Focus on grammatically-correct content, not the length

Shaghil Bilali is a passout of 2005-06 English Journalism batch, and currently working with the Mail Today as a Senior Sports Reporter

Before suggesting you the tricks to crack IIMC entrance, I need a prompt reply from you. Why do you want to pursue journalism, and do you have the aptitude to take up this profession? If you think journalism is a smooth path to glamour and money, the best access to both the things is actually through bollywood/ modelling/ tv or a management degree from a reputed B-school, and there is no need to go to places like IIMC.

Like a glamorous job, which catapults you to stardom in a short period, journalism is a demanding profession, where you work like a chorus artist. Here you have to do a lot of hard work, and must possess energy and patience to grab attention. If you think all good journalists are born-talented, change your outlook in life, as it is their sheer hard work and its smart execution that take them to the top of the profession pyramid, be it Shekhar Gupta, Rajdeep Sardesai, Pranoy Roy or Punya Prasoon Bajpai. They all are well-read people and have applied their cultivated abilities to the best possible ways.

I think at the end of the day, it’s your aptitude that will help you survive in this profession. Aptitude will be the key factor which will spark passion once you enter the world of journalism. Now, how will you know whether you have it in you or not, is the next question?

The best way to know whether you have aptitude to do journalist is to notice the way you react when even the most common news reaches your ear.

If in general life, even a small and insignificant incident sparks your interest in knowing more about it, you have the aptitude to do journalism. If you have the ability to pick up small elements from a big story and react on that, you have the aptitude to do journalism.

If you can’t let the meanest things go unnoticed during the most unusual circumstances, you have the aptitude to do journalism. The news of fake 2011 World Cup trophy is a great example of what I am trying to say. When the entire nation was in the state of euphoria after India won the world cup, a journalist noticed the difference between the original ICC trophy and the one which was awarded to the Indian team, and broke one of the finest sports stories ever in India.

A Reuters journalist traveling with Edmond Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing during their historic Mt Everest ascent in 1953, and still beaten by a AP journalist by 13 minutes in newsbreak, is also a great example of how to click your mind at the right time.

If you have the hunger for news and it interests you the same way as food, you have the aptitude for journalism (a journalist in his first year and a journalist in his 20th year can break the same level of story, it’s all about his hunger for the news/information).

Second, you should be passionate about talking to people/sources and cultivate the best information from them. Also, these day’s you can’t pursue journalism with a conventional mindset. Demand and technology are changing so fast that you have to develop yourself as a multi-tasking journalist.

If you have these elements in your personality, you have the right to pursue journalism and mark my words, it will be a great fun for you.

Now, the first step to start journalism is to crack a journalism-school entrance.

As I have noticed since I joined English Journalism course in 2005, IIMC has one of the easiest entrance exams in India and it makes it more democratic, as everyone has the chance to make it.

Most of the questions in entrance are based on the incidents of past six months (general awareness). You should know why certain people/ places/ policies/ incidents were in news in the recent past. The best way to prepare for it is to go through the competitive magazines like Competition Success Review and Pratiyogita Darpan’s editions of last six months.

Elections in UP, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Goa & Manipur, Congress’s debacle in UP, CAG reports, Sachin Tendulkar’s 100^th 100, 2G Scam, Anna movement, disputes over safety of nuclear power plants, anniversary of India’s world cup victory, Chinese President’s visit to India, BRICS summit, Iran nuclear issue, political unrest in West Asia, Revolutions in Arabic countries, Occupy wall street movement, US presidential election, death of Steve Jobs, names and the contributions of Nobel Prize winners in 2011, functions of UN agencies, Padma award winners, are some prominent topics to prepare for the entrance.

Always remember, the questions which carry the least marks will actually help you score the maximum in the entrance test. Since duration of test is two hours, try to answer the questions which carry one, two or three marks, as those are less time-consuming. Try to score as much as possible in entrance since it has 85% of the total marks, and it will compensate in case you fumble during the interview.

Since questions asked in entrance test are not tough, the focus of the examiner shifts on grammar. Try to write grammatical correct English/ Hindi in your answer sheets. While writing answers, focus on content and not the length.

Don’t lose confidence during the interview, and also not show fake confidence, as both the cases can spoil your chances. Avoid telling wrong facts and figures since the panelist are specialist in their field and it’s completely wastage of time to fool them.

As far ADPR aspirants are concerned, I can’t tell you much about the preparation, but as the one who has been dealing with the PR guys for last six years, what common thing I have noticed among the best PRs is their patience and passion to educate themselves.

If you get into IIMC, it will be a fun. People may have good or bad experience with the people there, but it’s the place which never disappoints you. Once you go to the IIMC you feel you belong to that place.

Wish you all the best for entrance and interview.

Shaghil Bilali

English Journalism, 2005-06 Batch


To read Shaghil's previous posts please follow these links:-
1. http://www.iimccounselling.blogspot.in/2009/05/suggestions-for-iimc-preparations_17.html
2. http://www.iimccounselling.blogspot.in/2008/04/preparation-for-pg-diploma-in-english.html