Travel Journalism

What if there is a job where you get to travel to new places, meet new people and taste different cuisines while getting paid for it? Who wouldn’t like a job like that? Well, there is something called Travel Journalism. It is a subset of Journalism where you get to work with travel magazines and write travelogues for them. An emerging profession for those who are confused about what to study after 12th but also want a dynamic work profile and a luxurious lifestyle, here’s a blog that explains all the things important to kickstarting a career in this field. 

What is Travel Journalism?

A subset of Journalism, this profession has a rich history and an important place in the field.  Emerging from the writings of travellers who wrote engrossing accounts of the places they visited and the routes they passed, travelogues have remained widely popular owing to the personal experiences and vivid details of the places that it includes. Travel Journalism, which is based on the same principles of writing about journeys, cultures, and people, is an adventurous and luxurious career option. In the modern age of the Internet, technology has made it possible not only to write and publish in realtime but also use Digital Media tools to make it more engaging and interactive. Earlier, Print Media was the only platform for travel journalists to share their stories on but now they can pitch their experiences to any organization in the world or can even start their own blog!

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Travel Journalism: What to Study?

As such, a journalism degree is enough to start a Journalism career. If you are passionate about telling stories and fond of interacting with people while exploring different cultures, that would suffice to get started with it. But to learn the craft of writing for this particular genre and knowing how to tackle ethical dilemmas besides broadening your horizons, you need to take up a journalism course. A Bachelor of Journalism would suffice but if you already have completed your undergraduate degree in some other stream, then you can take up Masters in Journalism from a reputed university to start your career in Travel Journalism. The best part about Journalism courses is that you don’t need to have prior education in the same field! Whether pursued at the undergraduate or graduate level, the course will equip you with a basic understanding of the field and expose you to various forms of story writing for different platforms. To polish your writing skills and make your storytelling more literary and refined, Creative Writing courses are a good way to go about it. 

Also Read: MA in Journalism

Travel Journalism: Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria vary for different countries and it can be university-specific also. It is advisable to go through the university website for the detailed eligibility criteria. If you are planning to pursue your passion for Travel Journalism abroad by taking up a master’s level course in Journalism, the standard prerequisites you need to have are as follows: 

• A Bachelor’s degree or equivalent from the recognized university.
• A valid GRE score for postgraduation courses. 
• For both undergraduate and graduate programs, a valid score in the English language proficiency test such as IELTS, TOEFL, and PTE is needed. 
• A strong portfolio (In some cases).
• University transcripts, updated CV, Statement of Purpose (SOP), and LORs are other important documents. 

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Top Universities for Journalism

Being a highly competitive and demanding field, the job of a Travel Journalist is not an easy one. Getting stories from new places and meeting new people is fun but writing the way it so as to covey the story the way it should be and finding a place to publish it makes it a challenging task. The universities around the world teach students the craft of writing in Travel Journalism and making their work sell through their courses. Stretching the set boundaries and experimenting with things has been a core motive of the top journalism schools in the world. Here are some of the best Journalism schools that you should know about:

Name of University	QS World University Rankings 2023
University of California, Berkeley	27
University of California, Los Angeles	44
University College London (UCL)	8
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	25
Yale University	18
London School of Economics and Political Science	56
Harvard University	5
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	1
University of Oxford	4
Stanford University	3

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Travel Journalism: Career Prospects

The field of Travel and Tourism is expected to grow tremendously in the coming years which is a great opportunity for aspiring Travel Journalists to bank upon. In India, the concept of Travel Journalism is new which means that you can have a successful career in the field within the country also. Besides, getting to travel to new locations and be a part of different cultures, the job as a Travel Journalist can get you lucrative salaries and the prospect of working at your own convenience.

Salary of a Travel Journalist

The salary of a travel journalist in India and abroad are shared below.

In India	INR 6 lakh
In Abroad	$95,966 (INR 79 lakh)

You can choose to work with Magazines like Conde Nast Traveller, Nat Geo, and other online portals also. And guess what? You can start your own blog or kickstart your career as a Youtuber!

Travel Journalism Skills

Some of the skills required for a travel journalist are

1. Communication Skills
2. Writing Skills
3. Research Skills
4. Adaptability
5. Proofreading and Verification skills

FAQs

A career in Travel Journalism is a gateway to realizing your dream of travelling to the world and earning a handsome salary. If you are planning to take up a course in the best Journalism schools abroad but are confused about where to start from. Don’t worry, let Leverage Edu do it for you. Right from finding a university to help you get in, our experts will guide you throughout the admission process!