Best place to do an NCTJ in newspaper journalism?

[Storer68]

Blimey, seems we have quite a few Highbury College old boys here.

Was Dave Kett the diminutive politics lecturer/teacher?

Can't remember the names of the rest of them though, Bernie someone (bearded, burly), Garry someone (moustachioed, talked about Madonna a lot), Bob somone (posh, smiled a lot, used to edit the Portsmouth News), Steve Wood (?), a man seemingly endlessly fascinated by the then infamous porn channel Red Hot Dutch.

I liked the magistrates court reporting best: the turgid fall-out from drunken pikeys clobbering each other to bits on estates in Hilsea.

I must have been a bit before you chaps (I was 84-5 vintage) Selwyn Shevel is the only name I recall with any accuracy
Tony Green (not the dart commentator, but ex Daily mirro) was another one that i vaguely recall

9small-ish aian south African who drove a Morris ital.

Best bit of the course was "an audience with erica roe". Apparently to hone (ahem) our interviewing skills!!! Blimey they were huge (as Bil beaumont said)

 

[London Irish]

What was your "patch"? Gosport, Fareham or Chavant?

 

[Storer68]

Eastleigh suprisingly. Well that's where I had to go and do the practcal work, working in the district office of the Southern Evening Echo (Jeez what ahole it was)

but mostly we were pottering around Havant (Mags Courts, Police Stations, pubs...................................

 

[SussexSpur]

Another Highbury graduate (hated the name of the place, mind - I expect you all heard the same story about how the powers-that-be wanted to change it to South Hampshire Institute of Technology, before coming to their senses. . .?)

Had someone currently at Highbury in on work experience where I work the other week. Said the same two words and she instantly lit up: Dave Kett.
Somehow doubt the two words "Tim King" would fill people with anything other than horror or, more likely, boredom. Still, I did learn a very valuable lesson from him: always carry a spade in the boot of your car. Always. Because - you never know. . .

Was mainly taught by Clel Thom, who seems to have fallen out with Bernie Saunders and moved on to writing for Press Gazette about how terrible new NCTJ students are, and selling laminated cards with concise media law tips on them. Very, very good tutor, though.

Happy memories of my 20-week course there, would recommend it and gather they've completely revamped the department beyond the tentative digital-era stuff they were trying out when I was there, so should be good.

I proudly retain my John Arlott prize tankard from my time there. . . Yep, sad, I know.
Shame I had to live in Portsmouth for a bit to be there, really.

My patch was Havant and, more specifically, Langstone, a seaside village with as many as, ooh, 20 people living there. But two pubs. And if you timed the weekly tide right, you could be trapped in one of the pubs all day while, er, "building contacts". . .

 

[Max's Dad]

Did a refresher at Highbury before the final exams, having done block releases in Darlington. I'd recommend Darlo to anyone if it is as good as it was 15 years ago but I have no way of knowing if it is.

Being in a position to employ journos these days (though no vacancies at present) I'd say NCTJ qualifications are few and far between. Most people seem to opt for media courses that last 20 weeks (in places like Croydon) and arrive in pretty good shape. But they have absolutely no understanding of media law and no shorthand, both pre-requisistes of the NCTJ course.

Get yourself some sort of qualification and some work experience and apply for every job you see in Monday's Guardian. You'd be amazed how small the response is to some of those ads, contrary to popular opinion.

 

[London Irish]

Dave Kett was the star of Highbury. He taught what was a fairly dry subject, central government, yet although he would do his best to start out his lectures with the usual civics nonsense, they would rapidly mutate into some kind of extended Jeremy Hardy/Ben Elton stand-up routine.

The famous story about him was he was doing his usual anti-Thatcherite spiel, and spent a particularly long time savaging one particular cabinet minister (I can't remember which one of Maggie's vegetables it was). Kett was wondering why his usual punch-lines weren't getting the huge woofhas from the students, just some nervous titters, and why in particular one girl student was staring back at him very stoney-faced.

It was only at the end of the lecture when he checked the class membership that he noticed that said girl had the same name as the cabinet minister......

And of course the story had a happy ending because the Tories slashed all higher education funding.

 

[Gwylan]

Get yourself some sort of qualification and some work experience and apply for every job you see in Monday's Guardian. You'd be amazed how small the response is to some of those ads, contrary to popular opinion.

I haven't advertised for staff for about four years but when I advertised for a junior reporter for an IT title, I got more than 100 replies. As that was a boom time for jobs, I would expect a similar ad to attract even more replies now. - so the response isn't that small.

An editor of a woman's magazine told me that an ad for junior staff would attract more than 2,000 responses regularly.

But Max's Dad (and how strange it is to write that) is right. Apply for as many jobs as possible, don't hold out for the 'glam' jobs and keep applying. I applied for more than 500 jobs before I got my first break but since then I've never been unemployed.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Am sending my application off for Brighton today. Is the Aptitude test hard?

 

[On the Left Wing]

Richie .... it's an Attitude Test!

 

[Brighton Breezy]

nope, definitely aptitude test. 20 general knowledge questions, a proof reading exercise and a small news story.

 

[Albion Rob]

Agreed about Dave Kett. How he made something as dry as local and central government seem even ok is beyond me!

My patch was Milton, a real hotbed of news.

 

[jonnyboylennon]

Aptitute test is a piece of piss Richie. PM me whenever and i'll let you know whats involved, havent got time right now.

 

[Josky]

Am sending my application off for Brighton today. Is the Aptitude test hard?

Richie, it's the easiest test you'll ever have to sit.

Questions like:

What is Britain's biggest selling daily?
Name three capitals the river danube runs through?
what does MEP stand for?

Richie, unless you are a complete illerate who has lived in a cave for the entirety of your life (and you don't seem like one...) this test is going to be impossible for you to fail.

As for the proof reading and written, the only thing against you is the amount of time... shouldn't be a problem in the slightest for you.

 

[Josky]

Currently doing NCTJ at City College in Brighton, as I said Richie if you want any advice or contacts for my particular course/college just send me a PM.

Is it all the same old staff jonnyboylennon?

Jeff, marilyn, sheridan, norman, etc..

 

[Brighton Breezy]

3 capitals the danube runs through? hmmm

 

[Gwylan]

3 capitals the danube runs through? hmmm

Bloody hell Richie, you have four to choose from

 

[Brighton Breezy]

copenhagen, berlin, moscow and vienna?

 

[Raphael Meade]

i hope thats a joke richie!!!!

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Yes