Moldovan Graduate and Undergraduate Students Pursue Journalism in US

 Educational Fellowships in the United States provide opportunities for advancement at multiple levels of career studies. A recent example is that of two Moldovan fellows, graduate student Nadine Gogu and undergraduate student Mariana Oprea, who both pursued journalism at different stages of their lives and for different reasons, but both gaining valuable experience that would help them upon their return home.

Nadine Gogu’s journalistic convictions have led her career for 13 years, two of which she spent earning a master’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication at Oklahoma State University as a fellow on the Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program (Muskie), a program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State and administered by IREX.

Before her Muskie fellowship, Nadine worked for a Moldovan news agency, a weekly newspaper, and for the nonprofit Independent Journalism Center in Moldova (IJC), which provides assistance to local journalists and independent newspapers. As a program coordinator there, Nadine organized training programs for journalists and compiled studies on media assessment needs and media monitoring. It was during this work that she recognized her career needed training in media research and media management to really advance most effectively, and so she decided to apply for a Muskie fellowship.

Nadine’s goal was to study the media business and principles of media operation in a democratic society, as well as to observe how American journalists do their jobs. While a graduate student at Oklahoma State University, she took several classes towards her interests and volunteered with a local high school’s newspaper, assisting the editorial staff.

After returning to Moldova, Nadine returned to IJC in Chisinau. Since June 2007 she has worked as a researcher and editor on a major project on media monitoring in Media in Moldova analytical magazine. In May she was named vice-director of IJC. Since last September, Nadine has also been working with the Chisinau School of Advanced Journalism as a trainer and consultant. In the latter capacity she has been assessing media projects edited by students and designing a new enrollment campaign for the 2008-2009 academic year.

Reflecting on her time in America, Nadine explains that her Muskie fellowship enabled her to learn a great deal not just in the classes but also while working with Americans in the newsroom. “The firsthand experience on how a newspaper should be managed to transform it into a good business changed my perspective on how to manage a newspaper in Moldova.” Nadine plans to continue her work with IJC and the Chisinau School of Advanced Journalism, as well as further her research efforts in media research.

Undergraduate student Mariana Oprea of Lozova, Moldova, started writing for Florida Gulf State University’s Eagle News as a way of improving her English language skills. As a fellow on the Eurasian Undergraduate Exchange Program (UGRAD), a program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the US Department of State and administered by IREX, Mariana enthusiastically approached this extracurricular activity. Not only did she improve her English, but she also quickly became much more in tune with campus activities and perspectives on a variety of topics, writing about study-abroad fairs, disease control, Constitution Day, and various other topics.

The newspaper also gave Mariana the opportunity to share her own ideas with the rest of the student body. ldquo;While writing for Eagle News, I had a great interest in campus events, especially those related with international students. I was very interested in [the] anti-human-trafficking movement on campus, so I wrote an article about this current problem, in order to arouse awareness. What I like most of all about our newspaper is that everyone can find useful information, and express their opinion about campus issues. The newspaper represents not only a source of information, but a way of freely expressing ideas.”

After returning to Moldova, Mariana intends to continue her education as an English linguist, with the possibility of writing research articles for her university. “I understood how much research work journalism requires, and I think that this field is designed for people with a great passion for it.”