Griffith College! JOURNALISM!

darcieh

Anybody on this course, cause i wanna do it but havent heard any opinions! HELP!

Xavi6

I did the BA in Journalism and Media Communications and graduated with a 2nd class honours degree in November 2006. Wasn't great but it served its purpose. It does cover a broad range of subjects (the practical modules such as radio are very enjoyable), although I went to barely half my lectures over the three years and did well. At most you will have 15 hours a week which is great. If you can get into DCU then do it because it's not work the 14 grand or so unless you have no other choice.

The college itself is terrible, although I'm sure the facilities have improved a bit since I left. The good thing though is that not many people know each other going there and consequently it's not clicky at all. I met some great people there who I now consider my best friends.

jimmyneo1

Like the above poster, I'm also a former Griffith student and did the BA Hons in Journalism and Visual Media, graduating in 2005. While it has been a couple of years since I left I really did enjoy the course and learnt a lot. The practical classes in sub-editing, radio, photography etc were all vey good and exposed you to a wide selection of journalism so you could decide what route you wanted to focus on. The hours are quite small and the only time I ever remember feeling real pressure was in the final year as I needed to get good marks to get into my masters, I got a 2:1 in the end. As for the lecturers, some were great, some were ****, same as any college.
While I wouldn't call the college facilities terrible, it does have its problems but from what I hear since I left a lot of the building work has been completed and they now have a proper bar, halls of residence, carpark, canteen etc.

One thing I have noticed is that out of the 60 or so in my year, only about 20 at the most have gone on to become journalists while the rest are all working in PR or doing other things. I personally am now a reporter with a national newspaper, but believe me when I say this is after a lot of hard work and walking out with a journalism/media studies degree won't get you very far and if you really want to become a journalist you'll have to do a lot of the hard graft yourself in regards arranging work experience and making contacts because while Griffith encouraged this, they never went out of their way to help any of us in getting summer placements at newspapers etc.
All in all though, I really really enjoyed my time there and like the above poster said, with it being a smaller college and not knowing anyone going in I ended up meeting some people who have become my best friends. Hope this helps, if you have any more questions then drop me a line.

darcieh

Thanks for the advice! Its brilliant to actually hear a personal account of this course! You have given me a lot to think about!

Xavi6

jimmyneo1 wrote: »

One thing I have noticed is that out of the 60 or so in my year, only about 20 at the most have gone on to become journalists while the rest are all working in PR or doing other things. I personally am now a reporter with a national newspaper, but believe me when I say this is after a lot of hard work and walking out with a journalism/media studies degree won't get you very far and if you really want to become a journalist you'll have to do a lot of the hard graft yourself in regards arranging work experience and making contacts because while Griffith encouraged this, they never went out of their way to help any of us in getting summer placements at newspapers etc.

Yeah have to agree with everything in that.

My class had about 75 people and I doubt even half of them had a real interest in pursuing journalism long term. In fact, some people were on their third or fourth degree and could be described as Van Wilder's (i.e. never want to leave college).

Griffith never gave any real help with establishing contacts or with work experience which was a shame. I got up off my arse and got involved with my local papers and built up a big portfoilo while I was studying. Since leaving, that portfolio has gotten me a staff job with Australia's biggest mining and construction publications and that in turn will stand me in good stead when I return home. Basically what I'm saying is if you do take on a journalism course don't just rely on the degree you're going for. Experience is far more beneficial.

Charlie

Ah Xavi, good to see you are a fellow Griffith man, graduated there last year (in law).

OP I can't offer any advice in relation to the course, but I will say that the facilities have improved quite alot in the last 2 years, so don't be put off by what others have said. The place was a bit basic when I first started, but with the new theatres, restaurant, bar and underground carpark, it does a grand job.

For what its worth, i'm out in UCD now doing a masters and I would love to be back in Griffith. It's the perfect size in terms of getting around, and making friends, and it's location is great as well. Not like this concrete jungle i'm stuck in now!