Students, graduates, or those without formal training among those eligible to enter; submissions must be made before deadline on 17 January, 2024…
The SJA, in association with talkSPORT, is inviting entries for its Academy Award, created for those at the start of their journey in sports journalism.
Entrants eligible for the award may include students, graduates, or those without formal training.
The winner will be invited to attend the SJA British Sports Journalism Awards in March 2024; undertake a work placement with talkSPORT; and get the opportunity to meet with an SJA committee member to discuss their work and career development.
The SJA Academy Award is named after the SJA Academy, a free-to-join membership level of the SJA for anyone interested in a career in sports journalism. Entrants do not have to be members but are encouraged to join.
Please see below for eligibility criteria and how to enter...
Kathryn Anastasi, Deputy head of talkSPORT: “talkSPORT and News Broadcasting are proud and delighted to be supporting the SJA Academy Award this year.
“Celebrating and encouraging those at the start of their careers has never been more important. Our millions of consumers challenge us to provide the very best journalism.
“New talent provides new thinking, new ambition and new potential – it’s the lifeblood of our constant evolution.
“We are passionate about making sure this career is open to everyone. Broad perspectives make better content and this award is open to applicants across all mediums, be it student journalism, blogging, social media, audio or video.
“So whatever your flavour of sports journalism, we encourage you to enter – and we can’t wait to welcome the winner to talkSPORT for a work placement.”
Who is eligible?
Entry is open to anyone with less than one year of full-time experience in professional journalism, or those for whom journalism has never made up their primary source of income. This may include students, graduates, or those without formal training.
We particularly welcome applications from those who feel their voices and communities are under-represented in the sports journalism industry.
Please contact james@s2fevents.co.uk if you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application.
What to submit:
Entrants may submit up to three pieces of their work produced between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2023, as well as no more than 200 words per submission explaining each piece.
Entries may be from across print, digital, broadcast or any other medium the candidate feels best reflects their work and potential as a sports journalist.
We ask that broadcast entries are no longer than 10 minutes each. If you wish for us to consider a clip from a larger piece, please note on your entry form the start and end times of the section that you would like the panel to review.
Submissions may consist of published or unpublished work. Candidates may also submit work expressly created for the purpose of this application, should they wish.
Shortlisted entrants may be asked to complete an additional assignment or task.
Judging criteria:
A diverse panel of judges will consider a number of criteria including quality of storytelling, news sense, accuracy, reporting, and originality.
Deadline: 17 January 2024
Prize: The winner will be invited to attend the SJA British Sports Journalism Awards event in March 2024; undertake a work placement with talkSPORT; and get the opportunity to meet with an SJA committee member to discuss their work and career development.
*Terms and conditions apply