Raveena Ghattaura: BA (Hons) English Literature & Drama 2010-2013; MA Journalism 2013-2014, Good Morning Britain presenter at ITV News Anglia
“Two degrees? Well, I never thought I’d come out of uni with that! Winchester is such a great university and it makes me feel proud. You can forget how much you’ve achieved sometimes but I just count myself lucky.“
Raveena Ghattaura has gone from reading Shakespeare to reading news scripts. After graduating with a BA (Hons) English Literature and Drama degree in 2013, Raveena decided to study a Masters in Journalism. This resulted in her discovering a love for sports journalism and working for ITV Anglia for six years where she is currently a reporter and presenter.
“I wanted to be an actress. I love writing so doing an English Literature with Drama course for three years was a great time. I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I finished though so I decided to do an MA in Broadcast Journalism for a year. The MA is full on! You don’t stop. You do radio, Winchester News Online (WINOL), TV, shorthand.“
“I did placements at ITN sports desk, Men’s Fitness magazine and BT Sport with the help of connections through my lecturer. In 2014 I started an internship with Creative Access at ITV Anglia, then got onto the prestigious ITV Traineeship which lasted nine months. Part way through, I got a job as a production journalist and did that until July 2018. I then became a reporter which I still am doing and now I also present breakfast for ITV Anglia during Good Morning Britain which I have been doing since August. I also do weekends, lunchtimes and Bank Holidays.“
Raveena credits both the Masters and her undergraduate degree for giving her the skills needed to become a reporter and news presenter.
“The two degrees marry really well with what I do now. My undergrad has helped me even with being a journalist because when you are presenting you are sort of acting and it gives you the confidence to improvise when things go wrong. The literature side of my degree has helped too because I wouldn’t have good writing skills and storytelling abilities without it.”
“Without WINOL I wouldn’t be where I am today. My MA gave me experience and the confidence to do what I do today. The course had amazing lecturers with people at the top of their game. Given this and the chance to do our own news programme, WINOL is such a good stepping stone. As an ITV news intern I already knew what I needed to do and what to expect. I just had to top up my skills. It gave me the confidence to grow as a journalist. “
Aside from studying Shakespeare plays, Raveena wanted to perform them too so she joined the Performing Arts Society during her time as an undergraduate at Winchester. She says this was a great way to build her confidence and mix with a range of year groups.
“I was part of the Performing Arts Society for a while. I performed a Shakespeare show with them – I think it was A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I loved it and I would love to do amateur theatre again but I am too busy. It is a great way to meet people, spend your evenings doing something and having fun. It built my confidence and my social skills, especially because you are working with people in different year groups. It also helped me to work on my improvisation skills. “
Raveena has many happy memories from both her undergraduate and her Masters degree but says her favourite memory at Winchester combines her love of football and reporting.
“I love football – I support Manchester United. During my Masters, my lecturer asked me and a friend to commentate a football match. I did it and it was good. He then asked me to be on the sports reporting team. It made me proud being the only female to film football by myself in the cold, when it was snowing. That gave me a unique selling point as a journalist. I was also thankful when another lecturer helped me to get work experience at ITN and BT Sport. These are memories I’ll never forget.“
Raveena enjoys her current job. However, she plans to progress even further in her career as a journalist and hopes to move back into sports journalism.
“Since I left university, every year I have gone up in the career ladder. My internship started before my MA ended, then I have progressed every year since. I carry on growing and learning as a reporter, so I would love to become a sports presenter or a presenter on This Morning. I want to be breaking the norms for women and people from diverse backgrounds.”
“Another step up would be to present national news. I am only 28 so I still have time on my side and I will see where I develop in the next year.“
Now Raveena has six years of experience on screen at ITV, she has insightful advice for those who are looking to work in local and national news.
“Work experience is so important no matter what it Is, especially for journalists. Just get your foot in the door. You’ll meet new faces and it will help you to get jobs in the future.”
“I wouldn’t have met my lecturers if it wasn’t for doing my Masters but I was always trying to make contacts. I would write letters to BBC radio Solent and the Hampshire Chronicle where I would produce match reports. It all helps in the long run to improve your editing, writing and reporting. It can be heart-breaking but believe in yourself and keep going.”
“Do your own blog, social medias and podcasts or YouTube channel – anything to give you a unique selling point. The more you can do for yourself, the more you can do to help your future.”
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