A rise in student numbers, a decline in jobs. What does this mean for the future of Journalism students?

Every University graduate, regardless of degree, has the same fear: Will I get a job? For Journalism graduates, this is a genuine concern. With the media culling jobs, but universities filling up their numbers of journalism students, the future for current students is both competitive and worrying.

John Henningham, founder of Brisbane’s J-school quotes- “The terrible consequence of having too many graduates studying journalism is that we see the skills of journalism used against journalism.”

In 2012, a large portion of jobs within Journalism were made redundant, and more than 1200 journalists lost their jobs. In 2013, Australia saw a drop of 16% in jobs for journalists. Aspiring students throughout Australia’s universities are all faced with the same fear of not being able to find work. With a decline in job opportunities, and an increase in journalism students, the competition is high and fierce.

However, there is still yet hope for media students of Australia. Ross Hawkes, senior lecturer in journalism at Staffordshire University quotes: “One of the great things about the digital evolution of journalism is that it has opened up niche and specialist publishing.” Aspiring Journalists entering this highly competitive field can still achieve success if they are willing to work for it. With the rise of the Internet, traditional journalism is no longer the only avenue to pursue.

In this ever-evolving world we need to move past old divisions, and focus clearly on what matters in journalism as it has been practiced, and how to preserve and progress reporting of reliability and integrity. This involves an acceptance that journalism has progressed to many places that are not traditional media organisations.

Nevertheless, there is still hope for young, aspiring journalists.