Ideal teacher: student perspective in higher journalism education

<jats:p>The article is based on materials from training sessions in master's program in Journalism at St. Petersburg State University. As part of the course "Methods of Teaching Journalism in Higher Education", students were asked to write a portrait of their favorite professor, highlighting both their professional and personal qualities. The purpose of the study was to identify the qualities of a teacher that make the strongest impression on students and, as a result, to draw a collective portrait of a faculty member. The peculiarity of the analysis method is its focus on students' direct impressions, expressed in emotional and creative form, rather than on standardized survey questions. As it turned out, students equally value erudition, mastery of popular presentation of material, openness to communication and a wide range of interests in their mentors. Thus, the ideal portrait appears as a reflection of an organic combination of diverse qualifications and personal features.</jats:p>