Journalism schooling has had its share of criticism due to the quality of reporting in the country. Insufficient resources and skills are pointed out as the most pressing issues in the field.

For broader insight, The New Times’ Ange Iliza spoke to Yann Gwet, a Cameroonian author and journalist. 

Gwet, a journalism lecturer at the University of Rwanda, also works for French newspaper, Le Monde, and has written extensively about Africa in Jeune Afrique. His first book was published in March 2019 titled Vous avez dit retour? He is a graduate of Sciences Po Paris and has been living and working in Rwanda for three years. He talks about journalism education at the university, and what it takes to be a good journalist.

The worrying reading culture in journalism students

As a supervising lecturer of the journalism school newspaper, Kamiuza Star, Gwet says that there is definite truth in the view that students in journalism do not read.

"Journalists are expected to understand the world more, to be able to explain it to others. Especially for those who will become writers, they need to read to be able to write well.

"I found it unfortunate that students were not reading as much as I felt they should. Therefore, I called their attention to the need to read — I sometimes forced them to. Most of them were surprised. And it was challenging because they were not used to that,” he says. 

Gwet adds that it takes time. "Therefore, while having a clear strategy in place, we must be patient. I have evidence that environment matters. With the right approach and a proper environment, students can read. So there is hope.”

Education quality vs market

Asked if he thinks journalism students in Rwanda are well equipped for the available market, Gwet says, "They are always things to be improved. However, a degree is never enough, not only in Rwanda, but all over the world.  The School of Journalism in Rwanda is doing well, considering constraints under which it works, the way students are linked to the professional world should be improved.

"In journalism, experience is often the best teacher. Developing career coaching to help students understand and navigate the job market would be a good thing as well. We could be more aggressive in providing internship opportunities for students.”

As an international journalist, Gwet thinks journalism in Rwanda has a promising drift. He mentions, however, that there is room for improvement, mostly in the use of technology and other skills. 

Aspiring journalists need to change mindset

Journalism is an interesting and very challenging field to be in, and increasingly so, Gwet says. "This might make it hard to find and keep a job, therefore, journalists need to have ‘an entrepreneur mindset’.”

"I would advise aspiring journalists to look for opportunities, to be able to adjust, to keep learning, and improve, to be curious because things are changing a lot.”

He points out that, with the many changes in the field of journalism, an entrepreneur mindset is very important.

"In Rwanda and elsewhere, when you see all the young people coming to the job market, it’s difficult for all to find jobs. So entrepreneurship has to come into play, at least for some. It is good that some students think about it. But they have to prepare for that. And it seems to me that often, entrepreneurship is viewed as somewhat cool and easy, which is not true.”

editor@newtimesrwanda.com

This interview was partly conducted by Moise Mugisha Bahati, Peace Mutesi, David Mfuranziza and Remy Uwayo, students at the School of Journalism and Communication.