Journalism Major, B.A.; B.A.A.; B.S.
B.A. degree, B.A.A. degree, or B.S. degree
Major Map
A Journalism Major requires 42 hours of journalism coursework.
The School of Communication, Journalism, and Media requires that ALL graduating seniors take an exit exam prior to graduation as part of the department’s assessment effort.
Admission Requirements, Retention & Termination Standards
A Journalism Major requires 42 hours of journalism coursework.
The Journalism Area of the School of Communication, Journalism, and Media Arts requires that ALL graduating seniors take an exit exam prior to graduation as part of the department’s assessment efforts.
Students majoring in Journalism must meet the criteria established by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. That means that they must take liberal arts and sciences courses in compliance with CMU’s University Program requirements, listed under the University Program for the B.A., B.A.A., or B.S. degree. A grade of C or better is required in each course counted toward the Journalism Major and an overall grade point average of 2.5 for all journalism courses counted toward the major.
The last 18 hours of journalism course work leading to a journalism major should be taken within the Journalism Area of the School of Communication, Journalism and Media at CMU. No more than 3 credits of journalism internship can be applied toward the major.
Each student must consult with a Journalism Area faculty advisor before registering for courses each semester to ensure orderly progress toward meeting these requirements.
Program Requirements
Required Courses I (3 hours)
Select one of the following:
| JRN 101 | Media and Society | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 102 | Introduction to Journalism | 3(3-0) |
Required Courses II (21 hours)
Required Courses III (3 hours)
Select one of the following:
| JRN 372 | The Asian Media and Cross-cultural Mass Communication | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 380 | Racial and Cultural Diversity: Mass Media's Role | 3(3-0) |
Required Courses IV (3 hours)
Select one of the following:
| JRN 448 | Journalism Practicum | 1-3(Spec) |
| JRN 449 | Journalism Internship | 3(Spec) |
Required Courses V (3 hours)
Select one of the following:
| JRN 445 | Multimedia Reporting Capstone | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 500 | Current Issues in Mass Communication | 3(3-0) |
Electives (9 hours)
Select from the following:
| JRN 250 | Social Media: Managing the Message | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 302 | Introduction to Graphics and Visual Communication | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 339 | Social Media: Reputation, Image and Interaction | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 375 | Digital and Social Media Analytics | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 417WI | Sports Reporting | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 423 | Online Visual Storytelling | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 430WI | Magazine and Feature Writing | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 440 | Advanced Digital Journalism | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 441 | Data Journalism | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 516WI | Public Affairs Reporting | 3(3-0) |
| JRN 597 | Special Studies | 1-6(Spec) |
OR another JRN course as approved by the advisor.
Total: 42 semester hours