Annual Salary
£18,000 to £40,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
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Magazine journalists research and write news articles and features for a wide variety of publications.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: evenings / weekends; away from home
There will be
2.4% more Magazine journalist jobs in 2027.
You may:
You could work in an office or from home.
You can get into this job through:
Magazine journalists can come from a wide variety of subject backgrounds. Particularly relevant degree subjects include:
Some courses are accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists.
You can do a postgraduate journalism course if your first degree is not in a related subject. Some of these are also accredited by the Professional Publishers Association.
The National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) has advice on bursaries and funding to encourage greater diversity in journalism.
You'll usually need:
You could take a college course like the Level 3 Certificate in Foundation Journalism.
It will give you some of the skills and knowledge you'll need to go on to do further journalism training. This could be through an apprenticeship or further study.
Most people following this route have:
You can work towards this role through a journalist or a senior journalist higher apprenticeship.
Competition for jobs is strong, especially with well-known magazines. Developing a network of contacts is essential. You'll find it useful to have examples of your published work in a portfolio.
To gain practical experience and get to know people in the industry you could:
You could apply directly for jobs, especially if you have knowledge of the specialist area the magazine covers. For example, in healthcare, science or technical subjects.
You would need to build up a network of contacts as many journalist jobs are not advertised.
You can study Level 5 and above professional qualifications in journalism which are accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). Courses are available online or at a college or training centre.
The Level 5 Diploma in Journalism has practical magazine journalism optional units.
The NCTJ also offer online and short courses to help develop essential skills like:
It's useful to develop skills for creating online media content like:search engine optimisation (SEO); technical skills like HTML; using web design packages
As a journalism student you can apply for student membership of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ). The NUJ also has information on bursaries that may be available.
You can find out more about working in magazine publishing and journalism from the:National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ); Professional Publishers Association; National Union of Journalists
You could specialise in a particular field of magazine journalism such as:trade or in-house publications; consumer magazines; specific features writing
With experience you may be able to progress to an editing position or move into another area like newspaper journalism, radio or TV.
You could go freelance and write for various publications, or become a permanent employee of a magazine 'house'.
You can study a range of professional qualifications in journalism, either online or part time at a training centre, accredited by the National Council for the Training of Journalists.
As a journalism student you can apply for student membership of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ). The NUJ also has information on bursaries that may be available.
You can find out more about working in publishing from the Professional Publishers Association and the National Union of Journalists.
You'll need: