A reader recently e-mailed me asking advice about his sister because she wants to get a graduate degree in journalism from a prestigious university.

She has an English degree, hasn’t done journalism before but loves to write. He was concerned, however, that now is not a great time to be entering the journalism field, and he’s right. It’s a difficult time time for journalists, and I’m not sure how many would-be journalists know about the struggles facing journalism. Nor am I confident that many would-be journalists realize what kinds of skills they’ll need to succeed in journalism.

He asked for advice, and this is the e-mail I wrote him:

Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat: Journalism is under fire right now, much more so than just about any other industry in America. More than a thousand jobs have already been cut this year from mainstream media organizations and thousands more will be in the coming months. It’s a very dark hour for journalism.

But that’s traditional journalism. New media journalism is just beginning to flourish. Your sister will have to be willing to entertain the idea of working for non-mainstream media organizations if she wants to make it in journalism. I’m confident that journalism will eventually be stronger than ever after this transitional phase.

I personally wouldn’t get a graduate degree in journalism, but I also have an undergrad degree in it and a good job. My job, however, is highly tied to the fact that I have multimedia and online skills. There in lies the issue with your sister going back to get a journalism degree.

Journalism is increasingly moving online. Journalism is really about reporting, not about writing, which means she might also have to do video, audio, HTML/CSS, databases, etc. Journalists just entering the field need to be digital natives.

My advice to her would be simple:

Only get into journalism if you are willing to work for non-mainstream media outlets. Only get into journalism if you are willing to learn new skills and techniques. Only get into journalism if you are willing to report in other forms besides writing. Only get into journalism if you are a digital native who loves the Web.

Only get into journalism is you are willing to turn this industry around. Don’t get into journalism because you loved All the President’s Men. Don’t get into journalism because you think you were born to write.

Get into journalism because you love to inform people. Get into journalism because you want to make a difference in communities. Get into journalism for the people, not yourself.