Tuesday 19 June 2012

When to stop?

I'm half way through my masters and I'm leaving the comfort zone of the course, in a matter of months I need to be looking for a job, and not just some bar tending to keep things ticking over, a proper job with a dress code and cheap coffee from a nasty machine that is never cleaned. I've been looking at several correspondence courses, and now I'm wondering those really live up to their promises. 


The British College of Journalism promises that with their freelance journalism course you're guaranteed to make back your course costs with your first four assignments or they will refund the difference. as good as that sounds, I get the sneaky feeling it's just to pull you in. Some research on the internet reveals very few people who have completed the course, it is hard finding reviews about it. I did get in touch with one young woman has done it and confirmed that the feedback from the tutors was frustratingly little, and it has taken a while for her certificate to arrive, but her media pass has arrived. Now one must wonder if that media pass will work, or if someone just photocopied an old one. I am being cynical, they are keen to sign me up, even dropping the course from nearly £400 to £245. Sounds like they need to fill a few spaces up. The course content to me is aimed at beginners or people who want to dip their toes in, though the young woman who did the course confirmed it had been useful to her. 

The next course I researched was a copy writing course promising I could earn £££ part time or as a new career choice. And guess what, after a few weeks of not replying to emails, they're willing to knock £60 off the course, just after I enquired! It's hard to tell if any of this is what I want to do. A friend said that if you can't pick it up on the job, then God save us all. So that suggests copy writing is a good help for creative writers, as we're still keeping on the pulse of creativity. 


I don't really know where I'm supposed to go with all of this. Maybe barmaiding is the life for me.






Just kidding. I'm getting out of this hell hole soon.