See where it leads
Your name. Your profile. Your work.
Contributors get a public profile page on The Mutapa Times, with a bio and every article they publish, the kind of portfolio that opens doors.
View a contributor profile
The Mutapa Times Academy
A complete online journalism course. Learn the craft, earn a certificate, get a reference from our editors, and publish your first byline.
What you leave with
Everything you need to strengthen a CV and a university or job application: proof you can do the work, a reference, and published clips with your name on them.
Awarded by The Mutapa Times Academy when you pass the lessons, checkpoints and final exam. Download it or have it emailed, and add it to your CV and LinkedIn.
Finish well and our editors provide a reference you can use for university and job applications. A real institution vouching for your skills.
Pitch a story and get published by The Mutapa Times, with your own public contributor profile showing your bio and every piece you write.
You leave with credibility: a credential, a reference and clips. Exactly what admissions officers and editors want to see.
The credential
Pass the lessons, the checkpoints and the final exam, and you earn a formal certificate of completion from The Mutapa Times Academy, with your name on it. Download it, print it, or add it to your CV and LinkedIn.
The Mutapa Times Academy
The Mutapa Times Academy certifies that
Your Name
has successfully completed
Professional Certificate in Journalism
a comprehensive programme in professional journalism and reporting, ending in a final examination and a published article reviewed by our editors.
Certificate of Completion
The journey
A clear path, one step at a time.
One payment, lifetime access. Start straight away on any device.
Thirteen units across reporting, interviewing, writing, ethics, fact-checking, the business of news and more.
Pass each lesson at 80 percent, clear the checkpoint exams, then the final exam. No shortcuts.
Your certificate of completion, ready for your CV, LinkedIn and applications.
Strong graduates receive a written reference from our editors, for universities and employers.
Pitch a real story and get it published by The Mutapa Times. Your first byline.
Get a public profile page with your bio and every story you publish. You are now a working journalist.
See where it leads
Contributors get a public profile page on The Mutapa Times, with a bio and every article they publish, the kind of portfolio that opens doors.
View a contributor profile
Built to be trusted
We want the certificate to mean something to the people who matter: the editor reading your application, the admissions officer checking your file. That trust rests on things anyone can verify, not on our say-so.
Every certificate carries a unique ID. Anyone can confirm it is genuine, and see your course, date and final mark, at our public checker. Verify a certificate.
Written work is graded against an editorial rubric, and your final article is reviewed by a working Mutapa Times editor. There is always a human in the loop.
Our graduates publish under their own byline. Do not take our word for it. Read a graduate's published work.
The curriculum
What news is, news versus PR, voice and ethics.
Who does what, how a story moves, reading an outlet.
Revenue models, paywalls, and how funding shapes coverage.
Reporting beyond stereotypes, and reading any region with a sharper eye.
Sources, interviewing, structure, the lede, clear writing, editing.
Verify every claim, then catch every error.
How journalists think, pitching, the elevator pitch, and the press release.
Who really reads, how advertising and affiliate links work, and measuring impact.
Working across platforms and building a personal brand.
A CV and cover letter that get a journalist noticed.
Plan and launch your own newsletter.
Report the problem and the evidenced response, plus the press release.
The realities of the trade in a mature market, as a benchmark.
How it works
Bite-sized, interactive lessons with instant feedback, on any device.
You need 80 percent to pass each lesson. Wrong answers mean you review and try again.
Checkpoint exams and a final exam gate your progress, so the certificate means something.
Enrol
US$50
One-time payment. Lifetime access. Compare the tracks.
We email your access and add you to the Mutapa Times newsletter. Unsubscribe any time. Secure checkout by Lemon Squeezy.
Not sure yet? Try the free taster. Need another way to pay? See the FAQ.
Questions
A complete, self-paced online journalism course from The Mutapa Times. You learn the craft through interactive lessons and exams, earn a certificate, and can work towards a published byline.
Anyone who wants to report and write: beginners, students, career changers, bloggers, and working writers who want to sharpen the fundamentals. No newsroom experience is needed.
None. It starts from the basics and builds all the way to a final exam and a real-world capstone.
News values, the newsroom, reporting and interviewing, writing and structure, fact-checking, ethics, the business of news, how advertising and affiliate links work, working with the media and pitching, the elevator pitch, the press release, measuring impact, covering places and communities fairly, solution journalism, the digital journalist, getting hired and going independent. See the full syllabus.
Eighteen units, 76 lessons and over 380 interactive exercises, with 16 checkpoint exams and a final. The Reading Room, where you read and analyse recent published articles, is compulsory before your certificate unlocks.
Yes. Alongside the Professional Certificate there is a University and Student track for journalism and media students in the UK and worldwide. It is the same course, plus a marked portfolio piece, CV-ready evidence of skills, and a reference from a working newsroom. Compare the tracks.
No. It is fully self-paced, with no live sessions and no deadlines. Learn whenever it suits you.
Most people finish over a few weeks of steady study, but there is no time limit and you keep lifetime access.
English.
It is self-paced, so you learn by doing rather than watching lectures. Our editors come in towards the end, to assess pitches and provide references.
It starts gentle and becomes genuinely demanding. You must pass each lesson at 80 percent, clear the checkpoint exams, and pass a 25-question final exam, so the certificate means something.
You simply review the material and retake it. There is no penalty and no limit on attempts.
The checkpoint and final exams run with a countdown to keep you focused, but you can retake them as often as you need.
A real-world exercise where you take an actual press release and turn it into a fair, publishable story, step by step.
Yes. It is a certificate of completion awarded by The Mutapa Times Academy, a working newsroom. It is our own credential, not a government or university accreditation. Its weight comes from the skills, the reference and the published clips behind it.
Finish the course and pass the final exam at the required mark. You can then download it or have it emailed to you.
That is the point. You leave with a credential, a reference and real published work, which is exactly what admissions officers and editors look for.
Strong graduates can receive a written reference from our editors, to use for university or job applications.
Finishing opens the contributor track. Graduates who pitch and publish with us earn a byline and a public profile page with their bio and stories. It depends on your work, but the path is real and it is what the course is built for.
Yes. Pay once and keep access for life. There is no subscription.
Yes. It works on any modern phone, tablet or computer through your browser. You need an internet connection to load the lessons.
Your progress, XP and streak are saved in your browser on the device you use, so continue on the same device and browser. Accounts that sync across devices are on the way.
For now progress is kept per device. If you need to move it, email [email protected] and we will help.
The Professional Certificate is a one-time payment of US$50. The University and Student track is US$75 and adds a marked portfolio piece and a newsroom reference. Both are one-time payments, with no subscription. Compare the tracks.
Any Visa, Mastercard or American Express card, PayPal, Apple Pay or Google Pay, from anywhere in the world.
Yes. If a card does not suit you, email [email protected] and we will arrange another method, including mobile money or bank transfer, and send you an access code to unlock the course.
The price is set in US dollars. Your bank or card converts it to your local currency at its own rate.
Yes. Payments are handled by Lemon Squeezy, a trusted payment provider that also takes care of any tax. We never see your card details.
Because it is a one-time digital purchase, you get full access straight away. If something is wrong, or it is genuinely not what you expected, email [email protected] and we will make it right.
Not at the moment; it is a single payment. If cost is a barrier, email [email protected] about local payment or group rates.
Friends you refer get a discount through your referral link. For schools, newsrooms or groups, email [email protected] about bulk enrolment, and tell us if cost is a real obstacle.
Yes. Take the free taster to sample the lessons and quizzes, then enrol when you are ready.
After you join you get a personal referral link. Friends who use it get a discount, and we credit every referral to you.
Email [email protected] and a person will help you.
Yes. Email [email protected] and we will set up group access and pricing.