Journalists who haven't perused the world of J-School websites recently should be sure to check out the online version of
The Columbia School of Journalism. Yes, it's a slick piece of marketing material, but I keep returning for the comprehensive
Career Services section. While some of the links are accessible only to Columbia affiliates, there's a surprising amount of useful information on finding a journalism-oriented job in a bad economy. I'm a big fan of the
Getting Started link-- it's a great primer on everything from how to negotiate a salary to how to put together an online resume.
It was the
resume section, in fact, that got me thinking about the importance of foreign languages in the job search process. As the Columbia website puts it:
"
This could be the skill set that puts you in front of your closest competitor, so ALWAYS list your foreign language skills, no matter where you are applying. But don't overstate your abilities. Our rule is that if you can use a foreign language well enough to gather information or conduct interviews, and feel comfortable using the information in your story, then you're proficient."
If I was more interested in becoming a foreign correspondent I might try to learn Arabic or some other difficult language, but what about those of us who are interested in covering science, technology, and business? Surely some other language in addition to English must be of use in the newsroom (other than
LOLSpeak, of course).
I studied Spanish in high school and part of college, but I am far from proficient. Spanish seems like a straightforward option because of the number of people in California who speak it as their first language, but I'm not convinced that it's the obvious choice for this sector. Thoughts?
Image courtesy of gabyu.
Very interesting article from Forbes.com today: "Journalism Bust, J-School Boom." It appears that top journalism programs (including Stanford's, woo hoo!) saw a major increase in applications this past admissions cycle, despite the fact that the newspaper/magazine industry is imploding. The dean of Columbia's J-school calls journalism grad programs "less recession responsive" because few reporters go into the field for the money. Not sure if I agree with that line of logic, but it's good to know that the pipeline of top-notch journalists won't be drying up any time soon-- even if that equates to a ridiculously competitive job market.
