Oslo minority quota for journalism not filled

Students in Norway with minority backgrounds apply mainly for traditional occupations when it comes to their study programs.

Journalism is not among the professions they choose.

Oslo Met has a minority quota in journalism studies where 5 of 70 study places are reserved for minority students, according to Universitas.

“We have struggled to fill the quota. There has been a discussion about removing it,” Anders Graver Knudsen, senior lecturer in journalism at the Oslo Met, noted.

Knudsen thinks that the fact that journalism at the Oslo Met has a minority quota is not communicated well enough.

“The industry is changing”

Kadafi Zaman, a journalist specializing in crime at TV 2, says the industry is changing.

“I still believe that minority youth choose traditional and safe professions like medicine because it gives them more security than journalism, but the industry is changing.

There are more and more role models in journalism that can show minority youth how it’s done,” Zaman told Universitas.

Zaman confirmed that there were challenges for a journalist with a minority background, but he also argued that there are many advantages.

“I have gained confidence and access to environments that other journalists haven’t, because I speak Urdu and have a multicultural experience,” he said.

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today