Hiring/J-degree: Dallas Morning News

Part of a series in which professionals answer the question that students often ask me: Do you need a journalism degree to get hired in the field?

Many thanks to Denise Beeber, Assistant Managing Editor for the news and copy desks at the Dallas Morning News, for her answers.

When you hire a reporter or a copy editor, how important is it for an applicant to have a journalism degree?

It's not the first thing I look for.

We've hired people with English degrees, history degrees, sometimes no degree. Journalism students tend to work on school newspapers and pursue internships, and that experience often gives them an advantage.

Why do you look for a journalism degree, or what do you look for instead of that?

Experience. Curiosity. Knowledge of a variety of topics.

The ability to smooth a rough sentence, find a hole in a story, spot structural and organizational problems, write a headline that sings.

Is the picture different for entry-level applicants vs. experienced applicants?

With experienced applicants, there's more work to evaluate so the decision is easier. With recent grads, we rely more on the copy-editing test and how they come across in interviews. Internships are always a plus.