Shawaz Ahmad
MA INTERNATIONAL JOURNALISM
Shawaz Ahmad is an upcoming multi-media journalist and story-teller, specialising in topics relating to human rights and global affairs.
Shawaz graduated from Middlesex University where she attained a first-class honour in BA Journalism. During her time there, she was actively involved with the Journalism society and MDX Conversations, to help organise and direct journalism related events. She was hosting weekly shows on the student radio channel, discussing politics and current affairs with her co-host and guests. In her second year, she was able to secure a placement at BBC London, where she gained valuable experience about news-gathering and working in a fast-pace newsroom.
Shawaz is currently the assistant manager at MTA UK, a national Muslim broadcasting TV channel. She has been working with MTA UK for over four years, and has had the experience of script-writing, editing, recording TV news packages and directing short documentaries with a small team. She feels that working with her community has allowed her to gain essential experience and work on pieces that tackle the negative portrayal of Muslims in the U.K.
It has only been one term of Shawaz’s Masters studies at City University in International Journalism, and in this short amount of time she has produced radio, print and TV pieces, learnt about ethics and law and global journalism. She is looking forward to the terms ahead, specifically her specialism module Reporting in the Middle East and working on her final project assignment.
Part of this scholarship will be completed with an internship at the Mirror. Shawaz is keen to put her previous experience in journalism and her studies into practice at The Mirror, and learn from experts in the field. She believes that this opportunity will allow her to amplify the voices of minorities and marginalised communities that are under-reported in the media.
Shawaz’s aim has always been to help people and create change through her passion of journalism. This opportunity has opened many doors for her, and she is certain that it will make a significant contribution to her career and future.