Newspaper Journalism, MA, PGDip

The top-rated postgraduate National Council for the Training of Journalists' accredited course in the country*. This course prepares you for work on a Newspaper editorial team. Based in ultra-modern Centre for Broadcasting and Journalism building you will get the opportunity to go on work placements with some of the most influential news groups in the UK.

Key Information

Entry requirements

A good honours (minimum 2.1) and enthusiasm for, or experience of journalism
English language requirements for International and EU students
Applicants from candidates with non-standard entry qualifications will be considered on an individual basis

Course length

One year full-time, two years part-time

Study location

City site

Fees and funding

Please see our fees information page.

Start date

October

Schools

Visit the School of Arts and Humanities site

Overview

The Centre for Broadcasting and Journalism at Nottingham Trent University has been training aspiring journalists for over 15 years. Our Journalism courses are among the most highly-regarded in the UK and our graduates have gone on to work with the BBC, ITN, Sky News, major newspapers and numerous BBC and commercial radio stations across the country.

The Newspaper Journalism course offers specialist training to equip students with the well rounded skills required within this industry. The course focuses on areas such as interviewing, story construction, specialised reporting such as court, council and sport plus writing columns, reviews and features. It will also introduce you to subbing – headline writing, layout and proof reading – using QuarkXPress, the industry-standard desktop publishing package. You will be taught by our team of experienced media professionals, and their knowledge is supplemented by a lecture and tutorial programme of visiting professors, journalists and other guests.

This course was developed in consultation with a consortium of major industry employers as well as the regional newspaper, The Lincolnshire Echo. The course has a practical focus, and you are expected to develop story ideas and contacts, and gather your own material for journalistic work. Online production is an integral part of the course with students focusing on the key multi-media skills required by the industry. The course incorporates a work placement to allow students to put their newly developed skills into practice and build valuable experience.

Based in new, state-of-the-art facilities our resources include professional standard TV and radio studios and one of the UK’s largest student newsrooms.

Accreditation

This course is accredited by the NCTJ and all exam fees are included in course costs. Please visit the Journalism Diversity Fund website to view what funding opportunities are available.

Journalism facility tours
To visit our outstanding journalism facilities and meet with one of our academic team simply contact us

Telephone: +44(0)115 848 5803

Any questions?

General course enquiries
Email us

Admissions enquiries
Telephone: +44(0)115 848 4200

*according to the National Council for the Training of Journalists' (NCTJ) accredited course performance awards.

Course

Course content

On this course you will learn the essential skills of reporting, feature writing, subbing, interviewing, researching, and design and layout.

Following an induction, students take the following core modules:

Newspaper Journalism Skills
Media Law
Communication and Ethics
Newspaper Journalism Production
Online Journalism
Public Administration.

Assessment

MA students:

Students on the MA course are assessed on the core modules, a dissertation and a journalism project on a topic chosen by the student.
Additionally MA students are required to take a placement as part of the course.

PGDip students:

PGDip students study the core modules and must also successfully complete a placement in a professional environment.
Applicants should be aware that each module involves a considerable amount of independent learning.

Professional development

Students are encouraged to contribute journalism to local newspapers such as the Nottingham Evening Post, as well as the university's Union of Students' newspaper, Platform. You may also become involved with the Centre's dedicated news website which broadcasts radio and television programming and publishes student journalism online.

Careers

Graduates from the MA Newspaper Journalism course have gone on to work as newspaper journalists, production journalists, news editors, sub-editors, and media related work in PR, marketing, promotions, and advertising.

Placements

Students are expected to undertake a minimum of three weeks of placements, normally during vacation periods and normally in the UK, but potentially anywhere in the world. CBJ does not guarantee to find placements for students but does have placement partnerships with various organisations including:

Nottingham Evening Post
Derby Evening Telegraph
Stoke Sentinel
Lincolnshire Echo
Birmingham Evening Mail.

Placements are an excellent means of skill-development enhancement of the knowledge and understanding you will acquire while studying here. Every newsroom is unique and it is important that students experience as many different environments as possible in order to adapt and grow as journalists.

How to apply

Find out more about applying for a postgraduate course at NTU.

All Journalism candidates will be asked to submit a written piece as part of their application. The written journalism test can be found here.

This will be judged against clear criteria. When assessing sample writing manuscripts from MA applications, staff are looking for work of at least a satisfactory (pass) standard in terms of language, content, observation, structure and voice.

Use our online portal to submit your application.