Now an almost household name in this country, the Sri Lanka College of Journalism, Colombo 5, is gearing enthusiastically to launch yet another diploma course for those aspiring to cut their teeth in this time-honoured profession, which is continuing to prove a prime attraction for the public-spirited among the young of Sri Lanka. ‘We are looking forward to give of our best in the field of journalism education and training in 2010 too and there is no doubt that our willingness to cater to all three language media is adding to our attractiveness’, said P.Balasingham, the SLCJ’s acting director.

‘The diploma, which is our flagship course, is targeted at the young entrant to the field of journalism. Through the course, which envelopes a theory segment and a strong practical component, involving training in the radio and TV streams, besides enabling the student to acquire expertise in the print media , we not only help bring out a multi-skilled journalist but a highly employable one as well’, Aanjanee Seneviratne, SLCJ’s Senior Lecturer, Electronic/ Print Media said. ‘The young journalist joining a media organization is usually not equipped to face his professional challenges or is inadequately trained. This proves a considerable drawback for the recruit. But the broad-based education and training she or he acquires at SLCJ enables the young recruit to overcome these hurdles and engage in her professional skills efficiently ’, Seneviratne explained. It was pointed out that the College has produced 197 working journalists since its inception in 2004.

The year-long diploma course is divided into three semesters and covers subject areas, such as, news writing, finding news, ethics and media law, researching, interviewing, photo journalism, crime and court reporting, parliamentary and political reporting and radio/visual story telling. Added boons for the student are the opportunity to work in reputed media organizations in Sri Lanka as interns, while following the course, thus enabling her/him to acquire valuable work experience, and the ability to do field work in the practical component of the course. For example, students would be able to literally go out into the country side and ‘work’ on stories. They are also expected to bring out a newspaper of their own at the end of semester 3.

In addition to the above ‘pluses’, the student journalist would be in a position to acquire training in some of the best-equipped TV/radio studios, print media labs and lecture rooms at SLCJ. Apparently, such facilities are not provided in any similar local institution.

In addition to six internal academic staffers, guest lecturers from outside will be imparting their skills and knowledge to the students. There is also an input from foreign lecturers of repute.

The SLCJ also provides mid career training for Colombo-based journalists and conducts training programmes for outstation-based journalists in a bid to enhance their skills. These are well attended and help boost the career prospects of the attendees. In addition, proficiency programmes in the national languages and in English are held at the College.

‘We operate here in a pluralistic environment where students are encouraged to interact closely with each other and respect each others cultures and languages. We thereby foster a spirit of tolerance and brotherhood among our students’, Balasingham explained.

Founded on an initiative by the newspaper industry, the College is a sister organization of the Sri Lanka Press Institute and the Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka. It is administered by the Newspapers Society (Organisation of Publishers)Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka, the Free Media Movement and the Sri Lanka Working Journalists Association.