‘Degree can’t guarantee job after varsity’ — CrispNG’s co-founder tasks UNN campus journalists on self-improvement
The Co-founder of Crisp Nigeria, an online news medium committed towards society rebirth, Mr. James Ojo has urged Campus Journalists at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) to Challenge themselves and be available for opportunities while in school.
As the speaker of the one-day virtual training themed: ‘Campus Journalism, Opportunities, challenges and life after Varsity, held Saturday, Feb 16 and organised by the Union of Campus Journalists, UNN (UCJ-UNN), in collaboration with Crisp Nigeria, Mr. Ojo who’s also a senior Copy editor at Legit newspaper, told the budding journalists that campus journalism will give them an edge over others.
He also encouraged them to acquire writing skills whether or not they will be journalists in the future because writing will expose them to so many things in life. According to him, there are so many students with first-class out there who do not have jobs because employers want to know what you have been doing before employing you.
The award-winning journalist went on to note that “Campus journalism has so many opportunities and it opens doors for writers. Stop worrying about getting a job after school and focus on improving yourself because there are so many opportunities out there. The question is, do you have the necessary skills to get employed? Reporting and writing as a student will equip you with the necessary skills for job opportunities and enable you to compete with others globally.”
Commenting on how to harness opportunities available to campus Journalists, he urged the students to always stay informed, avoid procrastination, get a mentor, and have a good network. “Avoid procrastination or excuses, because the ability to multi-task makes one strong, he continued.
He added that some of the skills necessary for harnessing modern journalism skills include: being conversant with fact-checking, investigative-reporting skills, good research skills, good knowledge of data and how to use it, as well as good writing skills.
The media personality and investigative reporter mentioned some of the challenges of campus journalism as funding, libel, and combining journalism with school activities. He pointed out that one of the ways to avoid libel is by avoiding one-sided stories.
Nevertheless, Mr. Ojo shared useful tips on how to avoid those challenges, some of which are being strategic, balancing academics with campus journalism and proper time management, applying for fellowships and grants, and being determined and careful while writing controversial stories.
He also shared some fellowship opportunities that UCJ-UNN members can explore.
More stories on campus journalism:
- CrispNG partners UCJ-UNN to promote campus journalism in Nigeria
- Crispng trains campus reporters on fact-checking, investigative journalism
- Changing the Narrative: How Journalists like Patrick Egwu are fixing Nigeria through Investigative Reports
Mr. James Ojo is also a Jacksonite who graduated from the Department of Mass Communication, UNN. During his days at the school, he was an active student journalist in 2017, he was named the Reporter and Editor of the Year respectively as a campus journalist.
As an Investigative reporter, he has won other awards including emerging second runner-up at the 2022 PwC Media Excellence Awards. He was also named winner of The Cable Journalist of the Year award for 2022 and also won the 2022 Hostwriter prize for collaborative investigative journalism in Germany, etc.
The online event which was moderated by a journalist at Crisp Ng., Blessing Chukwuneke, hosted by UCJ-UNN President, Miss Ndidiamaka Ede and sponsored by Goldleaf ICT center was aimed at equipping campus Journalists with the necessary skills to be better writers.
By Ndidiamaka Ede
