"South Africa's Next Top Journalist"

Walk down the passage, hand over portfolio, sign receipt, walk away and wait to be rejected or accepted. Today was the day that our journalism application was due and the light weight flip file was definitely not a true reflection of the experience that I had this year. As you may have gathered from previous posts I am not necessarily a mascot for Rhodes and have struggled for a long time but since I realised that it is not always about me, have decided to stay. Initially I found the JMS course and department isolating in its competitiveness. I realise that in every way they are trying to prepare us for the cut throat nature of the real media world but I could not and still cannot handle how cut throat we have become. We are still wet behind the ears yet are prepared to push and pull our way to get into JMS 2. From the start of the year we are reminded in almost every lecture that only 120 students out of the 280 will be given the chance to realise our dream. I feel like I am in “America’s Next Top Model”, where Tyra Banks states, “In my hand, I hold the picture of those who are still in the running to become Americas Next Top Model”. My immediate reaction is a deep desire to slap her face and this is exactly how I felt every time I hear that statement from the JMS lecturers. I also felt that there was no team effort to get us through; instead when I look at my fellow students I see murder in their eyes. It is worrying that we are taught this so early on but on the other, realistic hand, it is suicide if we are not. So we pour our hard earned hearts into our portfolio, which is a pathetic representation of our work and hand it in with a kiss and a prayer and can only hope that we cut enough throats to get through and become “South Africa’s Next Top Journalist”.