News Limited – the toughest cadetship process in the country?
What would the last person you “de-friended’’ on Facebook say about you in three words?
Dr Mumbo doesn’t know the answer which means that he may struggle to get a cadetship at News Limited’s Victorian division.
It is one of 32 questions being asked of applicants as they jump through some major hoops for this year’s traineeships.
The application for NewsVictoria traineeships is no less than 11 pages, and requires not only a CV but also a 30 second video (with voiceover) of a local event.
Throughout the application there are many of the questions you’d expect for an entry level journalism position. Such as:
What qualities do you think a person needs to be a successful journalist? Which of these qualities do you have?
What type of stories interest you – eg: crime, sport, celebrity, politics, local stories? Explain why.
Which person, alive or dead, would you most like to interview and why? What would be the one question you would want to ask them?
But then there some more technical questions, presumably aimed at the 21st century journalism graduate…
What is SEO and why is it important for news websites?
What is your view of subscription news’ websites? Would you pay to receive your news? Why/Why not?
It also provides scenario questions like:
You are a reporter in The Herald Sun newsroom. A State government media advisor calls you with the promise of an exclusive story for tomorrow about a $70 million transport initiative for the western suburbs. The only condition is that you can’t get any reaction to the story – from locals, transport users or the opposition. What do you do?
(a) It’s a great story. You talk to your editor and decide to run it without the other comments.
(b) You feel uncomfortable about the lack of balance in the story and go back to the media advisor to try to talk them in to accepting your right to at least source reaction from a local transport pressure group.
(c) You decide that you need the balance and don’t honour the media advisor’s condition. Without telling the advisor you go to the transport users’ group and the opposition.
(d) You decide that you need the balance so you call the media advisor to tell them that you can’t agree to the condition. The story’s not getting a run.
Explain your answer:
Keen viewers of the ABC’s Media Watch program will recall it was a little over a week ago that Jonathan Holmes raised concerns about reporters not getting reaction on exclusives, and gave special mention to News’s tabloids who do this regularly (hint for applicants: don’t choose C or D).
Dr Mumbo was also amused by this question which if applicants can accurately answer they will have absolutely earned their traineeship…
Look in to your crystal ball. What do you think journalism will look like in five years? In ten years?
Applicants have until next Friday to apply. Dr Mumbo wishes them good luck.
Less media jobs, employers can afford to be more discerning with who they employ.
Some of the grads who apply for jobs wouldn’t know sh*t from clay, so I say good on News Ltd for making them stretch a little.
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News Ltd have always had a tough cadetship process. hundreds apply – one normally gets the job! Is that still the case? Anyone know?
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The funniest thing about this is that the heads that created it wouldn’t be able to answer the questions themselves.
The crystal ball will certainly not be projecting anything paper-made…
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Is it just me, or do others (when imagining a News Ltd journo) think of a grubby person, wearing a dirty raincoat, hell bent on getting ‘the scoop’ and then exaggerating their story, with loads of bias?
News do not perform journalism, they perform agenda.
Thank goodness for the ABC and SBS and to some degree Fairfax (although Fairfax do seem to be trying to take some share from News and are writing knee jerk, sensationalist fodder as a result).
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I disagree with Robbo’s comment. While some grads are lazy and unwilling to learn like everyone else on the job, it is extremely unfair to make such a derogatory generalisation. It’s all about the individual and I think everyone should have an equal opportunity at running through the rings of fire
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I was a News Ltd journo on and off for a big part of my career. Also worked for Fairfax and publishers overseas. Never wore a grubby raincoat. Worked with some of the best most inspiring journalists I could have ever hoped to meet. The cadet ships are tough. Yes Anon at 4.12, it’s just you.
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Yes, it is a tough process, but I loved every second of the cadet program. A few weeks of work for a year of rewards. It’s completely worth it!
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I can echo what Simon says. Pretty much all of the people I worked with who came through the cadetship process at News Ltd turned into outstanding journalists. Don’t recognise anyone from Anon’s comment.
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There’s so few journo jobs that they should have this sort of application for students wanting to do media at university. Cull the wheat from the chaff and only have exceptional students graduate. From my experience hiring media graduates there’s nine bits of chaff for every bit of wheat you discover…
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@DF: I question your “experience” and if you are hiring such chaff than perhaps you would be better advised to take more of a chance rather than hiring the pushy, arrogant types who have all the connections but lack the skills.
However I do agree that media courses should be harder to get into – or they should at least offer a chance of employment at the end. It is ridiculous that students have to pay thousands upon thousands of dollars for a degree which will never take them anywhere. Not just media, but all tertiary studies in general need to be less expensive or need to guarantee work for graduates
You cannot tell someone”s journalistic skills from a brief interview or these recycled questions that appear every year.
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