Journalism CV Example

Ensure your CV layout is structured to best highlight your unique experience and life situation.

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How to write your journalism CV

Before you begin writing, make sure you know how to write a CV in a way that best emphasises your strengths.

As a journalist, you know what it takes to gather information and report it in an engaging way, and now it’s time to make a CV highlighting your top skills and qualifications (you’ll need to make a cover letter too, by the way).

With your skill set and our helpful tips, you’ll be all set to present a compelling journalism CV to employers.

1. Begin with a captivating journalist CV personal statement

Your CV personal statement is the first section employers read, so use it to make a good impression and demonstrate your excellent writing skills.

First, start with an impactful description of yourself, followed by an outline of your work experience as a journalist.

Next, highlight your greatest skills and motivations for applying.

Stating your career goals and what you hope to contribute to the company also helps make a good impression. For example, if the company you’re applying to seeks more social media presence, tell them how you can help them achieve this goal.

Also, your statement will be more impactful if you emphasise a few noteworthy qualities, rather than write a lengthy personal introduction. Make your personal statement 2–4 sentences long so your target employer can remember what you included easily.

3 Journalism CV Personal Statement Examples

Here are a few journalism personal statement examples for different experience levels and situations that demonstrate the applicant’s expertise concisely and memorably:

Entry-level journalist personal statement example

Trained journalist with a BA (Hons) in Journalism & Communications (1st) from University of the Creative Arts. Recent internship experience at Financial News London, where I honed my interviewing, transcribing, reporting, and feature-writing skills. Possess strong time management skills and the ability to work with tight, urgent deadlines. Eager to bring my passion for research and storytelling to the Evening Standard as your next Entry-Level Journalist.

This entry-level journalist doesn’t have any formal work experience, so they’ve emphasised their journalism training by highlighting their degree classification and internship experience at an established paper.

Broadcast journalist personal statement example

Thorough and authoritative broadcast journalist with a BA (Hons) Mass Communications (2:1) from Northumbria University. Experienced interviewer, familiar with audio and video editing software as well as transcription tools. Adept at taking quick, detailed notes in shorthand and swiftly writing them up into transcripts for broadcast. Passionate about delivering high-quality stories and impartial analysis, I’m eager to work with the BBC as your next broadcast journalist.

Your personal statement should emphasise skills that are highly relevant to the job you’re applying for. This applicant has included transcription and audio and video editing skills, which aligns them with the broadcast journalist job they’re applying for.

Mid-level editor personal statement example

Established news editor with 6 years of experience working with reporters, advertisers, and investigative journalists. Possess section editing experience and newsroom management skills, having worked as the Money and Business for the Morning Herald. Committed to delivering exceptional, engaging content, I look forward to applying my in-house expertise as your newest Section Editor.

An effective way to emphasise your industry knowledge is to state how many years of experience you have, as this mid-level editor has done.

2. Highlight your journalism CV skills

Writing and grammar skills aren’t the only things that make an exceptional journalist. You’ll need to prove you have well-rounded abilities with the skills on your CV to convince your target employer you’re the right person for the position.

Hard skills are specific abilities, knowledge, and experience that make you an effective journalist. They can include technical skills specific to journalism, and transferable skills that you may have developed in other fields, like translation and building rapport.

Your journalism hard skills help you collect information from your sources, manage your projects, and publish the final results.

You also need to be familiar with technical requirements and standards for doing research and making reports. So, list the tools of your trade that you’re experienced in, such as using audio and video recorders, editing software, and word processors.

Here are some journalism hard skills you can include in your CV:

• News writing
• Editing and proofreading
• Reporting
• Digital journalism
• Livestreaming (Facebook or YouTube)
• Word processing tools such as Google Docs and Microsoft Word
• Familiarity with back-end platforms like WordPress and Medium
• Video and photo editing software programs like Adobe Express or Adobe Premiere Pro
• Research
• Fact-checking

Soft skills are a mix of character traits and social skills showing how you relate to others in professional settings.

Here are some essential soft skills to include on your journalism CV:

• Critical thinking skills
• Communication
• Analytical thinking skills
• Listening skills
• Coordination
• Decision-making skills
• Interpersonal skills

In addition to your skills section, incorporate your soft skills in your work experience section with examples to show employers how your abilities contribute to your work success.

Here are some examples of a journalist’s communication skills and decision-making abilities shown in their work experience bullet points:

Examples of soft skills in a journalist CV's work experience section

• Decide which reports will be on live broadcasts
• Coordinated with 3 researchers, 2 writers, and 2 cameraman teams with live reports
• Conducted 10 interviews with high-ranking government officials

3. Highlight your journalism work experience

Unless you’re writing a recent graduate CV, your work experience section will occupy the most space. Employers spend the most time reviewing your work history to find out what you’ve accomplished and what you can contribute to the company if you get the job.

So use the work experience section on your CV to showcase how your skills helped you perform your duties and responsibilities in your past roles and what you achieved.

Starting each bullet point in your journalism’s work experience section with good CV action verbs also adds energy to your CV and shows the reader you’re proactive and a leader in your field.

Here are some examples of using action verbs in bullet points to highlight accomplishments from your journalism career:

• Conducted interviews of foreign delegates, which was used for 2 international broadcasts
• Covered the oath-taking ceremony of the new city mayor, which was nominated for two university awards
• Won “Best Reporting” in Free Media Awards

Hard numbers help quantify your accomplishments, whether that’s a percentage increase in readership, the reach of your social media content, or the number of articles or posts you’ve created.

For example, instead of just saying you publish articles on social media, show the exact number of views and interactions your posts have generated.

Here are three examples of hard numbers in your work experience section:

• Led the research for an investigative documentary on YouTube about combating fake news, which garnered 1M+ views
• Published 3 social media news posts each day, generating 500 average shares across different platforms
• Supervised the training for 4 batches of interns each year

4. Format your journalism CV professionally

It takes just seconds for recruiters to get a lasting impression from your CV and decide whether they’re going to carry on reading.

So make your journalist CV layout readable and pleasing to the eyes.

Here’s how to layout your CV properly:

• Decide on the best font for your CV and use consistent colouring and sizes.
• Put your contact information at the top of your CV, including your LinkedIn profile.
• List your journalist experience using a reverse chronological CV format (with the most recent work experience first) so your experiences seem relevant.
• Use bullet points to list your responsibilities, duties, and accomplishments in your previous roles.
• Include a bullet-point list of your journalism skills so the employer can see you’re fit for the job.
• Use white space to give employers short breaks for their eyes and make your journalism CV more readable.
• Just as you’d recheck an article before sending it to print, proofread your journalism CV so it’s free of mistakes and typing errors.

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