High quality training of human resources in journalism

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Faculty of Journalism and Communication, Nguoi lam bao Magazine had an interview with Associate Professor, Dr. Dinh Van Huong - Head of the Faculty. Below is the full text of this interview. - After 20 years of establishment and development, the Faculty of Journalism and Communication has achieved valuable achievements in the career of training young journalists for the country. Could you please review the main outstanding achievements?- Over the past 20 years, the Faculty of Journalism and Communication has achieved many remarkable achievements: building a teaching staff of 1 professor, 5 associate professors, 2 doctors of science, 7 doctors, 3 postgraduates, 3 masters and inviting about 35 - 40 journalists to participate in training. The Faculty has trained nearly 7,000 journalists, 250 masters of journalism for the national press, and is currently training 1,200 students and postgraduates. The Faculty has also compiled 13 specialized textbooks, dozens of monographs and reference books, reaching 70% of the documents for the subjects; conducted research on 13 scientific topics at the Ministry level, VNU level, published nearly 800 scientific articles in domestic and international journals, conferences and seminars; has close and effective cooperation with training institutions and press agencies in the country and in countries such as the US, Australia, Japan, Russia, Singapore, France, UK... in the field of mass media. The Faculty has received many certificates of merit and other noble awards from the Prime Minister and the President of VNU. It can be said that in the general achievements of Vietnamese journalism in the Renovation period, there is a positive and effective contribution from the Faculty of Journalism and Communication (University of Social Sciences and Humanities - VNU).- The country and the education sector have entered a period of innovation with a mixture of advantages and difficulties always going hand in hand. What innovations has the Faculty made to keep up with the general changes and meet the requirements of journalism and media life?- The country innovates, the press also innovates and develops itself. The world press and media develop rapidly, the people's demand for information - entertainment - commerce is increasing. In that general flow, the Faculty of Journalism and Communication has promptly integrated, made reasonable and effective adjustments. That is: Completing the training level from bachelor - master - doctorate; changing the training method from year system to credit system; innovating and supplementing the training program framework (adding many new subjects, increasing practical skills, reducing theory hours); diversifying training types to meet social needs (full-time, in-service, second degree, short-term...); changing the name of the Faculty of Journalism to the Faculty of Journalism and Communication to open a new major (Public Relations - PR); investing in facilities and equipment in the period of 2009 - 2011 with 30 billion VND granted by the State; expanding international training links and international cooperation. Of course, in the process of adjustment, there are things that are successful, things that are waiting for time, and things that are not good. However, we must change and innovate in a modern, scientific, professional, and humane direction.- After each faculty graduates, how has the situation of finding jobs for students in the Faculty been in the past 20 years? Does the Faculty summarize this situation annually or every few years? If so, what are the results? Could you please give some numbers?- We do not have the conditions to fully and specifically count this number. However, it can be seen that the jobs of journalism and communication students today are very diverse, rich, positive and proactive. That is, some students work in print, radio, television, online newspapers, news agencies, photo newspapers... some students work in media companies, joint ventures, economic groups, political - social - professional organizations, central and local press management and direction agencies, some students work in event organization, advertising, marketing, media brokerage, and open their own companies. There is a trend that, in the past, many professions participated in journalism, but now the journalism industry also participates in many jobs of many different professions. Therefore, the "output" of the journalism and communication industry is very wide. Therefore, the number of people studying journalism and communication every year is still large, due to social needs and learners self-regulating and adjusting "input" and "output" in this field.- Public opinion, which often arises on the occasion of Vietnam Press Day (June 21), holds that journalism training institutions produce products that are far from the reality of journalism and the requirements of newspapers; editorial offices that accept newly graduated journalism students often have to retrain them according to the requirements of those press agencies. What is your opinion on this opinion, Associate Professor?- I both agree and disagree. I agree because the training quality is not high, the entrance exam is not "standard", the human resources are not attractive to employers, the practical skills and professionalism are weak, the facilities are not up to standard, the teaching staff is lacking and still has a strong "academic" character,... I disagree because not all students who graduate are bad. In fact, not every 100 students trained will become 100 good journalists. Among those 100 students, there are many different levels. I think, out of every 100 students, about 3-5 students who write well are very valuable. This profession is also very difficult, when studying, you choose the profession, when entering the world, the profession chooses you. There is a terrible elimination. Only with passion, determination and talent can you stay in the profession. In fact, we have trained nearly 7,000 journalists, of which about 50 alumni are working at press agencies that have won national and international press awards. Many of them have won the award multiple times. Many journalists and press agencies also have good reviews of the qualities and working capacity of journalism students.- How does the Faculty of Information and Communications map out the way forward?Although the Faculty of Journalism and Communication has done a lot in the past 20 years, there is still much to do to meet the new requirements and situations. Accordingly, it will: * Continue to build a team of highly qualified teaching and research staff. * Innovate and update training programs. * Open new majors in the field of mass communication. * Research urgent theoretical and practical issues of domestic and international journalism. * Link international training and expand international cooperation. * Innovate practical, high-quality and effective training methods and thinking. * Build facilities and equipment worthy of high-quality training of human resources for the country's journalism and communication. These development directions must be implemented synchronously and drastically with the support and cooperation of journalists and domestic and international press agencies to become a reality.- Thank you, Associate Professor, Dr. Dinh Van Huong!