How to become a media pro?
Updated: Sep 29, 2022
Media professionals work in television, radio, magazines, and companies that provide digital services. They are experts in videos, photos, sound, light, communication, and various productions that can be broadcast, printed, published, or communicated to the mass.
After secondary school (peruskoulun ylä-aste), you can continue your studies either in a vocational school which is called ammattikoulu or high school, which is called lukio. High schools typically concentrate on general studies such as math, mother tongues, religion, physics, etc., while vocational schools are focused on education designed to provide technical skills required to perform the tasks of a particular and specific job.
What personal skills are needed for the media industry
You are creative and innovative. You like to work in a pressured environment of tight schedules and strict deadlines. You have good teamwork skills and can work in different projects on a weekly, monthly, or extended period.
What are the characteristics of the industry
Media workers adapt to their schedule of working hours, environment, and convenience. Some projects and tasks might be produced late at night, and work time might be over 16 hours or more. The environment and weather conditions might change depending on the project schedule, therefore entrepreneurial mindset and flexibility are needed.
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Who will hire media professionals
Media houses, production companies, event production companies, game houses, advertising and communication agencies and sound studios, and theaters employ media professionals. Professional media work is typically done by freelancers or business owners themselves.
Media studies
If you don't have a degree in media studies, then you have to apply to one of the vocational schools after secondary school. The professional degree is called Vocational qualification in Media and Visual Expression, which is in Finnish language Media-alan ja kuvallisen ilmaisun perustutkinto.
After graduating, you can call yourself as a Media Service Provider or Visual Expression Executor, and the older title, which was called media-assistant has not been in use since 2017. If you want to have a primary degree as a media professional in Finland, you have to learn Finnish though. Many vocational schools in Finland provides basic Media Studies. In Helsinki, you can try your luck at the Stadin ammatti- ja aikuisopisto.
You can continue your study path as a Medianomi in a Polytechnic University. There are English degrees available in South- Eastern University of Applied Sciences, which is in Mikkeli as Bachelor of Culture and Arts and Game Design and Degree Programme in Media at Tampere University of Applied Sciences.