BS in Journalism
Curriculum
The following courses are required of all journalism majors and are taken concurrently with those in one of the sequences.
Core Courses
- COM CO 201 Introduction to Communication Writing (prereq for JO 307)
- COM JO 307 Newswriting and Reporting I (prereq for JO 308 and JO 351)
- COM JO 357 History and Principles of Journalism
- COM JO 525 Media Law and Ethics
Sequence Requirements
In addition to the courses listed above, all journalism students complete the courses indicated for one of the following sequences:
Magazine
- COM JO 308 Newswriting and Reporting II (prereq for JO 309)
- COM JO 309 Feature Writing
- COM JO 403 Magazine Writing and Editing
and one of the following:
- COM JO 408 Magazine Workshop
- COM JO 301 Production and Design
- COM JO 540 Online Journalism
- COM JO 508 Electronic Copy Editing
Develop remainder of program in consultation with advisor.
News-Editorial (All 3 courses are required)
- COM JO 308 Newswriting and Reporting II (prereq for JO 309)
- COM JO 309 Feature Writing
- COM JO 503 Journalism Research
A minimum of 24 journalism credits required. Develop remainder of program with advisor.
Photojournalism
- COM JO 305 Basic Photography
- COM JO 308 Newswriting and Reporting II
- COM JO 312 Photojournalism I
- COM JO 513 Advanced Photojournalism
- COM JO 515 Photo Editing
Develop remainder of program in consultation with advisor.
Broadcast Journalism
- COM JO 351 Writing and Reporting for Broadcast News
- COM JO 431 Enterprise Reporting or
COM JO 519 Narrative Radio or
COM FT 560 The Documentary (with permission of advisor and instructor) - COM JO 451 Television Newsroom or
COM JO 435 Radio Newsroom
A minimum of two additional journalism electives selected in consultation with advisor.
Note: Each journalism major must satisfy a concentration requirement by completing five related courses at the 300 level or higher.
- A combination of three of these concentration courses and a maximum of two related 300-level or above courses approved by your faculty advisor by petition as acceptable material related to your concentration. Approval must be noted in a petition signed by the Journalism Department Chair in student file.
- For a language concentration, 200-level courses are accepted for the five-course requirement. 200-level literature and culture courses are not accepted toward the concentration. Foreign language concentrations may begin at the third semester of the language if the student is continuing the language with which they satisfied the foreign language requirement. Students may begin a new langue and devote five courses total to a CAS concentration.
- For students pursuing a minor in their concentration, 100-and 200-level courses can be used to satisfy the five-course requirement.
- Also, as a good general rule, students wanting several SMG or CFA courses should plan to use their electives to get desired courses in those areas rather than trying to substitute these for their CAS concentration. The appropriate level and grouping are determined with the assistance of your faculty advisor.
Internship Program
In conjunction with New England publishers, agencies, and broadcasters, the department has developed an extensive internship program for print, photo, and broadcast journalism majors.
Internships for superior undergraduates can be arranged with the publishers of weekly and daily newspapers and magazines as well as radio, television, and cable news and public affairs programs. When possible, the student selects a publication within his or her field of specialization. Students may intern either part time during a regular semester or full time over the summer. For more details, see the course description for COM JO 412 or COM JO 413.
Internships are also available year-round to broadcast journalism students at both public and commercial radio and television stations, and at Internet news organizations.
All candidates for internships with credit must have junior standing. All broadcast journalism internship candidates must have junior standing, be enrolled in or have completed COM JO 351, and have a 3.0 grade point average in their COM courses.
Professional Requirements
Journalism students are required to demonstrate reporting skills and competence as writers.
