A former Dollar Academy pupil visited his old school recently to hold a talk for aspiring journalism students.

Vernon Baxter, who started his career as a reporter and now is the managing director of Investor Publishing, talked to some of the academy’s students about the unconventional path he walked that took him to the position he is in today.

The journalist, who left the school in 2002 with a Mile Medal, gave advice to pupils who hold hopes of entering the profession.

He told them that they will have to learn to write, work hard, be productive, build a network of contacts and read as much as they can.

Vernon explained: “Once you can write clean copy the only thing that differentiates you is what you know and who you know.” He talked about two types of knowledge: “The sort you can find out through hard work, and the sort you have no right in knowing – and the only way to get the latter is through people.” Vernon also highlighted the value of building a reputation, adding: “To get the inside track you need to earn people’s trust and they need to see value in sharing information. It’s very easy to get this wrong – you have to be tenacious about chasing a story but also dedicated to facts and exercising judgement.” The English, History and Modern Studies Departments as well as the staff of The Galley were all very grateful for Mr Baxter for making time to visit.