Scottish press agency, Deadline News, has been presented with an unusual problem next month – three of its new recruits have requested the same day off to attend their graduation.
Amanda MacMillan, Christine Lavelle and Clare Carswell have all joined the Edinburgh outfit fresh from completing the same NCTJ-accredited MA Multimedia Journalism course at Caledonian University in Glasgow.
All three are now preparing for their graduation ceremony on the 25th of next month.
Said consulting managing editor at the agency, Shaun Milne: “It’s never ideal to have so many staff off at the same time – but these are pretty exceptional circumstances.
“After all, it’s not every day you get to graduate and we’re just thrilled that all their hard work and effort – which is now being put to good use for us as an agency – has paid off for them.
“The standard of graduate from the MA Multimedia Journalism course at Caledonian University has been quite exceptional, and they are proving a real credit to their lecturers there.
“We have deliberately recruited journalists with these key skills in anticipation of the future needs of our national media clients. As online and social media content becomes an industry standard, their requirements are evolving, and we aim to be ready to serve what is an exciting and dynamic emerging new market.”
“Their addition to our team means we now have a squad of journalists who are fully trained in video, podcasting and print as we look to build on our reputation as Scotland’s leading multi-media news agency and exploit new opportunities to the full.”
Carswell, who had been working freelance with the BBC prior to joining Deadline, has been awarded a distinction from her course leaders. MacMillan had been shifting with various papers including the Greenock Telegraph, while Lavelle was the first of the graduates to be snapped up by the agency.
