Careers

We are a team of experienced journalists guiding students to be competitive in the job market. We offer one‐on‐one advising, a full calendar of career workshops and events, an annual Career Expo and extensive professional development resources.

Our Commitment

We believe that every Columbia student is uniquely talented, and we are committed to helping each student launch and achieve their individual goals. Our personalized career guidance covers all facets of the job hunt, from writing resumes and cover letters, to developing interview skills, finding mentors and negotiating equitable salaries, to understanding news media companies and what they’re looking for in job and internship candidates.

We encourage all efforts to end discrimination of any kind in hiring practices, promotions, beat assignments and other areas of newsroom management in the media. We promise to uphold principles of anti-racism, inclusion and equal treatment in our offices and to communicate these values to employers. 

The Office of Career Development trains, supports and advocates for every student regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, geography, religion, disability, academic and extracurricular interest, family circumstance, sexual orientation, gender-identity or socio-economic background.

#CJSInclusion

Career Development

female mentor working with female student

Editors, producers and hiring managers consistently seek out J-School students and graduates to find the reporting and cutting-­edge skills they need in their newsrooms.

Advisors meet one-­on-­one with students to guide them through every stage of the job-­hunting process, so they can find jobs and internships that make the best use of their skills and interests.

Students learn valuable career­-building strategies including:

  • How to write journalism-­specific resumes and cover letters that best highlight skills and prior experience
  • An understanding of the profile, structure and kinds of positions available in multimedia newsrooms
  • Ways to showcase selected work through social media and online portfolios
  • Strategies to mine job opportunities, develop contacts and network
  • How to prepare for and succeed in a job interview
  • Negotiating offers
  • How to pitch freelance work to editors

See where the class of 2023 landed.

The annual spring Career Expo is open exclusively to graduating students at Columbia Journalism School. The Career Expo showcases a wide range of news organizations, from legacy media to digital startups. Newsrooms from across the nation and globe participate to meet our students.

Columbia students are trained in reporting, writing, video, photo, audio, data visualizations and investigative techniques. Many of our grads gain subject expertise in business and economics, politics and global affairs, science, and arts and culture reporting. 

Following each year’s expo, our advisors guide students as they build on their new contacts, manage follow‐up interviews, weigh offers and negotiate terms. The expo is a networking opportunity where professional relationships start and continue for years to come.

Every year, Columbia Journalism School graduating students have the opportunity to compete for a range of exclusive, paid, post‐graduate fellowships and internships. These include reporting and editing media research fellowships based at the Journalism School and a number of other fellowships at some of the most prestigious news organizations in the U.S. and overseas.

These exclusive opportunities include fellowships at Columbia Journalism Review, Columbia Journalism Investigations, internships at member newsrooms of the Institute for Nonprofit News (INN), and several other fellowships and internships in the news industry such as ABC News, BBC, Frontline and other companies. Opportunities evolve every year.

In addition, graduating students also have the chance to apply for fellowships from the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting to fund short-term reporting projects.

Whether you are coming straight from college, changing professions or seeking to redirect or accelerate your journalism career, the Office of Career Development will help you plan your job hunt. 

Visit Career Development for Students to learn more.

The Office of Career Development works throughout the year to connect employers with our students and alumni for paid internships, freelance opportunities and jobs. We offer several resources for employers including:

  • Free accounts on 12twenty, our password‐protected job listing database
  • Meet the Media: brown bag sessions with students
  • Interview days on campus and virtually
  • Promoting jobs and internships to students and alumni
  • Career Expo: an opportunity to network with the largest journalism job fair in the country

Employers who would like to connect with the Office of Career Development or meet J-School students are encouraged to email Shumaisa Rehman-Nabi, assistant director of Career Development.

Columbia students benefit from a vast and loyal alumni network like no other in journalism. J-school alumni occupy many top jobs in newsrooms and frequently “pay it forward” by reaching out to their alma mater to fill positions. More recent alumni are also generous in offering guidance and connections. Throughout your time at Columbia, you’ll develop career-building skills and networks that will help you for years to come.

Alumni have access to a variety of career resources online.

If you are an alum who is a hiring editor or producer and want to advertise opportunities or interview students for jobs and paid internships, we welcome you to post on 12twenty, our free career management database, or contact Career Development. See Information for Employers.

Meet the team

Anusha Shrivastava
Anusha Shrivastava

Associate Dean
[email protected]

Gina Boubion
Gina Boubion
Shumaisa Rehman-Nabi
Shumaisa Rehman-Nabi

Assistant Director
[email protected]

Contact us

Need help with JobNews, recruiting or registering for the Career Expo? Contact Shumaisa Rehman-Nabi, assistant director of Career Development.