Hello world

Welcome to The NCTJ blog. Firstly, I am suprised that this url was available. Secondly, I will try and explain the point of this blog. On September 4 2007 I began a NCTJ fast-track course in newspaper journalism, at Liverpool Community College. This blog will hopefully document the next five months of my life. It goes without saying that I hope to pass, and receive that all important NCTJ accreditation.

The course is based upon the following core subjects;

Law
Shorthand
Public Affairs
News writing

There is also an additional set of Industry classes, where we use software such as Quark. There may be some feature writing.

Why am I doing this?

In September 2006 I completed a MA in Online Journalism at the University of Central Lancashire. This qualification is accredited by the BJTC, but not by the NCTJ. So, this is my attempt to become accredited by both bodies.

How am I doing so far?

Not too bad. The shorthand is hard, but the rest of the subjects are fairly straightforward. My most recent challege was a short but brutal bout of flu. I spent Friday, Saturday and Sunday in bed. I spent today recovering, eating some food and doing some shorthand. I return to Liverpool in the morning.