Novak Djokovic Foundation is pleased to announce an open call for NDF Writing Fellows 2014/2015. This is an ideal opportunity for those who are looking to get to a byline and build their clips portfolio for a future career in journalism. Meet Daniel Sargent and Marine Strauss, NDF Writing Fellows 2013/2014 and learn what they have to say about their experience.

1. How would you qualify your experience as the NDF Writing Fellow?

Daniel Sargent: I thoroughly enjoyed serving as an NDF Fellow for the Sports page. It was challenging to think of new articles each week but I had the opportunity to write about interesting topics ranging from physical education to the Paralympic Games.

Marine Strauss: My experience as the NDF Fellow has been very enriching. I have been writing for the foundation since June 2014 on various topics such as eating habits, body image, tracking device or PG ratings among others. It is always a pleasure to discover which topic I am assigned, research it and write it. It is also very rewarding when people comment and engage with an article I wrote. The mission of the foundation is something I personally believe in, since it was important for me that it was aligned with my values and beliefs.

2.  What did you learn through the process?

Daniel Sargent: This fellowship helped me learn how to write for different audiences. Some articles provided advice for parents on raising active children. Other articles highlighted sport NGOs and their impact on children. It was beneficial to learn how to write both topical and more academic pieces.

Marine Strauss:Through the process I learned that the less I knew about a topic or something in general, the more I enjoyed writing about it. Even when sometimes I would receive the title and thought “how can I write about such and such”, I found it easier to address it because I had no expectations or bias towards it.

3. In what ways the fellowship has helped your writing career?

Daniel Sargent: It has helped me increase my number of bylines and improve as a writer on a weekly basis. In addition, I work in the sports industry so I have been able to reference this fellowship as a source of professional development.

Marine Strauss:The fellowship has helped me practice my writing almost every week, which is the most important thing for someone who wants to pursue a writing career. Practice makes perfect, and only through writing more and more can you find and improve your style. Writing on a wide range of topic has also been very helpful and allowed me to expand my horizons in terms of researching and writing.

4.  Why would you recommend this program to the students? Why is it beneficial?

Daniel Sargent: This is an excellent program for students; not only will they gain more writing experience, but they will also have an opportunity to learn more about    diverse work of the Foundation. I enjoyed writing about sports, but I equally enjoyed reading many insightful articles on NDF site about health, parenting, and education.

Marine Strauss: I would definitely recommend students to apply for this program because it is very flexible, different every week and it is a great opportunity to start a writing career. It does not take a lot of time which makes it easy to commit to the position on the long-term, even after finding a job. It is beneficial since it puts your name out there, enhances your portfolio and, let’s face it, everybody thinks you are working for No.1 tennis player Novak Djokovic – how cool is that!?

5. Where do you work now and on what position?

Daniel Sargent: I work as an Analyst at CSL International. CSL International is a consulting firm that specializes in feasibility studies for new sports stadiums. I help with  research and write case studies for Premier League Soccer and NBA teams.

Marine Strauss:I am now working for Bloomberg News in London, as a Billionaires reporter.

Information for Applicants

Who Are the NDF Writing Fellows?

They are original voices. They are students or recent graduates, poised for the next step in their career. NDF Writing Fellows are passionate about fostering a positive impact through their writing.They join the Novak Djokovic Foundation editorial team with a mission to influence and change their surroundings for the better.

The Program

During the four month program , NDF Writing  Fellows are fully immersed in all the segments of the editorial at the Novak Djokovic Foundation. They publish every week and  share their expertise and ideas and engage in developing engaging stories.

Skills Development

NDF Writing Fellows are looking to start off their writing careers and  set out on the journey towards the career with great professional impact. Novak Djokovic Foundation provides the experienced team of our Chief Editors to guide and mentor the Fellows into becoming professional writers. Every Writing Fellow is given an opportunity to pitch the ideas, engage in the NDF debates and get the peer feedback. The NDF Writing Fellows program is  designed to increase confidence of young writers and enhance their skills for a professional career in media, philanthropy and  journalism.

How to Apply?

Online application will not be considered completed unless it has:

• a cover letter, résumé,
• 3 to 5 clips of your work
• list of references with the choice of the section you would like to contribute to, including a 800/900 word feature discussing the topic of your choice

All applications should be sent to careers@novakdjokovicfoundation.org

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We are expanding! Novak Djokovic Foundation blog  is expanding into a Media Platform and we would like to issue an OPEN CALL for authors/contributors to join us.

Ideal candidates:

• talented authors with a genuine interest in education, philanthropy, NGOs, sports, health, nutrition, parenting tips etc.
• have blogged, interned at a website or magazine and/or worked on a college publication.

Authors will work directly with the country/section editor to contribute daily news posts, features, and articles.  Writers will have an opportunity to produce at least three articles weekly and be featured on the media platform as contributors.  This is an ideal opportunity for those who are looking to get a byline and build a clips portfolio to pursue a career in journalism.

The ideal candidates should have strong voice,  proven writing skills, experience pitching stories, a wealth of ideas,  be absolutely fanatical about meeting deadlines  and be passionate about covering one of the following topics:

EDUCATION

Looking for strong writers to cover range of topics on education spanning from early childhood education to college level education to online learning and technology. If you are passionate about education and you can make complex issues appeal to a broad audience, we would like to hear from you.

INSPIRATIONAL STORIES

Tell us about the most inspirational thing you’ve read, heard, or seen this week. It can be an article that inspired you, a video that lit you up, or something meaningful that happened to you or to someone you know. We are looking for stories about people who make a difference in the world by organizing others around them to support meaningful causes. This doesn’t need to be about people helping people, it can also be about people helping animals and similar.

PHILANTHROPY

Are you passionate about individuals who use innovation and philanthropy to create a better world? We are looking for writers who are able to write quickly and produce compelling original content.

NON PROFIT

We are looking for business majors with good writing skills to write sections on management of Non Profit Organizations and the Law school students and graduates with good writing skills to write about legal requirements of running an NGO. Ideal candidates should be able to write snap articles on legal and management aspects of How to set up and run an NGO? The articles must appeal to the broad public and should be written in an interesting and appealing manner. Please bear in mind that we are not offering legal opinions but only describing what leading an NGO pertains.

PARENTING TIPS

Moms and paps bloggers would be needed to jump in with their valuable knowledge and to share them with the NDF followers. This section will feature HOW TO and KNOW HOW of having a child. It should be written in conversational style and from the parent’s perspective.

SPORTS

The ideal candidates are resourceful and energetic self-starters with   at least one year  of experience covering college   sports news, game stories, and or features.

HEALTH and NUTRITION

Responsibilities include researching the latest fitness, health, nutrition and diet news; pitching and writing items for our health, fitness and nutrition news pages; reporting and writing sidebars to articles; writing posts for our blog. Candidates should have an interest in health and fitness and/or a previous internship with editorial experience.

Online application will not be considered  completed unless it has:

• a cover letter, résumé,
• 3 to 5 clips of your work
• list of references with the choice of the section you would like to contribute  to, including a 600 to 1000 word feature discussing the topic  of your choice (from the sections above).

All applications should be sent to  careers@novakdjokovicfoundation.org

DISCLAIMER: All positions are voluntary  at the moment.

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