How Important Are NTCJ Accredited Courses?

If you want to be a journalist then an accredited course is a must (unless you’re rich enough to afford to get accredited through a postgraduate route)

Reply 2

BeckyAdele

1

Original post by antxgha

I'm in London and only want to do a BA journalism degree that's in London. My top choices are City Uni of London, LCC, Kingston, Birkbeck, and Goldsmiths but none of these are NCTJ accredited. Is this a big deal? Also what's the best out of the 5?

Hi! Sorry this is two months late, but if it's helpful - it depends on what area of journalism you want to go into. Traditional roles like court reporting, newspaper reporting etc, may still have a requirement for NCTJ. However, I have been a digital journalist on magazines and in lifestyle for nearly 10 years, with no formal training at all. Having a good degree in Journalism will definitely set you ahead of others who just want to do writing etc. I'd suggest looking at vacancies for jobs at your preferred outlet - I think UK newspapers like The Guardian still require NCTJ for some roles, but if you want to do anything more modern, you'll be fine without. Similarly a lot of Journalism courses cover social media, websites etc, so if that's your angle, I don't think anyone cares about NCJT, as said I didn't even have a degree when I started out and got this far! Media Law is the main component on NCTJ that they want but you should cover that in most undergrad anyway. Hope that's helpful 🙂 Btw I go to Birkbeck and have loved my time there so definitely recommend. I didn't do Journalism but did do some journalism modules and the staff are great.

Hi @antxgha,

I second BeckyAdele's response - a lot of jobs do require an NCTJ accredited degree/qualification, so it's worth looking into some job applications before you make your decision to see if the roles you would want do ask for this.

Best of luck with your decision - and if you're ever considering an NCTJ-accredited course outside of London, why not consider UoG?😉

Mara
University of Gloucestershire

Reply 4

OP

Original post by PQ

If you want to be a journalist then an accredited course is a must (unless you’re rich enough to afford to get accredited through a postgraduate route)

So even if I do a non-NCTJ undergrad course as long as I do an NCTJ postgrad then I'll be fine?

Reply 5

OP

Original post by BeckyAdele

Hi! Sorry this is two months late, but if it's helpful - it depends on what area of journalism you want to go into. Traditional roles like court reporting, newspaper reporting etc, may still have a requirement for NCTJ. However, I have been a digital journalist on magazines and in lifestyle for nearly 10 years, with no formal training at all. Having a good degree in Journalism will definitely set you ahead of others who just want to do writing etc. I'd suggest looking at vacancies for jobs at your preferred outlet - I think UK newspapers like The Guardian still require NCTJ for some roles, but if you want to do anything more modern, you'll be fine without. Similarly a lot of Journalism courses cover social media, websites etc, so if that's your angle, I don't think anyone cares about NCJT, as said I didn't even have a degree when I started out and got this far! Media Law is the main component on NCTJ that they want but you should cover that in most undergrad anyway. Hope that's helpful 🙂 Btw I go to Birkbeck and have loved my time there so definitely recommend. I didn't do Journalism but did do some journalism modules and the staff are great.

Thanks for the insights! I want to go into more hard news journalism so mainly politics and covering social issues. Ideally, I'd be working for a big establishment like BBC or The Guardian.

For me, the decision comes down to doing an NCTJ course instead of a non-NCTJ undergrad OR doing a non-NCTJ undergrad and then doing an NCTJ postgrad.

Also, what kind of journalism do you work in and how did you get more experience under your belt? I can't wait to start working as a journalist but sometimes it seems impossible😂

Reply 6

Original post by antxgha

So even if I do a non-NCTJ undergrad course as long as I do an NCTJ postgrad then I'll be fine?

Look at the costs associated with postgrad accreditation courses before you choose that route.

it’s the route that was most common 20+ years ago but it’s also extremely expensive (which is why journalists over 40 are heavily dominated by people from a wealthy and privileged background)

Reply 7

OP

Original post by PQ

Look at the costs associated with postgrad accreditation courses before you choose that route.

it’s the route that was most common 20+ years ago but it’s also extremely expensive (which is why journalists over 40 are heavily dominated by people from a wealthy and privileged background)

Kingston does one that's slightly more expensive per year than an undergrad degree. Is it worth it?

Reply 8

Original post by antxgha

Kingston does one that's slightly more expensive per year than an undergrad degree. Is it worth it?

And can you afford it?
There's no tuition fee loans for postgraduate courses

Original post by antxgha

I'm in London and only want to do a BA journalism degree that's in London. My top choices are City Uni of London, LCC, Kingston, Birkbeck, and Goldsmiths but none of these are NCTJ accredited. Is this a big deal? Also what's the best out of the 5?

Hi @antxgha

It's great that Kingston is one of your top choices! Although the undergraduate course is not NCTJ accredited the postgraduate master degree is, which I think may be the case with most courses considering none of those courses in London are NCTJ accredited. Also you can apply for a loan for a postgraduate master degree it just doesn't get paid directly to the university so you choose how you spend it so this may be something to look into and consider. I don't personally study Journalism here at Kingston but I do know that the third year students are in charge of the university newspaper and it's website called The River, which is a great opportunity to gain experience whilst studying.

Hope this helps, feel free to ask any other questions you may have :smile:

-Grace (Kingston Rep)

Reply 10

The postgraduate loan is £12,167 IN TOTAL and is only available for Masters courses (not PGDips).

The tuition fee for the MA in Journalism at Kingston is £11,900

That leaves £267 to cover living costs

@Kingston Reps it’s misleading to imply that the masters is affordable because there is a loan.

An accredited undergraduate degree would have separate tuition fee and maintenance loans, would involve a year less studying, and would be a much more affordable option.

Reply 11

OP

Original post by PQ

The postgraduate loan is £12,167 IN TOTAL and is only available for Masters courses (not PGDips).

The tuition fee for the MA in Journalism at Kingston is £11,900

That leaves £267 to cover living costs

@Kingston Reps it’s misleading to imply that the masters is affordable because there is a loan.

An accredited undergraduate degree would have separate tuition fee and maintenance loans, would involve a year less studying, and would be a much more affordable option.

To be fair though, I'll be living at home and commuting so the £12,167 is enough for me. The extra 267 can be put towards travel costs. Although an NCTJ undergrad degree in London would've been nice and way easier + cheaper.

I might just end up doing the postgrad at Kingston after I graduate because I value the NCTJ but I don't wanna miss out on the university experience.

Reply 12