Competition starts early for media graduates

Students still flock to study communications even though the plum jobs are hard to come by, writes Helene Zampetakis.

Academic high achievers targeting careers in public relations can expect plenty of jobs but aspiring journalists are likely to find themselves competing for limited positions in mainstream media. 

Despite robust interest in media studies and correspondingly high admission criteria at most universities, the pool of jobs for newsroom journalists is diminishing.

Research into the hiring trends of major metropolitan employers by Barbara Alysen of the University of Western Sydney shows that the number of entry-level positions has shrunk in the past 10 years, although hiring in online media has risen marginally in the past two years.

This year, more than 1000 graduates from journalism courses have competed for about 300 mainstream entry-level jobs across Australia.

At the ABC, 448 people applied for nine cadetships, while major metropolitan newspapers now take only advanced trainees with three to five years' industry experience, Alysen says.

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Labour Force Survey show that despite a recovery in advertising revenues in 2003, unemployment in journalism is 7 per cent compared with 5 per cent for the national average. Only 3 per cent of opportunities are from newly created jobs and 63 per cent are from people leaving the industry.

There are lots of graduates and few places in mainstream media for the taking, says Elizabeth Hart, a lecturer in journalism at Monash University, where about 1200 students are enrolled in journalism subjects at any one time.

"You can't walk into the ABC or The Age. But it's fair to say you can get a job as easily as a law or economics graduate can," she says.

Employment paths out of the University of Sydney are diverse.

The university runs a Bachelor of Arts in Media and Communications, which calls for a university admissions index (UAI) score of 98.5.

But while prospects may look bleak in journalism, experts say these graduates are well placed to secure positions in related fields.

According to the internship co-ordinator for the University of Sydney program, Indigo Blue, about 20 per cent of graduates go into traditional print journalism jobs, another 10-20 per cent go into broadcast radio or television production and about 50 per cent move into public relations and advertising, where demand is highest.

Some universities engage industry in periodic reviews of their programs' relevance, which drives incremental adjustments.

At the University of Technology in Sydney, industry influence has resulted in the introduction of specialist courses such as photojournalism and reporting on topics such as war and terrorism.

Another trend is the surging popularity of communications degrees with another discipline, such as law or international studies.

At UTS, 64 of the 146 communications students enrolled this year are taking a combined law degree.

That delivers a wide range of employment opportunities and by the time the students graduate, many of them are already employed, says Gael Walker, an associate dean, teaching and learning, in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.

Nevertheless, prospects are best for graduates looking for a career in PR or advertising, where growth is strong, vacancies are high and salaries are rising. The Public Relations Institute of Australia has recorded more than 20 per cent growth in membership in the past 12 months, and its research has found that two-thirds of companies plan to hire new staff and more than 80 per cent intend to raise salaries.

PRIA executive officer Andrew Parkinson says many graduates pursue postgraduate study to differentiate themselves.

Canberra University adjunct professor Marjorie Anderson, who established accredited university courses in public relations 16 years ago, says PR education is now more strategically oriented and integrated into other disciplines. Double degrees in areas such as economics are more common in this field too.

People increasingly realise that everything they do is part of PR and communications in that business is about building relationships, she says, and so there's more need to reach out to different interest groups.

Hart adds: "There's a shortage of PR graduates, and journalism graduates pick up a lot of that work."

But for those intent on mainstream journalism, planning is essential, Alysen says. "There are obviously very significant structural shifts in the mainstream, established media, which are reducing opportunities there. That means that people need to take a more strategic approach and work out early what they want to do, where they want to work and target that market."

Published: 24 July 2006