How to Become a News Reporter: Career Guide, Courses, Scope, Jobs, Salary 2023

Steps to Follow to Become A News Reporter

The steps to follow to start pursuing Press Reporting course and proceed further with Press Reporting as a career are mentioned below:

• Step 1: Complete intermediate with a minimum 50%.
• Step 2: Choose a field related to a News Reporter (Journalist, Reporter, or Copywriter).
• Step 3: Choose an inter-related field such as Sports Journalism, Feature Writing etc.
• Step 4: Apply for admission to a satisfactory college with the perks that a candidate acquires.
• Step 5: Must look for facilities in the college such as Placement cell, Academic Facilities, Auditorium, Experienced Faculty etc..
• Step 6: The Candidate must go for an Entrance Exam for admission. (There are a lot of Entrance Examinations for Mass Communication that grant admission to journalism courses).
• Step 7: Complete an internship/training to have work experience. Practical experience is necessary to finding employment in the respected field.
• Step 8: Obtain Employment. Graduated News Reporters may find entry-level employment with magazines and broadcast stations.

Types Of News Reporters

There are many types of News Reporters in the basis of the degree acquire by the candidate, some of them are mentioned below:

Objective Reporter

• Reporting is an impersonal job and the reporter should essentially be a storyteller. 
• The objective reporter is one who tells the story in an objective and truthful manner, without lacing it with any personal opinions or comments left. 
• Objective reporters must remember that facts are scary. 
• He must check and cross-check the facts from different sources until the reporter is free of them, only then the reporter should write the story. 
• Rule of reporting is telling the truth, of course, objective reporting is not synonymous with dullness instead it means fair and impartial information which is not personally biased.

Interpretative Reporter

• The Interpreter reporter interprets the facts. He/she tries to balance writing with reasons and meaning of development. 
• The Reporter provides the information along with an interpretation of its significance and description. 
• The Interpretative reporter uses his knowledge & experience to offer the reader an idea of the background of an event and explain the results it could lead to and also the outcomes of it. 
• Interpretative reporting thus goes behind the news, bringing out the hidden significance. He says a successful journalist should be a well-trained journeyman with a reading of various subjects like economics, sociology, political science, and other subjects.

Investigative Reporter

• It is a fact that all types of reporting require a little bit of investigation, in investigating reporting, the reporters go beyond the limits of basic reporting. Investigative reporters dig deeper beyond the facts stated in hard news. 
• An investigative reporter sees himself as the conscience of society, pursuing corruption without fear or favor. 
• An investigative reporter cannot bring his reports to logical ends unless he gets the support of the judiciary, the executive, or the legislative. 
• The Watergate stories would not have led to any result if they didn’t get the support of the legislation which threatened the impeachment of President Richard Nixon.

How to Become A News Reporter in India?

To be a News Reporter, one should inherit good communication skills, must be active, have good writing and speaking skills.

School Level Preparation

• The preparation to become a News Reporter must be started at the school level because there are many skills that are required in the career of the News Reporter which cannot be built within days, long term preparations are needed to acquire such skills such as communication skills, presenting skills, and speaking skills, etc. 
• Also, the candidate must study deeply about the subjects which will also be included in the undergraduate courses.
• Candidates must have to choose the respective field in Press Reporting and prepare for the IPU CET Exam which when qualified grants admission in good colleges and this gives the candidates a good start in the field of Press Reporting and also provides the candidates a good package in the field of Press Reporting.

How to Become A News Reporter After 12th

Below we have mentioned a few steps on how one can prepare to become a News Reporter after 12th at both UG and PG levels.

UG Preparation

• Bachelor of Journalism and Mass Communication, etc. right after completing the course, the candidate should register in consultancy firms or online job sites to find journalism jobs such as Newspaper Journalist, TV Journalists, etc. 
• The Newspaper will also help the candidates to find journalism jobs. 
• Recently the candidates have several advantages of technologies, such as candidates can open their channels and start their career and also help such candidates who didn’t find jobs and search to have some experience. 
• The reporter candidate must have to start working on his speaking and communication skills so that at the time of the job, the candidate didn’t face any problem.

PG Preparation

• The candidate must have a dream of achieving heights in their respective fields after completing UG. 
• The candidate must have done an internship program in the UG because the practice is very important. 
• To enhance and polish the skills in the career is a must and News Reporters must keep on improving their speaking and communication skills so that they get more emphasized in their respective fields, to acquire the practical work experience is suggested to the candidates for better knowledge and mastery of the course.
• The candidate must join the PG Course in the well-known college in order to get highly paid and also get good packages. 
• The candidate must have known well about their UG course and also keep improving to be a good News Reporter.

Courses to Become A News Reporter

Below mentioned are a few courses that candidates can opt at UG level to become a News Reporter in India.

BA in Journalism

Below is the detailed information regarding Admission Process, Eligibility criteria, entrance exam etc. in BA Journalism Course.

Admission Process

• Admission to BA with journalism may either be merit or entrance-based. 
• Many universities conduct their own entrance-based exams while some grant admissions on the basis of marks scored by a candidate in a previous degree. 
• Eligibility criteria for admission are that the candidate must have scored 50% in intermediate from an authorized board.

Eligibility Criteria

• The admission-seeking student in the course may apply for the BHU UET Entrance Exam. Its eligibility criteria is that candidates must not be more than 22 years of age till date of exam. 
• Reserved categories get additional years on age and a 50% score in class 12 is mandatory.

Check: BHU-UET Practice Papers

Bachelor in Journalism and Mass Communication (BJMC)

Below is the detailed information regarding Admission Process, Eligibility criteria, entrance exam etc. in BJMC Course.

Admission Process

• The criteria for admissions vary; some colleges conduct their entrance exam and some grants admission on merit. 
• Some colleges often include a personal interview and group discussion process.
• Colleges that grant admission on merit require a score of at least 50% in class 12th from an authorized board of education.

Eligibility Criteria

There are various entrance exams for the course, one of them is IIMC Entrance Exam. The eligibility criteria include, that candidate must have Indian nationality and also 5 seats are reserved for NRIs, and also age limit varies for categories. The candidate must have a Graduation degree from an authorized university.

Check: IIMC Entrance Exam Practice Papers

BA in Mass Media

Below is the detailed information regarding Admission Process, Eligibility criteria, entrance exam etc. in BA in Mass Media Course.

Admission Process

• Admission to BA with journalism may either be merit or entrance-based. Many universities conduct their own entrance-based exams while some grant admissions on the basis of marks scored by a candidate in previous degrees.
• Eligibility criteria for admission is that the candidate must have scored 50% in intermediate from an authorized board.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates must score at least 50% in the intermediate from an authorized college and also the candidates who have completed the diploma basically known as 10+2 but must be approved by the state board are also eligible for giving the SET Entrance Exam.

Check: SET Practice Papers

Bachelor in Media Science

Below is the detailed information regarding Admission Process, Eligibility criteria, entrance exam etc in Bachelor in Media Science course. 

Admission Process

The admission process to the course is based on merit and also some institutions conduct their entrance exam and some universities also conduct personal interviews and group discussion rounds to test the knowledge of the candidate in the particular field.

Eligibility Criteria

In order to seek admission through the CUCET Entrance Exam, the candidate must be eligible for the conditions of the exam and the conditions are that the candidate must have scored at least 60% marks in the intermediate from an authorized university and student age must not be more than 17 years at the time of exam.

Check: CUCET Practice Papers

BSc in Mass Communication and Journalism

Below is the detailed information regarding Admission Process, Eligibility criteria, entrance exam etc in BSc in Mass Communication and Journalism Course.

Admission Process

• Admission to BA with journalism may either be merit or entrance based. Many universities conduct their own entrance-based exams while some grant admissions on the basis of marks scored by a candidate in the previous degree.
• Eligibility criteria for admission are that the candidate must have a score of 50% in intermediate from an authorized board.

Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility for the entrance exam MU OET is quite clear as the candidate who wants to get admission must have a score of 50% in the intermediate from an authorized board and also have good knowledge from the intermediate to appear for the exam.

Check: MET Practice Papers

How to Become A News Reporter Abroad?

To become a News Reporter, there are a lot of colleges and universities located both in India as well as abroad. A few such countries like the UK, the USA, Canada, Australia etc. that offer Mass Communication and Journalism courses are mentioned below:

How to Become A News Reporter in the UK?

• Many Colleges in UK offers Press reporting related courses
• In 2018-19, 2.38 millions of students were studying in the UK in which 0.80 million are not from the UK but are granted visas, hence the trend is high.
• Masters in Journalism and Media law are the courses available in the UK.
• Job scope is high and university placements are available. Salary paid is about INR 1,05,981 per month to a fresher reporter.

Top Colleges in the UK

How to Become A News Reporter in the USA?

• Many colleges offer Media courses in the USA.
• Nearly 2,00,000 students from India pursue News Reporter courses in the US and get visas.
• Masters in Journalism and Masters in Mass communication are popular courses to study in the US.
• Job scope is high in the US-based on the skills and salary is about INR 3,40,418 per month.

Top Colleges in the USA

How to Become A News Reporter in Canada?

• Many universities offer Media courses that help one to grow as a successful News Reporter in future.
• About 1,50,000 Indians study and also get a visa, Canadian language is mandatory.
• Masters in Journalism and Mass Communication are popular Media courses in Canada.
• Job scope is good and the salary offered to freshers is INR 38,46,615 annually.

Top Colleges in Canada

How to Become A News Reporter in Australia?

• A lot of colleges offer Journalism courses in Australia.
• About 34,564 Indians study yearly, the trend is high.
• Masters in mass communication and law media courses are offered.
• Job scope is high competition and pays INR 56,219.

Benefits of Career as A News Reporter

• Salary: The basic salary of a News Reporter is low but increases with experience.
• Skills Enhancement: Skills get polished when the reporter does fieldwork and practices reporting.
• Self-Dependency: The News Reporter can start their own channel and do live reporting if they have no job.
• Personality Development: when the reporter questions the crowd, this improves their personality development.
• Job Security: Reporter jobs are secured because there are many channels or opportunities developing with time while providing the reporter’s endless opportunities.
• Gain of Strength: The reporter when interviewing a personality and ask questions with positivity this adds strength to their personality.
• Gain Fame: If a News Reporter successfully completed an interview this increases respect and fame also.

Skills Required to Become a News Reporter

Some skills that are highly required to become a News Reporter are tabulated below:

Salary of a News Reporter in India

Below we have tabulated the average annual salary offered to News Reporters by various Media or Print houses in India based on their Sectors, Specialization, Gender, Experience in the field, etc.

Sector-wise Salary

Specialization-wise Salary

Gender-wise Salary

Experience-wise Salary