Journalism is an exciting and interesting career. However, choosing the right area to work in can make it even more rewarding. Choosing the right path can seem difficult and confusing, but here we give you some first steps towards finding your perfect journalism niche.
Discover your niche
You may be doing a journalism degree or looking at NCTJ courses with a journalism school like newsassociates.co.uk/what-is-the-nctj/. The latter are courses accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists and give you a great foundation from which to build your career. Once you know the basics, you can then start to focus on specialisms.
To find your niche, start by considering what expertise you already have or what you have a particular interest in. You may use knowledge from previous careers or bring a personal passion alive with your work. It can be really beneficial to have some knowledge or interest in the subject you are investigating and trying to explain to your audience.
Examine your skills
Look at what skill set you have. Are you very personable and able to get the best out of interviewees? Do you love research and pride yourself in producing in-depth articles? Your skills can help to define how you should move forward with your career.
Take your chances
You might not start out in your dream job, but you can start taking steps in the right direction by seizing opportunities. Come up with ideas, put yourself forward for assignments, and volunteer if paid-for opportunities don’t arise straight away.
Look at the options
One of the key things in finding your niche is knowing what fields are out there. Do your research and look at the many different key areas of journalism, such as sports journalism, trade and economics, political journalism, lifestyle and opinion work, the entertainment industry, and watchdog and investigative journalism.
You should also look at the current market and think about whether your skills, passion or expertise could fill any gaps that exist.