009 6:43 PM
media theory with this practical course.
40 More information about freelance journalism like getting started and the May 11, 2009 7:10 PM
advantages and disadvantages.
41 Business and entrepreneurial skills. More varied techniques - more audio and May 11, 2009 7:44 PM
video editing.
42 There's not really anything I'd like added except for more time to do work! May 11, 2009 8:39 PM

I'd like there to be a bit more understanding and cohesion about the magazine
course - like we got told to take the NCTJ news writing exam but us
magazines haven't done any news training since November last year and we
were given the vaguest of briefings for our magazine in a week project.
However the course is only in its second year and the course leader is on
maternity leave at the moment.
43 Tutors who could actually teach us - the tutors we seem to have are very May 11, 2009 8:53 PM
mediocre at teaching.
44 More business skills, especially pitching and freelancing. More on May 11, 2009 8:59 PM
investigative journalism.
45 A more direct look at the specialism of travel journalism May 11, 2009 9:23 PM
46 A design sequence. May 11, 2009 9:35 PM
47 more news writing modules May 11, 2009 10:07 PM
how to write for specific audiences
48 Business/marketing classes May 11, 2009 10:51 PM
49 Web design May 11, 2009 11:05 PM
50 more online- come on! bloody hell. May 11, 2009 11:14 PM
51 I would like to see more focus on writing for different types of publications May 11, 2009 11:52 PM
earlier on in the course as it was very preoccupied with writing for local
newspapers.
52 Branding, social media and more shooting for the web as opposed to May 12, 2009 1:43 AM
broadcast.
53 More training on Indesign etc May 12, 2009 8:16 AM

2 of 5
 Response Text
54 More training on Indesign etc May 12, 2009 8:16 AM
55 More practise just writing good news stories and maybe a class on how to May 12, 2009 8:18 AM
write well, for various mediums.
56 More practical subjects and not theory as you won't be writing essays when May 12, 2009 8:18 AM
you leave university.
57 More chance to be creative in our writing. May 12, 2009 8:18 AM
58 More chance to be creative in our writing. May 12, 2009 8:18 AM
59 More specialist subjects should be available eg. music journalism, fashion May 12, 2009 8:21 AM
journalism. I think that many students have a clear idea of what they want to
do when they graduate.
60 a better web module that is more comprehensive than the current one. May 12, 2009 9:37 AM
61 Learning HTML May 12, 2009 10:48 AM
62 More music based journalism, or just more tasks encouraging people to be May 12, 2009 10:52 AM
creative.
63 More magazine and creative writing modules May 12, 2009 10:52 AM
64 More online skills; blogging, twitter etc. There is not enough thought about the May 12, 2009 10:52 AM
skills journalists will need in the future.
65 more creative writing in specific subjects May 12, 2009 10:53 AM
66 More web design and how to set up blogs. May 12, 2009 10:53 AM
67 Everything seems to be on the course but I would like to see more emphasis May 12, 2009 10:53 AM
on magazine features for those entering that route.
68 More classes based on indesign in preparation for third year when we produce May 12, 2009 10:57 AM
our own magazines.
69 I am pleased enough with the current curriculum. Everything I expected was May 12, 2009 10:58 AM
present, along with other aspects I was unaware I would learn.
70 Ways to promote yourself as a journalists to gain an edge on the competition. May 12, 2009 11:24 AM
71 more relevant modules earlier in the course, more support getting placements May 12, 2009 3:14 PM
and more opportunity for practice and feedback.
72 more on new media techniques, and how a story can be developed over all May 12, 2009 4:52 PM
platforms. Things on news reading for radio or t.v, from the basics of
pronunciation to the differences in writing style.
73 A look at different types of journalism e.g. investigative, reviews, speciality May 12, 2009 5:30 PM
subjects (music, fashion)
74 More time to actually go out and find stories individually. Also there is far too May 13, 2009 8:17 AM
much emphasis on writing for the Sunderland Echo and so the ability to write
for other newspapers would be good. I would like to see more
video/audio/broadcasting skills linked into the course.
75 InDesign skills would be nice, rather than just expecting everyone to know May 13, 2009 2:38 PM
how to use it.
Doing some good writing every now and again would be handy too, as it is
what we've paid for.
Having reliable staff, instead of half of them simply being there to take money
off us rather than teach.
76 A paid work experience placement May 13, 2009 4:24 PM
77 How to sell yourself as a service; should be taught how to see yourself as a May 13, 2009 11:11 PM
business and how to make a viable and profitable living doing that business,
as opposed to teaching that you should "follow a career". Maybe also make
sure students understand the amount of hard work required to become a
Jeremy Paxman or Conor McNicholas as opposed to yet another sub on a
some local rag.
78 Better news training for magazine journalists. May 14, 2009 5:20 PM
79 Looking at other areas of print media than newspapers from second year May 14, 2009 5:23 PM
rather than waiting until the end of the final year.
80 more variety of news presenting offered in the first year. at the moment we May 14, 2009 5:27 PM
only do print and i would like to see some radio/television included at an
earlier stage

3 of 5
 Response Text
81 NCTJ May 14, 2009 5:31 PM
82 more web based journalism May 14, 2009 5:42 PM
83 Modules relating to areas that brance away from Journalism, for example a May 14, 2009 5:43 PM
PR module. Maybe even an industry module were you have to work for a few
weeks to obtain credits.
84 More web journalism and tuition in designing websites May 14, 2009 5:50 PM
85 more emphasis on Ofcom and BBC Regulations. May 14, 2009 5:54 PM
86 More audio/visual stuff. I wonder how long it'll be before my print course and May 14, 2009 5:55 PM
the web course merge?
87 More business and marketing training. More help with writing. May 14, 2009 6:03 PM
88 A bit more web and maybe some PR style writing as I think that's where a few May 14, 2009 6:12 PM
of us may end up.
89 more about researching and investigating May 14, 2009 6:15 PM
90 - May 14, 2009 6:47 PM
91 Not much added, but maybe introduce us to the 'good stuff' - radio features, May 14, 2009 6:53 PM
writing features, layout and design - earlier than 3rd year. E.g 2nd semester
2nd year. Another choice of module so I didn't have to pick an outside one
(sociology).
92 More internet based journalism rather than just making a website. May 14, 2009 7:01 PM
93 On the whole, the course is absolutely perfect for me. The one thing I could May 14, 2009 7:03 PM
say is that Web Journalism is not a compulsory part of the degree and as it's
not a strong point of mine, I have deliberately avoided choosing Web modules.
Perhaps if Web Journalism (which is becoming increasingly essential) were
compulsory it would force people like me to give it a go!
94 More web stuff May 14, 2009 7:08 PM
95 Mandatory work experience in all fields of journalism. May 14, 2009 7:50 PM
96 More video, audio and web training. May 14, 2009 8:09 PM
97 Interviewing practice May 14, 2009 8:20 PM
98 I'm not too sure to be quite honest. I feel that my course is very well balanced May 14, 2009 8:43 PM
and has many important aspects of each sector involved in mdules and
teaching.
99 Compulsory work placements, with credit attached. Our work placements are May 14, 2009 8:59 PM
entirely up to us, but I learnt so much, I feel it could have been useful to
incorporate it into the course somewhere.
Perhaps more emphasis on freelancing - tips and tricks etc.
100 More practical news days. If we were stretched to make a fortnightly May 14, 2009 9:19 PM
newspaper or had a regular day set aside for a radio news day the experience
gained would be incredibly valuable.
101 More teaching on indesign and photoshop as it's vital for magazines May 14, 2009 10:02 PM
102 - May 14, 2009 10:05 PM
103 More intensive news writing sessions May 14, 2009 10:56 PM
104 Interview skills, compulsory placement May 14, 2009 11:19 PM
105 More variety, in terms of types of journalism. May 14, 2009 11:42 PM
There is currently an extreme focus on news journalism, whilst perhaps 70%
of the students on the course have no interest in pursuing a career in that
field.
A focus on general writing ability would be good.
106 More web based training and training in podcasting. And possibly a module in May 15, 2009 9:08 AM
international or war journalism, something that might inspire rather than
dampen the flames.
107 One week/two weeks for compulsory work experience. May 15, 2009 9:46 AM
108 Nothing else May 15, 2009 10:09 AM
109 A year in industry. May 15, 2009 11:48 AM
110 The course has been perfect for my needs and I really don't believe anything May 15, 2009 4:43 PM
needs to be dropped/added.

4 of 5
 Response Text
111 More options to do more academic work. May 16, 2009 1:20 PM
112 More business skills, and alot more help getting work experience. May 16, 2009 2:23 PM
113 an advanced web design and page layout module May 16, 2009 3:30 PM
114 Well see some of the above, but I do have a few things to add. Some of this is May 16, 2009 3:57 PM
down to personal preference and I agree this wouldn't suit everyone all the
time.
A module on the media industry itself, consistently updated that encouraged
discussions about the media, it's role in society, how's it's changing and so on.
Perhaps a personal preference this one.
Ongoing projects, for example a hyper-local news site that was built,
developed, live and assessed throughout the year. Let's showcase the work.
Entrepreneurial skills could also lead on from this, allowing students (with
department backing) to develop their own sites, own ideas and new ways
delivering, sharing and presenting news, with user interaction.
115 More focus on editing and design. More focus on Video. Have only had very May 16, 2009 4:34 PM
general introduction to both. Would be interested in specialist tutors as
opposed to overviews.
116 More video/audio aspects introduced into all parts of the course. May 17, 2009 5:57 PM
117 More about writing features and recording podcasts May 18, 2009 10:25 AM
118 More entrepreneurial classes! May 19, 2009 12:12 AM
119 Different types of reporting like science journalism or sport. We already touch May 19, 2009 10:31 AM
on features and backgrounders, and that's good.
120 different formats of news being compulsory rather than optional. for example Jun 3, 2009 6:18 PM
module on radio journalism, print, broadcasting, online etc
121 column writing Jun 12, 2009 9:04 PM
122 photograph Jun 16, 2009 2:10 AM
123 News photography Jun 19, 2009 7:56 AM

5 of 5