From intern to employee: supporting student journalists in Eastern Europe

Five students in Ukraine and Moldova received job offers from local newsrooms after completing an internship programme organised by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. 

“I believe journalism is a field for an informed and democratic society”, says Alina Vlas, a journalism student from Moldova. 

Pursuing a career in journalism is challenging anywhere in the world, with media professionals facing mis- and disinformation, insecure wages, as well as growing safety and security risks. These have been exacerbated by funding cuts in the development sector, with independent media in Eastern Europe significantly impacted. 

In Moldova and Ukraine, pursuing a career in journalism presents significant dilemmas for young people. The ongoing war in Ukraine makes journalism a perilous job, with Reporters Without Borders recording attacks on nearly 150 journalists since the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. In Moldova, many young people are moving to Romania in search of more lucrative jobs, contributing to a ‘brain drain’ that makes it difficult for the media to find young talent. The information environment in which media professionals in both of these countries are operating is also flooded with disinformation.  

As a result, journalism students are gravitating to marketing, content creation, and communications roles as they offer more reliable income and significantly fewer threats than traditional media careers. 

Paving the way for early-career journalists

In response, the Thomson Reuters Foundation has provided practical support for early career journalists in Moldova and Ukraine, equipping them with the skills they need to put their skills and interests into practice.  

A particular challenge for journalists in Eastern Europe is the gap between academia and industry, preventing young professionals from learning key skills. As part of our work to improve access to high-quality training and employment pathways for journalists in Eastern Europe, we ran internship programmes for 19 journalism students in the two countries. 

Partnering on practical internships 

The Foundation partnered with the Moldova School of Journalism and Vasyl Stus Donetsk National University in Ukraine to pilot internship programmes. Through a three-month placement, the schemes focused on news reporting, investigative reporting on social issues, and covering important regional events. 

Before the placements, we also ran an in-depth preparation course covering topics such as newsgathering, pitching and ethical reporting.  

Diana Kardash, a student journalist from Ukraine, hoped that the pre-internship course would help her learn how the work in the newsroom was organised and how to prepare for it.

“I wanted to learn what difficulties I might encounter and how to better adapt to new conditions.”
The preparation course reassured her: “All was explained in an accessible way by the practitioners.” 

Gaining newsroom experience 

After finishing the pre-internship course, the interns were matched with media outlets based on type of media and beats they wanted to work on. Each intern had a bespoke schedule and programme, with a wide range of professional tasks – not just making coffee! For example, an intern in Ukraine learnt how to work with the court registers to obtain public information, while a participant in Moldova worked on the production of radio programmes.  

“I wrote news,” explained Diana, who was offered a job at a regional local outlet in Ukraine following her internship.

“Thanks to the variety of topics, I was able to better understand the audience and the region, since I knew almost nothing about the Kherson region (ed. Southern Ukraine) before…The newsroom taught me to write more simply in order to better convey the message.” 

“Everything was new to me,” shared Alina, who finished the internship programme with flying colours and was offered a position at a leading investigative outlet in Moldova.

“Even though I’m a journalism student, I’ve never worked in a newsroom before. I’ve learnt to check everything very, very well; to call sources when I’m not clear about something; to identify news from a press release; to do [vox pops]; to talk to MEPs, experts [and] public people.” 

From interns to employed journalists 

Diana and Alina were not the only interns who landed a job – in Moldova, two further participants have also secured employment at prominent TV and radio organisations, while another student in Ukraine was also offered a job following the internship. 

Diana’s internship experience only enhanced her belief in the importance of journalism, especially in the context of conflict in her country.

“I learnt some of the nuances of covering events from the frontline and occupied territories. Once again, I am convinced that the work of journalists is responsible and important – this is especially noticeable in these regions.”

For Alina too, the internship confirmed her future career ambitions.

“I want to continue my career in journalism,” she said. “I believe it is a field for an informed and democratic society. In terms of combatting misinformation, I believe that my role as a future journalist is to rigorously check information, present the facts in a balanced way, and contribute to the development of critical thinking among the public. 

The next steps in my career include furthering my studies, gaining practical experience and getting involved in projects that promote quality journalism”, she added. 

Employment rights guide for Moldovan journalists

In addition to the internship programmes, the Foundation has developed an employment rights guide for early career journalists in Moldova. The legal guide is available in English, Romanian and Russian, and aims to equip journalists with a better understanding of employment conditions and their rights.