UNIVERSITY NEWS LAST UPDATED : 16 AUGUST 2010
Graduates from an Indian college will now have the opportunity to gain a scholarship to study journalism at a British university.
The award is the result of collaboration between Birmingham City University and The Hindu newspaper. Named after the paper’s Editor-in-Chief, N. Ram, it is open exclusively to graduates of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), Chennai. The student who is awarded the bursary will have the fees to study a Masters level qualification at Birmingham City University’s Birmingham School of Media paid for them. The awardee will be selected jointly by The Hindu, the ACJ and Birmingham City University. Representatives from the University were in Chennai (July 26 – 4 August) to launch the scholarship and give seminars at the ACJ.
The Scholarship comes just after the British and Indian Prime Ministers, David Cameron and Dr. Manmohan Singh, agreed to the extension of the successful UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI). This has already created almost 600 new partnerships between UK and Indian institutions at all levels of the education system. The new programme will be funded by both Governments. Bob Calver, a senior academic at Birmingham School of Media said: “We share the same approach to teaching journalists and other media professionals. We combine practical skills with theoretical teaching so we produce reflective professionals.”
The University’s Head of Business and International Development, John Kirk, said there were also shared areas of research interest, including the potential of social media in a number of areas, such as public health, and the expansion of online and mobile media and the future shape of the media industry landscape. “We already have links with leading institutions in China and Malaysia and I am sure our relationships in India will be to the benefit of students and academics on both sides.”
“Often politicians see educational partnerships only in terms of science and technology and overlook the huge importance of areas under the broad heading of media. New technologies and platforms, combined with the highest qualities of journalism and production can offer real benefits in addition to the fact that the creative industries generate billions of pounds for global economies.”
Earlier this year The Guardian released its annual university rankings and named Birmingham School of Media as providing the best courses that combine teaching theory with practice. The Guardian's University Guide 2011 places the School of Media fifth in the country within the classification of Media Studies, Communications and Librarianship and is the only university in the top five that provides taught practical media courses. This year’s ranking is an increase of six places on last year’s position of 11th.