Higher Education Reporter

If you’re a journalist who thinks college is the key to the future, the place where researchers invent life-changing new technologies, where the workforce of tomorrow is taking shape and where young people can gain the skills for a better life, you might be the next higher education reporter at CalMatters.

This is a significant time for America’s largest public university system. It is considering how to prepare students for a rapidly changing future and new ways to teach them. It is a time of wonder and exploration for scientific research. And it is a time when colleges remain an important bridge to address inequality. California’s private and public systems of higher education also face significant challenge as K12 schools struggle with an achievement gap, graduation rates are not keeping up and many consider the financial support inadequate.

We seek a reporter who’s excited about telling this story. Someone who will closely follow the high stakes discussions involving political and academic leaders as well as employers and students. This reporter will be engaged with key contacts in the Legislature and the governor’s administration. He or she will work closely with leaders of the state’s three public higher education systems and be savvy about the state’s private institutions

CalMatters recently expanded its attention on higher education issues, offering this reporter more resources for news gathering. In 2020, we are creating a College Journalism Network of student journalists at campuses across the state. The student journalists will write about major state issues and help report on issues that impact their campus.

Responsibilities include: 

• Report and write longform and short stories and multimedia presentations about California higher education issues with close attention to state policies and legislation, academic leadership and student perspectives.
• Think creatively about formats and tools for communicating health issues to a broad, statewide audience.
• Participate in radio shows, public events and live video.
• Work with our data, visual and social media journalists to create the best presentations of health stories.

These would be a plus:

• There is a strong preference this reporter will be based in Sacramento
• Fluent in Spanish
• Experience at higher education coverage
• An understanding of higher education policy, especially in California

We are an expanding and collaborative newsroom, successfully forging a new model for sustainable, intelligent, nonprofit journalism. We’re committed to diversity and especially encourage members of underrepresented communities to apply. If you’re interested, please provide a resume, a cover letter that outlines how you would approach the job and links to at least six online samples of your work. Write to [email protected] with the job title in the subject line.