Applications are now open for this year’s Guild training course for potential agricultural and horticultural journalists, sponsored by John Deere.
The dates of the 2018 John Deere Training Award are Sunday 1 July to Tuesday 3 July, plus three days of work experience to be arranged for successful applicants.
Now in its 26th year, the course supports a principal aim of the BGAJ: to promote schemes for the provision of suitable entrants into agricultural and horticultural journalism.
It is primarily aimed at graduating students keen to find full-time work in the agricultural and horticultural media, and at journalists or public relations staff who have less than 12 months’ practical work experience.
There are 10 full places available on this annual five and a half-day course, which is in two parts.
The first two-and-a-half days take place at John Deere’s headquarters in Langar, Nottingham and a local hotel. They involve lectures by experienced journalism training consultant David Mascord, with practical exercises that cover the main media sectors.
A separate three-day placement sees each of the selected full course members given practical work experience at one of a range of specialist magazines, newspapers or PR consultancies across Britain.
At the end of the course, each person has to write a news story for judging by an expert panel. The winner receives a £250 cheque and the handsome John Deere trophy, with an informal presentation taking place later in the year, usually at the Guild’s Harvest Lunch in London in October.
Those interested in attending the course, who must be studying and resident in Great Britain, have until Friday April 27, 2018 to return a completed application form, which is available to download here.
Alternatively, contact course organiser Steve Mitchell of ASM Public Relations by emailing steve@asmpr.co.uk or calling 01926 818762 / 07717 213182.
The training course at Langar and course accommodation in Nottingham are free of charge, although successful applicants are expected to cover their own out of pocket expenses. Preference will normally be given to students graduating and looking for work this summer.
Many of today’s journalists and PR executives working in the land-based industries received an early boost to their careers from winning a place on previous BGAJ/John Deere Training Award courses.
They include Emma Penny, group head of content at Briefing Media Agriculture, publishers of Farmers Guardian and Arable Farming; Andrew Faulkner, until recently joint editor of Profi International and now a freelance contributor; and Sally Charrett, deputy/features editor on Amateur Gardening.
For a full list of award ‘graduates’ since the first course in 1991, please see the course webpage here.
