Henri-Nannen-Schule

What Henri-Nannen-Schule does

The Henri-Nannen-Schule is a private journalism school in Hamburg, Germany, founded in 1979 and operated as a consortium by three major German publishing houses: Gruner+Jahr, Der Spiegel, and Die Zeit. It delivers a 24-month professional journalism training program covering the full breadth of journalistic craft, from investigation and court reporting to podcast production, video journalism, and online writing. The school admits 18 students per cohort, structures the curriculum around five editorial internships and six seminar blocks, and draws approximately 120 trainers and lecturers directly from active editorial offices including Der Spiegel, Die Zeit, Stern, Tagesschau, NDR, RTL, FAS, and SZ Magazin. The program is branded as a 'Werkstatt für Medienmacher' (workshop for media makers) and is explicitly positioned around restoring public trust in journalism through craft and integrity.

The school is not a technology company; its core product is craft-based professional education with no proprietary technology stack, product, or platform. Its business model is funded and supported by its three publisher-parents, with revenue mechanics not publicly disclosed. Adjacent offerings include the KOMPASS-Förderprogramm (a funding program for external participants) and an external course catalog covering podcasting, social media, and fact-checking, targeting SMB/individual buyers through a direct enrollment channel. The school employs approximately 26 staff, supplemented by a large network of contractor-trainers, and markets primarily through its website (henri-nannen-schule.de) and organic social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Name

Henri-Nannen-Schule

Legal name

Henri-Nannen-Schule

Website

https://journalistenschule.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Henri-Nannen-Schule is a Hamburg-based journalism school founded in 1979 and operated by a consortium of Gruner+Jahr, Der Spiegel, and Die Zeit. It runs a 24-month training program for 18 students per cohort, taught by ~120 trainers from German newsrooms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Journalism Education and Training

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Professional and Management Development Training (61143)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Writing, Journalism & Publishing Camps (EDAMALAM)

Keywords

• Journalism training
• Journalism education
• Editorial training
• Media education
• Professional journalism

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Educational Services: Professional journalism training program funded and supported by three major German publishing houses (Gruner+Jahr, Spiegel, ZEIT). Revenue model not publicly disclosed.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Henri-Nannen-Schule provides a 24-month, full-time professional journalism training program combining 5 internships in editorial offices with 6 seminar blocks, accepting 18 students per cohort. Instruction is delivered by approximately 120 trainers recruited directly from major German newsrooms (Spiegel, Zeit, Stern, Gruner+Jahr, NDR, RTL, Tagesschau, SZ Magazin, FAS, T-Online, and others), covering the full breadth of journalistic craft from investigation and reporting to fact-checking, podcast production, video journalism, and AI. The school also offers external courses and the KOMPASS funding program for participants outside the core training track.

Product overview

Henri-Nannen-Schule is a journalism school operated by three publishing houses (Gruner+Jahr, der Spiegel, and Die ZEIT) offering a unified professional journalism training program. The core offering is a 24-month full-time journalism education combining 5 editorial internships with 6 seminar blocks taught by approximately 120 journalists from various German newsrooms. The program covers the complete range of journalistic crafts including reporting, commentary, portrait writing, podcasting, video journalism, investigative research, and online writing. Adjacent offerings include the KOMPASS funding program for financial support and external course offerings for non-enrolled participants seeking to develop specific journalistic skills.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Journalistenausbildung (Journalism Training Program) A 24-month full-time professional journalism training program combining 5 editorial internships with 6 seminar blocks, accepting 18 students per cohort. The curriculum covers the full breadth of journalistic craft from research and investigation to product development, including reporting, commentary, podcast production, video journalism, fact-checking, online writing, AI, interviews, and political analysis. Taught by approximately 120 trainers recruited directly from active editorial offices at major German newsrooms. Designed for aspiring journalists seeking professional entry into the German media industry.
• KOMPASS-Förderprogramm (KOMPASS Funding Program) A financial support program offered by the school for external participants seeking funding for journalism training. Designed to broaden access to the school's training resources beyond the core 24-month cohort.
• Kursangebot für Externe (External Course Offerings) Courses and workshops open to external participants who are not enrolled in the full 24-month journalism training program, covering targeted topics such as podcasting, social media, and fact-checking. Designed for working journalists, communications professionals, and career changers seeking specific skills development.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Gruner+JahrcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three publishing houses that funds and supports the Henri-Nannen-Schule. Gruner+Jahr is a major German magazine publisher.
• Der SpiegelcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three publishing houses that funds and supports the Henri-Nannen-Schule. Der Spiegel is Germany's leading news magazine.
• Die ZeitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three publishing houses that funds and supports the Henri-Nannen-Schule. Die Zeit is a major German weekly newspaper.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Axel Springer Academy of Journalism: Berlin-based journalism academy operated by Axel Springer, offering intensive multi-month training focused on digital and multimedia journalism. Competes for the same applicant pool with a publisher-backed model analogous to HNS, but emphasizing the Springer media portfolio.
• Deutsche Journalistenschule: Munich-based journalism school offering a comparable multi-month professional journalism training program with rigorous selection and editorial office placements. Most direct competitor for top German journalism applicants and a benchmark for the cohort-based training model HNS uses.
• Burda Journalism School: Publisher-backed journalism training program operated by Hubert Burda Media, providing intensive multi-month training with editorial internships at Burda-owned outlets. Closely analogous model to HNS — single publisher sponsorship with structured cohort training and direct newsroom placement.

Broad incumbents

• ARD.ZDF medienakademie: Joint training arm of Germany's major public broadcasters (ARD and ZDF), offering broadcast journalism training, editing, and production courses. Comparable in targeting professional journalism training but focused on public-broadcaster newsroom skills and serving employees rather than external cohorts.
• City, University of London - Journalism: One of Europe's leading postgraduate journalism training programs with intensive practical training and industry placements. Analogous in its craft-based, multi-format journalism training approach and serves as an international benchmark for the publisher-affiliated school model.
• FU Berlin Journalisten-Ausbildung: Free University of Berlin's journalism-focused academic programs within its political science and communications faculty. Represents the academic-degree-track alternative to HNS's craft-focused, non-degree training model.

Regional players

• Bayerische Akademie der Medien: Bavaria-based media academy offering professional development and training programs for journalists and media professionals. Comparable in its focus on journalism craft training but with a broader portfolio of media-related courses and a different geographic base.
• MAZ - Schweizer Journalistenschule: Switzerland's leading journalism school offering professional training programs for journalists across print, broadcast, and digital media. Closely analogous to HNS in training model and rigor but serves the Swiss-German media market rather than competing directly in Hamburg.

Emerging players

• Recherche-Akademie: Specialized investigative journalism training academy referenced as a partner of Henri-Nannen-Schule (with Matthias Brendel teaching). Comparable in journalism craft training but narrower focus on investigative research rather than full curriculum.

Others

• Volontariat (industry-wide publishing traineeships): The traditional publisher-based traineeship ('Volontariat') model offered across German newspapers and magazines, which serves as the historical alternative to formal schools like HNS. Represents the entrenched incumbent training pathway that schools like HNS must differentiate against.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nannenschule
• Facebookfacebook.com/HenriNannenSchule
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/henri-nannen-schule-hamburger-journalistenschule

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Henri-Nannen-Schule