Abstract
Despite well-publicised cuts in media sector employment in the late 2000s and early 2010s, with significant job losses in journalism in particular, university enrolments in Australian communication degrees continue to be strong. This pilot year data from an ongoing study explores how studentsâ'' motivations and expectations for employment change throughout their first year of university by mapping the attitudes of Charles Sturt University (CSU) journalism and public relations students throughout 2013. Journalism students were found to enter their degree with a strong commitment to the social responsibility principles of their profession, whereas public relations students were more focused on lifestyle and financial aspects of their future employment. Despite a strong awareness of the challenges facing them in the traditional or legacy media job market, this was still the aspirational employment outcome for most journalism students and despite a growing knowledge across their first year of study regarding job losses within the Australian media industry most were optimistic about their future and confident they would build a long-term career in journalism. Many previous studies have explored student expectations of employment prospects and professional ambitions against the backdrop of media job losses. This study adds a further dimension to the existing literature by establishing (within the CSU context) that students are aware of the job losses and employment challenges when they choose to study journalism, and a growing awareness of these difficulties does not impact significantly on their ambitions.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | Proceedings of the 2014 ANZCA Annual Conference |
| Subtitle of host publication | The digital and the social: communication for inclusion and exchange |
| Editors | Diana Bossio |
| Place of Publication | Australia |
| Publisher | ANZCA |
| Pages | 1-19 |
| Number of pages | 19 |
| Publication status | Published - 2014 |
| Event | Australia and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA) 2014 Annual Conference - Swinburne University, Melbourne, Australia Duration: 09 Jul 2014 → 11 Jul 2014 http://www.anzca.net/conferences/past-conferences/2014-conf.html (Conference proceedings) |
Publication series
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| ISSN (Print) | 1448-4331 |
Conference
| Conference | Australia and New Zealand Communication Association (ANZCA) 2014 Annual Conference |
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| Abbreviated title | The digital and the social: Communication for inclusion and exchange |
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Melbourne |
| Period | 09/07/14 → 11/07/14 |
| Other | The annual conference the major event in the ANZCA calendar. The conference provides members with valuable professional development opportunities, including scholarly publication, networking and presentation, and learning about the latest national and international trends in media and communications research, teaching and learning. Research students are encouraged and supported to take advantage of formal and informal mentoring opportunities afforded by participation in the conference and other activities of the association. The conference also provides an important occasion for recognizing the achievements and contributions of members in the field. Each year the conference is held in a different location in either Australia or New Zealand, and is organised by the incoming Vice-president (who becomes the Association's president for the following year). For information about the forthcoming conference please follow the link on the right hand side of this page. |
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