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Good news for USC journalism
11 October 2006
The University of the Sunshine Coast’s reputation as home of one of Australia’s best journalism programs has been further enhanced by the selection of two USC students as finalists in the 2006 Queensland Media Awards.
Hannah Klose and Renae Henry are two of only three student finalists in the award category for the Most Outstanding Journalism Student from a regional campus. They will join the state’s best professional newsmakers at the awards presentation dinner in Brisbane later this month.
Renae, who has been an intern at both the Sunshine Coast Daily and with Seven Local News, said she was “over-the-moon” to hear of her selection as a finalist. Her entry was based on a selection of feature articles she wrote during her internship with the Sunshine Coast Daily, where she was also offered freelance work.
“I was so overwhelmed when I heard about it,” Renae said.
“It’s just such a great honour that two of the three finalists are from the University of the Sunshine Coast and it really acknowledges the quality of the courses and teaching at USC.
“I definitely attribute a large part of my success to studying here.”
Hannah, who has completed a basic internship and an advanced internship with Seven Local News and is now employed as a casual reporter, said the University’s strong relationships with local media meant students had work experience opportunities that were sometimes lacking at other universities.
During her time at Seven, Hannah has worked on stories about everything from traffic complaints to political issues, and had the opportunity to interview both Peter Beattie and Bruce Flegg in the lead-up to the recent state election. She has just returned from a two-week stint working as a paid journalist in Seven’s Mackay newsroom.
“Seven has such a good relationship with the staff at USC and that’s really the reason I am where I am,” Hannah says.
“I know a lot of people from Brisbane really struggle to get work experience, so it’s the relationships the University has, as well as the teachers—they’re just fantastic and have been really encouraging and helpful.”
Head of the School of Communication and Senior Lecturer in Journalism Stephen Lamble said the awards announcement was recognition of both Renae and Hannah’s hard work, as well as the roles small classes, quality teaching and the invaluable help of industry professionals play in preparing students for the workplace.
Dr Lamble said the University currently had an employment rate of close to 100 percent for journalism graduates. The 2006 Course Experience Questionnaire conducted by Graduate Careers Australia showed USC's journalism graduates in 2005 gave the University a 100 percent satisfaction rating for the overall quality of its journalism program and for high quality teaching.
“The University aims to provide journalism students with strong practical skills that are based on sound theory,” Dr Lamble said.
“The selection of Hannah and Renae as finalists, as well as our results in the Graduate Careers Australia questionnaire, is testament to the quality of our journalism program.”
The Queensland Media Awards will be presented in Brisbane on Saturday 21 October. For more information visit the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance website <www.alliance.org.au/qma>.