Mass Communication Careers In India

Why choose a career in media and communication when there are thousands of other career options to choose from? What makes mass communication course different from others? These are some common question that comes to our mind when we think about pursuing mass communication after school education or decide to build a career in this field.

Mass communication, ten years back, used to have only a few students studying this field but with the passage of time, more and more people are getting interested in this profession and enrolling themselves in various mass communication colleges. It offers vast job opportunities in different areas like newspapers, journals, advertising firms, radio, production houses, publication houses and Television. Mass communication careers are build on creativity, ability to work in a challenging environment, dedication towards one's work and the determination to finish work within deadlines. Mass communication jobs offer good remuneration packages and not to mention, professions like that of radio jockeys and anchors can bring you to fame instantly.

Mass communication course encompasses various streams. From advertising to Journalism to Public Relations, a student can opt for any field he likes.

Careers In Mass Communication

 There are lots of choices when it comes to build a career in mass communication field . He/she can opt as a Copy writer if he wants to go into Advertising, a Journalist if he has a nose for news and Public Relations officer if he wants to be the image builder of the company. After completing their course in mass communication one can work as a copywriter, advertising professional, journalist, news anchor and a PR Officer. Though the nature of their work varies widely, most of them have to work in tight deadlines.

'News' for instance cannot be taken lightly and put off for another day as it would become stale and won’t sell. A journalist has to rush whenever any news breaks in. He has a 24-hour job. A copywriter too has to meet the deadlines. Anybody planning to enter this field must prepare himself to work in odd hours. Like other fields where the working hours are generally found to be between 9am and 5pm, in the media field one has to work in shifts. Though there are some positions in the media where one is required to contribute fixed eight hours of work during the day time, but such jobs are very few. In a nutshell, the field of media is quite interesting and rewarding but at the same time it demands lots of time, energy and hard work from one. So if you have the passion to defeat deadlines and ready to work as it comes to you at any time of the day, you are the right person this industry is looking for. Various mass communication related careers and the nature of their work are described below:

Journalist

A Journalist’s work is basically to collect the news and file it at the end of the day. But gathering news is not easy as it seems. In order to get the news, a Journalist has to win the confidence of the people. His day starts with going to the office and then checking with his sources about the happenings around. If he has some news, he goes to the field to cover it. After the news is collected, a journalist is required to come back to the office and write it for the reader. A journalist usually gets free at 9 in the evening (every organization has own timings) but he can be again sent to field in case any news breaks out.

Television and online journalism has taken off in the last 5 years only while radio is still a popular source of news in remote-villages. A student who wants to be a journalist should have a keen interest in current affairs. He should have an inquisitive mind and should have the ability of going along well with the people. Patience is another quality which is looked after in a good Journalist.

Advertising

Advertising is the tool for informing and influencing the general public to purchase products or services through visual or oral messages.

The basic idea of advertising is to create awareness in the minds of potential customers. Some of the normally used media for advertising are: TV, radio, websites, newspapers, magazines, bill-boards, hoardings etc.

With the globalization of Indian economy along with the arrival of more and more MNCs to India, a lucrative career option for professional proficient in advertising & marketing of products has surely surfaced in a big way.

News Anchor

A News reader or News Anchor is the face of a TV news channel. A person holding the position of News Anchor faces a big responsibility. One mistake on the part of News Anchor can land News Channel in trouble. So a News Reader has to be very alert. After coming to the office, a News Anchor has to see what the latest news is. He should go through the script which he has to read in the bulletin.

Copy Writer

The professional working as a Copywriter is usually employed in an advertising firm or advertising department of a newspaper or Television. The work of a copywriter involves writing slogans, punch lines and jingles for his/her an advertising clients. The text should be such that a customer gets easily fascinated by it and make up his mind to purchase the product.  Advertisement campaign often involves very strict deadlines and late working shifts.

Media Planner

The advertising firm prepares the advertisement but the task of putting it in the different kinds of Media (print, radio, television) is handled by Media Planner. While selecting the media, a Media planner first of all understands the target audience the advertiser is trying to reach. He then researches the magazines the audience likes to read and the type of TV programmes it watches. A media planner also decides the timings of advertisements. After carrying out these tasks, Media Planner has to book advertising space with media owners. He has to work in a specific budget.

TV Producer

A television producer's  work involves coordinating all aspects of production. From idea development to casting actors to oversee technical crew, a television producer has to do everything. The responsibility of smooth running of a particular programme depends on him. A television producer has to work under lot of pressure. But usually television producers are problem solvers. Despite heavy work pressure, they are able to deliver good results.

Camera Person

A programme or a movie cannot be shot without a Camera person. A camera person plays an important role in making of any show or programme. The working hours of a Camera Person depends on the programme with which he/she is associated with. There are no fixed working hours for a camera person. The camera persons employed in news channel have to go with the Reporters for shooting. Thought they are allotted a particular shift but like Journalist they can anytime be asked to go to the field for covering the news.

Public Relations Officer (PRO)

Image is very important for any organization. Here comes in the picture the role of the Public Relation Officer, popularly known as PRO. His task is to bring the organization’s accomplishment before the public through newspapers and television. A PRO either works in a Public relation department of a company or in a PR agency. In the PR agency, a PRO has to handle different clients simultaneously but a person donning the hat of a PRO for a particular company has to oversee the task of that company only.

Copy Editor

Most of the people holding the designation of ‘Copy Editor’ work in publication houses, which are engaged in publication of different books. A copy editor mainly review, rewrite, and edit the work of the writers. Sometimes they do the original writing also. A senior copy editor even plans the content of the books and oversees the production of the publications. The working hours of a copy editor varies from organization to organization . Some publication houses have regular office hours in which editors have to work between 9am and 5pm. In some of other publication houses, an Editor has to work in shifts.

Film-making

All of us love films and often discuss about them but are little aware about a career in film-making. Making films through various films recording medium is known as film making. This is a separate stream that has obtained position under Mass Communication course. It is highly interesting field but at the same time challenging also. World over various types of films are made like documentaries, promotional films, newsreels, feature films, TV commercials and music videos. All films make use of different technologies.

A film basically goes through five stages- Development, pre Production, Production, Post Production and distribution. A film maker is the captain of the ship, who has to be involved in everything. He has to work in close co-ordination with all the members of the team and take out the best from every one. There are lots of employment opportunities in the area of film-making. Making of a film requires many professionals to work together. In the film, a director, scriptwriter, editor, cameraman has to coordinate.

There are various other careers that one can pursue after studying Mass Communication.