Star Internships

The Toronto Star Newsroom Internship Programs

The Toronto Star offers young journalists four internship programs: reporting internships in summer and year-long, and Radio Room internships for summer and fall-winter.

Interns work with full-time staff in a challenging but supportive environment. All Star internships are paid, contract positions.

We cannot accommodate volunteers, short-term placements or co-op students.

A full, unrestricted driver’s licence is required for journalist positions (Radio Room excepted).

Summer Reporting Intern Program

This is a demanding program because summer journalists are hired on vacation replacement contracts – meaning that as full-time staff disappear on vacations, summer staff are expected to step up to the demands of replacing them.

The contracts – generally ranging from 10 to 14 weeks – are for general assignment reporting positions. Successful applicants may be assigned to cover crime, courts, inquests, breaking news or health and education stories, and can write both urgent material and features; in other words, almost anything is possible. Be prepared to pitch stories to your editors. Journalists must be able to shoot photos and should have multimedia skills.

The program begins with a general orientation and includes development seminars and access to mentors.

One-year Reporting Intern Program

The one-year program runs from September to September and is open to individuals who have graduated within the past five years from a post-secondary institution and who have never held a full-time, permanent staff position at a company that publishes news daily.

Successful candidates spend time in a variety of departments including City, Sports, Living, Entertainment and Business. We welcome story pitches. Journalists must be able to shoot photos and should have multimedia skills.

The Radio Room

Radio Room reporters make regular checks with police and monitor emergency scanners and other sources of breaking news, including websites and social media. They provide quick tips to the newsroom and sometimes do original reporting for all of The Star’s platforms.

The work environment is often hectic, so successful candidates must be calm, well-organized and able to juggle several tasks at once. Radio Roomers must be able to persuade sometimes reluctant officials to talk, and be prepared to interview victims and family members touched by crimes or accidents. Strong news reporting experience is required. Experience in a daily news environment is a strong asset.

The Radio Room is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week by postsecondary students working eight-hour shifts. Several students are hired in late summer to work part-time during the school year; a second group of students is hired to work through the summer months.

Application deadlines

One-year reporting internship 2015-2016

Deadline is June 26, 2015.

Program starts Sept. 7, 2015, and ends Sept. 11, 2016.

Radio Room fall-winter 2015-2016

Deadline is July 17, 2015.

Program begins Sept. 2, 2015, and ends May 1, 2016.

Summer 2016 for Radio Room and Reporting

Deadline for both is Nov. 6, 2015.

Reporting internship starts June 13, 2016, and ends Sept. 4, 2015.

Radio Room program starts April 25, 2015, and ends Sept. 4, 2016.

What we look for:

Enthusiastic, talented, curious and intelligent journalists with a strong work ethic, a positive attitude and a passion for journalism who will bring energy, ideas and new perspectives. Strong reporting skills and the ability to work quickly and accurately are requirements. If you are fluent in a language other than English, please include that information.

A strong portfolio of published or posted work must be supplied.

Packages should contain the following collated material (in this order):

• Cover letter. Please state the position you are applying for at top of page in bold type. Include email, street address and phone number. Make sure your contact details are on the first page

• Resume

• References: at least three individuals with direct knowledge of your journalism skills and experience

• Additional supporting material, such as a work portfolio

• The best joke you’ve ever heard

Application should demonstrate:

• A range of reporting, with a strong component of news coverage

• Proven ability to report thoroughly, write well, synthesize and organize information

• Multimedia experience, including video, audio and photography

• Reporting experience outside school assignments and a demonstrated commitment to journalism as a career

• Strong interpersonal skills

• Life experience that contributes to your development/ability as a journalist

How to apply

Each position and program requires a separate application with the following exception: those who apply for reporting jobs in the summer program are automatically considered for the Radio Room as well.

Application requirements

Please read the following instructions carefully. Applications and accompanying materials will not be returned. Once applications are in, we will contact only candidates we wish to interview.

The Star accepts applications from candidates worldwide. All candidates must have the legal right to work in Canada, and paperwork must be complete when you apply. The Star will not assist any candidate in the process of applying for work permits.

Julie Carl

Deputy City Editor and Chair, Newsroom Training Committee

Toronto Star Editorial Department, 5th Floor

1 Yonge St.

Toronto, Ont.

M5E 1E6

Attention: Claire Banquerigo

Guidelines

Please provide three copies of each package in your submission. 

Use letter-size paper for all elements of the package, including photocopied clippings and photos. Do not use binders, folders, report covers or fancy packaging. Hold pages together with large paperclips.

Packages should contain complete contact information, including a full mailing address, email address and phone numbers. If you are living at a temporary address, please include alternative contact information that will not change for a six-month period (for example, your parents’ address and phone numbers).

Our decisions are final. We cannot provide individual assessments of candidates.

Applications and extra materials, such as books, flash drives, CDs, DVDs and magazines, will not be returned to applicants.

Published on June 1, 2015. Dates and details of the programs are subject to change. Any changes will be published as soon as possible.