The twenty year-old girl who, for years, stockpiled hundreds of celebrity magazines in her bedroom in order to pore over the lives of the stars, has landed a dream job at the world's leading entertainment agency. And she did not go to university. It's not just any old job, it's an exciting one, and a fantastic journalism course case study.Meet Sophie Eager - Celebrity News Wire Reporter
Sophie Eager is a news wire reporter for Splash, the news and picture agency which specialises in celebrity stories, videos and photos. "I didn't want to go to uni when I left school, instead, I chose to do a journalism course at Brighton Journalist works and it was definitely the right decision because I got a job very quickly after completing it." Sophie, finished her journalism training in August and was taken on by Splash soon after.
When Sophie's on shift, she gets paid to read magazines and watch TV. No, seriously she does. She has to monitor all news outlets to ensure that no stories are missed. She then sources and writes up celebrity news stories for a celebrity text feed that is sent to millions of clients around the world. Sophie adores her work: "I love my job because celebrities fascinate me. I want to be the first to know what's happening. It's a fun, different kind of job which is quite a talking point when you first meet people. I write short news stories all day and read all the celebrity magazines. I also watch TV and listen to the radio for any potential stories. All stories are verified and come from credible sources. I write between 30 and 35 celebrity news stories each day. It's my job to ensure that no stories are missed and to keep on top of the world of celebrity. Obviously you have to be careful not to get stories wrong or libel anyone."
The aptly namedMs Eagerreally seems to have landed on her feet. She's only twenty years old and has a great life ahead of her, in a career she loves. But the future didn't always look so bright.
After doing her levels, Sussex-born Sophie, couldn't decide what to do. The problem was she knew what she disliked but she didn't know what she actually wanted to do. She got good grades in her "A" levels but she just felt that university wasn't for her because she just wanted, "to get out there, get experience and start earning money." As a first step, she joined a temping agency but soon got bored inputting data. She needed something more creative - much, much more creative. But first she needed some more qualifications. Perhaps a short course was the answer? She'd always enjoyed English and was obsessed with celebs so she trawled the internet to see if there was something that would suit.
One course stood out above the rest for her. It was the Brighton Journalist Works fast-track journalism course.
It was the quickest course in the country at only ten weeks long. It was NCTJ accredited, a well-recognised qualification within the industry, which would make it a lot easier to get a job when she finished. Plus it was the only course at the headquarters of a daily newspaper so she could get work experience there and make plenty of contacts. And Journalist Works was based in Brighton - a great place to spend a few weeks. Plenty of things going on, so there would be a wealth of stories for the cub reporter to cover. And, of course, there were some great beaches and bars too.
Obviously she was going to have to pay but Sophie felt that a short course like this, "wasn't as big a risk, as going to university for three years", as she wouldn't build up the levels of debt that she had heard her university friends worrying about. Also, if she didn't like the course and realised that journalism wasn't really for her, then she would only have wasted a few weeks, rather than a few years. But as she worked her way through the Journalist Works website, she began to think this might be a really good option: "The course sounded very interesting and I thought it would really suit me. Brighton Journalist Works would teach me news writing, sub-editing skills and law. All the skills that I would need to write professionally."
She applied straight away and then had to sit an NCTJ aptitude test to see if she had the potential to make it as a journalist. She passed and got onto the course, which though demanding, was rewarding. She said the course revived her flagging work ethic: "I realised that I hadn't really knuckled down to work when I was at college. I used to be a hard worker at school but had lost my enthusiasm for studying somewhere along the way. The course gave me back my self-discipline. I was the youngest person there and I wanted to prove myself. It was intensive learning new things every day. I worked really hard but it was interesting stuff."
The thing Sophie enjoyed most about the course was the relationship with the tutors. She was actually taught by real journalists who had real anecdotes: anecdotes that were actually funny. One law lecturer even told her some interesting true celebrity stories which she refuses to repeat! She said the lecturers passed on their knowledge in an entertaining way: "It [the course] was brilliant. I just really wanted to get out there and get a job in journalism." At the end of the course, Sophie had gained vital experience. She had learned to find, develop and write news stories and features. And she now knew how to design and lay-out pages, write snappy headlines and to use industry software like Quark Xpress. She had also been taught how to avoid the very real legal pitfalls that journalists face on a daily basis.
Sophie had valuable experience on work placements too, at "The Argus", "Celebrity babyscoop.com" and "Mother and Baby" Magazine and had a portfolio of published work to help her secure a job. On finishing the course, she was offered a job almost immediately, with Splash. She doesn't think she could have got this type of job without studying journalism: "It was a good decision to do the Brighton Journalist Works journalism course. I have changed so much: I have gone from living at home, to living in London and I've even got a new boyfriend now. I have got lots of new friends and, of course, still see my old friends too. I am not on a university budget and have no debts. So many people go to university nowadays, that it's not exactly unusual to have a degree but experience still makes you stand out from the crowd."
Does Sophie have any regrets that she didn't go to uni?
"Definitely not. My friends tell me stories about university but I think the things I have done equal and, sometimes, far outweigh their experiences. It's such fun being part of a lively office. I never know what I am going to be doing from one day to the next. My friends at university are also always thinking about money and can't do as much because they have to study so hard. I think I have learnt just as much from on-the-job training, from my bosses at work and from my tutors at Journalist Works." In the future, Sophie plans to become a full-time celebrity-reporter because she really loves showbiz gossip.
Eventually, she would like to become an entertainment correspondent for TV but at the moment, she really enjoys being a trainee. In fact, she is now happier than she has ever been before in her life. She says she would definitely advise other people to do Brighton Journalist Works fast-track journalism course because it opened the doors to a perfect job that would have been almost impossible to get without qualifications in journalism, work experience and a portfolio of published work that the course provided.
Despite not going to university, Sophie believes that she has had a first-rate education. What's more, she's now something of an authority on celebrities. When she goes back home to Worthing, everyone is intrigued by what she does. When she meets people for the first time in the pub, they find her job fascinating. "I didn't want to go to uni when I left school and I chose to do a journalism course at Brighton Journalist works and it was definitely the right decision." She has managed to take her hobby to a whole new level. She truly loves her work. The best thing of all? She's paid to read her favourite celebrity magazines!
Does a career in journalism or mingling with celebs sound right up your street?
Well fear not as you can enrol on the very same course Sophie Eager did. Find out more about the NCTJ fast track course!
