OREANDA-NEWS. April 25, 2012.  Today AccessBank, together with the British Council, announced the launch of a new project called “New Generation in Journalism”. The project will be implemented in partnership with the British Council and support by the Baku State University and Thomson Foundation. The project includes specialized courses developed by the Thomson Foundation and taught by internationally acclaimed professionals in the journalism field. The program’s aim is to increase the level of knowledge and competence in students within the journalism field to the level of international standards.

25 participants will be selected to take part in the training which will be held at Baku State University starting from September 2012 until February 2013. During the training the most active participants will be selected to go to study tour in London and Cardiff in 2013 involving visits and placements at well-known newspapers, magazines and other media establishments such as BBC, CNN, Reuters, etc and meetings with leading journalists in UK.

Applications for the programe are being accepted from today until 18 May by the British Council. Further details and the application can be found on the British Council’s and AccessBank’s web sites – www.britishcouncil.az, www.accessbank.az. The 25 selected students will be required to pass an intensive summer English language course prior to starting the official program. As part of the programme, the best performing participants will be selected for a study tour in London and Cardiff in 2013 involving visits and placements at well-known newspapers, magazines and other media institutions such as BBC, CNN, and Reuters. Additionally, the selected participants will have the opportunity to meet with leading journalists in the UK. Andrew Pospielovsky, General Manager of AccessBank, commenting the launching project said: "AccessBank is working not only for the economic development, but also for the social development of Azerbaijan and we are proud to partner with the British Council, Baku State University and Thompson Foundation to help develop the next generation of journalists in Azerbaijan."

The British Council is the UK’s leading international organization for cultural relations and educational opportunities. It operates in 109 countries worldwide. The British Council builds relationships and understanding between people in Britain and other countries to increase trust between the nations and appreciation of the UK’s ideas and achievements overseas.

The Thomson Foundation is one of Europe’s biggest media organizations empowering thousands of journalists worldwide to generate and sustain a diverse media working in over 100 countries towards encouraging the highest ethical and professional standards in media.