National Council for the Training of Journalists
Encyclopedia
The National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) was founded in 1951 as an organisation to oversee the training of journalist
s for the newspaper industry in the United Kingdom
and is now playing a role in the wider media.
, publishing
, the film
and television
industries (especially for researchers), marketing
, among others or even further study elsewhere.
NCTJ alumni include Mark Austin, Piers Morgan
, Kay Burley
, John Inverdale
, Geordie Greig
and Helen Skelton
.
As well as being the examining body, the NCTJ offers short training courses to refresh candidates' knowledge prior to them sitting NCTJ prelims or the NCE, and also for professionals looking for related training.
The NCTJ is also a professional awarding body recognised by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulator Ofqual
.
The NCTJ also runs a course for press photographers and photojournalists.
The preliminary certificate is being phased out in favour of the new diploma, which the NCTJ considers reflects a multimedia society.
The diploma is made up of five mandatory subjects - Reporting, Essential Public Affairs, Shorthand, Essential Media Law and a Portfolio - and two specialist modules selected from Sports Journalism, Media Law Court Reporting, Production Journalism, Business of Magazines, Broadcast Journalism (in 2011) and Videojournalism for Online.
To meet the gold standard, candidates have to achieve grades A-C in all subjects plus 100wpm shorthand.
was a fictional newspaper used by the NCTJ as a setting for its journalism exam papers. Since the 1970s, trainee journalists would have to write reports on fires, floods, rail crashes and fatal accidents in the imaginary town of Oxdown. The idea was to replicate, as far as possible, the sense of local knowledge trainees would have if working for a real paper.
In 2006, the NCTJ decided that it would no longer use Oxdown — instead, a variety of locations and publications would feature on its exam papers. This did not go down well with some journalists and journalism lecturers, who had a sentimental attachment to the fictional town and launched a campaign to save it.
However, Oxdown lives on in a number of journalism training centres, sparing these institutions the chore of creating new fictional places every time they want to set a mock exam - students training with Newsquest
, for example, will find themselves back in the imaginary world of Robert's Park, Eastport and Midhampton when sitting refreshers for their NCTJ final exams.
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
s for the newspaper industry in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and is now playing a role in the wider media.
Purpose
The NCTJ offers accreditation, recognised throughout the industry, for aspiring and junior journalists. The accreditation consists of preliminary exams ('prelims'), which are undertaken either before the candidate begins work as a reporter or shortly afterwards, and the NCE, which is usually taken between 18 months and two years after beginning work on a newspaper. On completion of the NCE, the candidate is regarded as a fully qualified senior reporter by the newspaper industry. However, these courses also provide transferable skills for other industries, such as public relationsPublic relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
, publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
, the film
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
industries (especially for researchers), marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
, among others or even further study elsewhere.
NCTJ alumni include Mark Austin, Piers Morgan
Piers Morgan
Piers Stefan Pughe-Morgan , known professionally as Piers Morgan, is a British journalist and television presenter. He is editorial director of First News, a national newspaper for children....
, Kay Burley
Kay Burley
Kay Burley is an English television newsreader, presenter and journalist. She currently anchors the Afternoon Live programme on the Sky News station.-Early life:...
, John Inverdale
John Inverdale
John Inverdale , is an English radio and television broadcaster who works for the BBC, mainly covering sporting events.-Biography:...
, Geordie Greig
Geordie Greig
Geordie Greig is a British journalist and newspaper editor. He is the editor of the Evening Standard newspaper. He attended Eton College and St Peter's College, Oxford.-Journalism career:...
and Helen Skelton
Helen Skelton
Helen Skelton is an English television presenter. She has worked on the BBC children's programme Blue Peter since 2008...
.
As well as being the examining body, the NCTJ offers short training courses to refresh candidates' knowledge prior to them sitting NCTJ prelims or the NCE, and also for professionals looking for related training.
The NCTJ is also a professional awarding body recognised by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulator Ofqual
Ofqual
The Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation is a non-ministerial government department that regulates qualifications, exams and tests in England and vocational qualifications in Northern Ireland.-Role:...
.
Prelims
Training for the prelims usually takes the form of a 22-week intensive course before employment starts, though there are various other options. These include one-year courses, undergraduate degrees, postgraduate courses and distance learning or 'block release' for candidates who already have a reporting job and have been given paid leave by their employers to undertake the course.The NCTJ also runs a course for press photographers and photojournalists.
The preliminary certificate is being phased out in favour of the new diploma, which the NCTJ considers reflects a multimedia society.
Diploma
The Diploma in Journalism is being piloted in the 2010-2011 academic year and will replace the preliminary certificate from September 2011.The diploma is made up of five mandatory subjects - Reporting, Essential Public Affairs, Shorthand, Essential Media Law and a Portfolio - and two specialist modules selected from Sports Journalism, Media Law Court Reporting, Production Journalism, Business of Magazines, Broadcast Journalism (in 2011) and Videojournalism for Online.
To meet the gold standard, candidates have to achieve grades A-C in all subjects plus 100wpm shorthand.
NCE
Training for the National Certificate Exam usually takes the form of a series of workshops to prepare candidates for the exams, though some employers will not pay for these and send candidates into the exam without any preparation. The pass rate is around 60% each year.The Oxdown Gazette
The Oxdown GazetteOxdown Gazette
The Oxdown Gazette was a fictional newspaper used by the National Council for the Training of Journalists for its regional and local journalism exams. Since the 1970s, trainee journalists would have to write reports on fires, floods, rail crashes and fatal accidents in the imaginary town of Oxdown...
was a fictional newspaper used by the NCTJ as a setting for its journalism exam papers. Since the 1970s, trainee journalists would have to write reports on fires, floods, rail crashes and fatal accidents in the imaginary town of Oxdown. The idea was to replicate, as far as possible, the sense of local knowledge trainees would have if working for a real paper.
In 2006, the NCTJ decided that it would no longer use Oxdown — instead, a variety of locations and publications would feature on its exam papers. This did not go down well with some journalists and journalism lecturers, who had a sentimental attachment to the fictional town and launched a campaign to save it.
However, Oxdown lives on in a number of journalism training centres, sparing these institutions the chore of creating new fictional places every time they want to set a mock exam - students training with Newsquest
Newsquest
Newsquest is the third largest publisher of regional and local newspapers in the United Kingdom with 300 titles in its portfolio. Newsquest is based in Weybridge, Surrey and employs a total of more than 5,500 people across the UK...
, for example, will find themselves back in the imaginary world of Robert's Park, Eastport and Midhampton when sitting refreshers for their NCTJ final exams.