Deep dive into making a career in mass media

By Jayanthi Krishnan

 

With a focus on producing and consuming knowledge, the changing face of Media industry - whether in terms of information and knowledge or entertainment and marketing - offers tremendous scope for growth. Here's more about the challenging and bright career prospects that this highly comprehensive field of study has to offer.

 

Words that ‘create magic' rule the world. Communication being the most potent weapon in the modern world, it has the ability to create public opinion, influence public sentiments and send vital messages to the masses. With an entire spectrum of media in a race to attract the masses, be it in the form of movie posters, advertisement hoardings or on the go FM channels, mass media catches up with you wherever you go.

 

Beating the slowdown in 2008-09 with over 600 television channels, 100 million pay-television households, 70,000 newspapers, production of more than 1000 films annually, a jaw dropping 13,200 crore advertising industry and a 3-billion dollar public relations industry poised to double itself into a 6- billion dollar industry in the next 2 years - the Media industry in India continues to grow at a rapid pace even today. Be it Television, Radio, Film, Digital, Print Media or Advertising & Public Relations, the prospects of growth both in terms of development in the industry and hence your career are vast.

 

With different cultures, languages and content preferences, the diverse Indian market provides global media and entertainment companies' ample opportunities to deliver localized content. India's favourable regulations and reforms are creating investment opportunities for global media and entertainment companies; thereby broadening the scope and prospects of a fruitful and fulfilling career for young talent in the world of Media & Entertainment both nationally and internationally.

 

Here are your career options in mass media:

Broadcasting & Journalism:
If you are someone gifted with the ability to express views, thoughts and events with impeccable clarity in the written word along with a keen desire to express yourself, Journalism is a fulfilling career option for you. Journalism today is not restricted to print media alone. Electronic media, digital media and web-based journalism have added a plethora of openings for aspirants. Content development, news-based reporting, editing, packaging, product development, designing and presenting are few of the multiple options open to those wishing to pursue a career in Journalism.

 

Audio-Visual:
Those with an eye that can capture images, moments and visuals with detail - good enough to replicate and recreate, should consider this career. Audio visuals is a platform that is used in various fields such as films, advertising, broadcast, documentaries, and production houses where programming, casting, editing, packaging, shooting, producing are a few of the several options available to those who wish to pursue their creative ability, vivid imagination and ideas to create a product for general entertainment and awareness for mass audiences.

 

Advertising Management:
Advertising Management is a very interesting field for creative minds that can churn out unique concepts in word and/or imagery to represent a brand or express a concept. If you think you have the passion to present things in a unique manner you must consider this as a career. The Ad industry provides a candidate with openings into areas such as copy writing, research, programming, media planning, client servicing, account management and many such lucrative options for a career.

 

Public Relations:
One with an ability to understand, present and convince audiences - be it journalists, advertisers, clients, or masses alike - and keep them updated while subtly creating and maintaining a strong perception of a brand, must definitely consider PR as a career option. PR also has a variety of openings ranging from strategy and tie-up executives, media relations executives, senior account executives, account managers, brand managers, corporate communications managers, strategic communications managers etc to name a few of the interesting options.

 

Corporate Communications:
Clarity of thoughts along with the ability to understand the vision of an organization and the interest in honing and promoting that vision are the skills involved to be a part of corporate communications. If you can streamline thoughts and visions and make it more coherent for not only projecting the vision of the organization with its clients and collaborators but also the internal team of the organization itself; then corporate communication can be a fulfilling career option for you.

 

Event Management:
Event Management is for you if you are the kind who is perceptive of the mindset of the target audience to be able to devise means and plans to reach out to them and enjoy actively working towards realization of the events. The recent growth in the sector means that the industry has opened up to include events of all sorts of scale and purposes. Events could cater to anything from simple marketing to relationship building or fund raising. There are options for professionals at each step from the conception to execution of the event.

 

With a radical shift in pedagogy, more and more institutes are now focusing on imparting practical learning in tune with industry standards. Multiple teaching methods such as classroom lectures, case analysis, group projects, business simulation games, assignments, and workshops form the core of the learning process.

 

Pursuing media courses from established institutes provides students a judicious mix of academics and real life experience boosting practical knowledge and skills required in an industry oriented job market today.

 

Job Prospects:
Armed with the appropriate degree you can look at your respective field of interest and choose from the umpteen options available within any given industry. For instance, as a journalism and broadcasting graduate you can look at reportage, news production (for television), writing or even editing. Each field offers a bouquet of opportunities that you can explore. In fact with experience comes specialization which one can focus on once the exact point of interest is ascertained. Similarly, a career in audio-visual offers options to get into Film, Television or digital video production. You can choose to work for information, marketing or entertainment based options and even choose amongst these to be a part of the management or the creative team. The power of media is best exemplified with communication of the desired objective of the organization.You can choose either of the communication or management options to yield the power of mass media to get your message across.

 

Where to Study:
•Indian Institute of Mass Communication
•International School Business and Media
•Asian College of Journalism
•Delhi University
•Jamia Millia Islamia
•Xaviers Institute of Communication
•Symbiosis Institute of Media & Communication
 

Remuneration:
Though the remuneration varies from one field of mass communication to another, yet for beginners, on an average, the remuneration may range from Rs 200,000 to Rs 5,00,000 per annum. The pay increases with experience and time spent on the job. The remuneration also depends upon the institute from which the course has been completed.

 

The author is director of International School Business & Media (ISB&M), Gurgaon.

 

Other interesting reads:

- Mass Communication courses in India

- How to choose a college for mass communication