Knight New Media Center
Multimedia and Technology Training At the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
Multimedia and Technology Training At the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism
Due to the volume of questions received about the application and selection process, it becomes difficult to provide individual responses to each query. We developed this Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) sheet, which addresses all the commonly asked questions about the application and selection process, to assist you in preparing your application.
How to apply to a workshop
Registration on our site is required to apply to a workshop. During the registration process, you will be asked to create a unique username and password and provide a valid e-mail address. A confirmation e-mail will be automatically sent to the address you provide with a link to confirm your registration. Applicants will not be allowed to begin with the application process until they have confirmed their e-mail address. This is for security purposes and to ensure we have valid contact information. The link will expire if it is not activated within 96 hours. If this should happen, you will need to use our contact form to let us know to reset your account.
Filling out the application
The application is quite long, and we realize this. We have created a method by which you can save each page of your application and return to it later. After filling out each page, click the save and continue button found at the bottom of each section. Only after you do this does that page of your application become saved in our system.
No part of the review process is automated. We carefully read every application that is submitted. Please do your best to answer the questions provided as they pertain to you. We have designed this application primarily for journalists working for print or online publications. However, every workshop we accept a limited number of news television, radio broadcast and educator applicants.
Choosing a workshop
Since we host several workshops each year to meet demand, we have integrated into our site the ability for applicants to apply for several workshops at once. This does not diminish your chances to getting into any single workshop, but rather gives your application another chance at getting in. Please choose a workshop date that you know you can attend. Since we hold our workshops at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, we are bound to holding workshops during weeks that school is not in session. This generally falls in place with Winter break, Spring break and Summer break.
If you do not get in, your application is retained in our system and can be used to apply to future workshops. It is important to update your application with any new information that might be applicable.
Information we ask
We are an education training program funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and as such, we do not use any of your information for any type of marketing or solicitation. We may send you an e-mail to notify you of an upcoming workshop should your application not be accepted. We also use the e-mail addresses supplied to notify every applicant of their status after the review process.
What are we looking for in an applicant?
We are interested in journalists who have a strong interest in multimedia reporting and in advancing the adoption of technology in their news organizations. We also look for applicants who have the support of their supervisor and news organization to put the skills learned in the workshop into practice when they return to work. We look for applicants who are enthusiastic about new endeavors and the innovations that are transforming news production and delivery. Preference is given to applicants who have projects planned to which they can immediately apply the training, and have well conceived approaches for peer training in multimedia storytelling and the use of new digital media technology when they return to their news organization.
Can journalism educators apply for the workshop?
Yes. While our main mandate is to train working journalists, we have on many occasions accepted journalism educators into the workshops. We are especially inclined toward journalism educators who are teaching multimedia and need to improve their skills or those who have been put in charge of implementing a converged curriculum at their school.
Do we accept freelancers into a workshop?
We do sometimes accept freelancers. But our main mandate is to provide training for journalists who can go back to news organizations and train their fellow staff members in multimedia reporting. Freelancers who demonstrate the ability to impact the organizations they freelance for will be given preference.
Do we accept applicants who work for non-journalistic organizations?
No. Our mandate is to train journalists who work in news organizations, such as newspapers, radio and television news stations, magazines and online news publications. So you should be involved in journalism to apply.
Do we accept applicants from other countries?
Yes, but we do not provide assistance with visas or travel expenses. Most of the international applicants we have accepted into the program have been from Canada and Mexico, or were already in the U.S. at the time of the workshop. To be considered, please describe in your application your ability to attend the workshop without the aid of visas or travel expenses.
Do we accept more than one person from the same news organization for any one workshop?
We have accepted a two-person team from a single news organization and will consider other team applicants if the applicants can make a convincing case for how it will accelerate the execution of a multimedia project, staff training in multimedia, the restructuring of the newsroom to increase multimedia reporting or hasten the integration of new technologies into the news delivery and newsroom process. In most cases, we will accommodate multiple applicants from a single news organization by admitting them into workshops sequentially.
How competitive is the application process?
It is very competitive. We accept 20 people into each workshop, and we receive more than 10 times that many applications. The vast majority of those applicants also are highly qualified, so if you are not accepted it does not mean we don’t think you are deserving of the training. We just have far more people we would like to admit than we have slots for. This is why we encourage applicants to re-apply for every subsequent workshop if they are not admitted the first, second or even third time they apply.
What can I do to improve my chances of selection?
Applicants with the best chance of selection are those who have journalism projects that include a multimedia component that they plan to work on immediately after the training, who will play a pivotal role in their news organizations’ development and/or delivery of online content and those who outline a well-defined strategy for sharing the training they receive with their newsroom. Because the demand for the training is so intense, and our capacity limited, we can’t guarantee selection to anyone. We strongly encourage applicants to re-apply for future workshops. We currently offer three a year and may be adding more workshops to the schedule next year.
Will my chances improve if I re-apply for another workshop?
Yes. We do take into consideration that someone has applied for a previous workshop but been turned down. Again there are no guarantees, because the demand is so great. But highly qualified applicants who have been turned down in the past are more likely to get into a workshop than new applicants.
Do I need to know how to use video, audio or photo equipment or software programs in order to participate?
No. Our focus is on journalists who have “traditional” skills, and training them on how to use the tools needed to develop multimedia stories. Each workshop usually includes some journalists with some video, photo, audio or Web experience. But many of our fellows have little or no skills.
If I am already very skilled in multimedia, is this the workshop for me?
No. The workshop is mainly designed for people with relatively limited experience in digital media, not for highly skilled professional multimedia reporters. We go over the basics of multimedia technology as it pertains to still cameras, video cameras, audio recorders, video editing, audio editing and Web design. People proficient in these areas will probably not benefit much from our training.
Are work samples required? If so, in what format should I submit them?
Work samples are not required. If you have work that is posted online that you would like to have considered as part of your application, there is a section of the online application where you can list up to three links.
If I am selected, will I need to provide any of my own equipment?
No. All necessary equipment will be supplied during the workshop.
What equipment and computer programs will I be trained in?
We use Canon digital photo cameras, Sony mini-DV digital video cameras, and Marantz compact flash audio recorders. Our lab has Mac computers, and the software we use includes Photoshop for photo editing, Final Cut Pro for video editing, Soundtrack Pro for audio editing, Dreamweaver for Web page creation and Flash for creating photo slide shows with audio, text and video.
What if I only know how to use a Windows computer?
We will show you the basics of using the Mac computers in our lab.
Can I bring my own equipment to the workshop?
Yes, but we will provide all necessary equipment so you don’t need to bring anything. Photographers sometimes bring their own photo cameras, and you are welcome to do so.
Should I bring my laptop?
You can bring a laptop for personal use or if you want to take notes. But we won’t be able to load our software on your laptop for use in the workshop. There also are online tutorials on all the equipment, software and skills you will be taught during the workshop that you will be able to access afterward over the Internet. And all the presentations regarding online publishing topics are Webcast live and then archived so you can access those over the Internet afterward as well. So bringing your own laptop is not required for the workshop.
Where is the training held?
The workshop is held at the University of California, Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, which is in North Gate Hall on the UC Berkeley campus. Presentations are conducted in the Edwin Bayley Library, and the training is done in our multimedia lab.
Where will I stay during the workshop?
Fellows are lodged at hotels near the campus.
Do I have to pay for my lodging?
No. We cover your hotel room and tax charges, and hotel expenses are billed directly to the Knight New Media Center.
Do I have to pay for meals?
No. We provide breakfast, lunch and dinner each day of the workshop.
Do I have to pay for travel?
The Knight Digital Media Center at Berkeley no longer provides travel stipends. It is expected that your news organization will pay for your travel to Berkeley and back to your home city/town.
When is the application deadline?
The application deadline is a little over a month before the start of the workshop. Check the online application page for the exact date.
When will I be informed if I have been selected for the workshop?
Applicants are notified about their selection status via email approximately one month in advance of the workshop. At the same time we will post a note at the top of your online application about whether you were accepted into the workshop. So you also can login to your online application page and check your status there.
If I don’t get into a workshop, do I have to go through the complete application process again to be reconsidered for future workshops?
No. Our online application database will keep your materials on file indefinitely. If you aren’t accepted into a workshop, you will be notified and then only need to return and apply for the next workshop. If you want, you may update your application with additional information you think is important in the re-consideration of your application, such as new work samples or a new work assignment that increases your role in your organization’s online editorial production.
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