Best journalism college/route for job?

College Majors Journalism Major
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<p>Chicago high schooler pursuing a career in sports journalism. My college list: </p>

<p>Syracuse, Mizzou, Northwestern (reach), Georgetown, Notre Dame, Marquette, USC, and Florida.</p>

<p>Pros and cons for each school:</p>

<p>Syracuse PROS: feeder for sports journalism companies like ESPN, best internship/study abroad opportunities, have both film and journalism (two studies I want), great sports teams, great extracurricular opportunities like Daily Orange newspaper, great facilities. CONS: worst winters in the USA and I happen to have seasonal affective disorder (depressed/not myself during cold weather/snow). Students with SAD have even advised that I attend a different school. Best opportunities for post grad life vs. Potentially a grueling college experience for myself?</p>

<p>Mizzou PROS: Seems to be as good as a journalism program as Syracuse. CONS: HUGE school with lots of partying. I don't think I want that type of reckless social scene distracting me. I'm ambitious about my own career and I want my peers to be too.</p>

<p>Northwestern PROS: Best journalism school on my list. CONS: Everyone's a f--king bore. I'll be studying 24/7. Don't feel like it'd be a good experience for a "balanced" person like me. Pretty sure I won't get in, anyways.</p>

<p>Georgetown PROS: Attended a summer journalism program there that absolutely sold me on school. CONS: Don't have a journalism major. Journalism minor doesn't compare to the facilities at N'Western or Syracuse. I don't feel like I'd graduate as prepared as I could be by attending GTown.</p>

<p>Notre Dame PROS: LOVE the school and community. Great sports teams. Journalism minor actually produces great journalists. CONS: I'd have to major in something else. Also somewhat unsure if I'll get in.</p>

<p>Marquette PROS: My dream school in terms of everything but journalism program. Grew up a fan of their basketball team and know the campus by heart. Best school community on the list. I'd be most comfortable here. CONS: Their journalism program blows. How could I pass up the opportunities at Syracuse for comfort? But would this comfort aid me in my ambition? Isn't it about the individual and not the college anyways? I'M SO CONFUSED AS TO WHAT TO DO.</p>

<p>USC PROS: Awesome weather, awesome sports teams, seemingly awesome journalism and film programs. CONS: Huge school with lots of partying. Also far from home. Think Mizzou, except even farther. Why would I come here when I could go to Mizzou?</p>

<p>Florida: Great weather, phenomenal sports teams, great journalism program. CONS: Again, huge school with huge party scene. Not sure if I want to be involved with that type of community.</p>

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<p>HELP ME, PLEASE. Do I attend one of the "Big Three" (Cuse, N'Western, Mizzou) or choose a "smart school" with a journalism minor? Or do I go far away to USC or Florida to enjoy good weather and good journalism programs? Or do I choose Marquette, where I'm most comfortable? </p>

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<p>GOAL: What will ultimately give me the best opportunities during and after college + give me most comfort during college experience? (high comfort schools: marquette, notre dame, georgetown, n'western)</p>

<p>Just tell me where to go, fellas.</p>

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<p>THANK YOU IF YOU ANSWER.</p>

<p>Jack</p>

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<p>bump</p>

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<p>You don’t really have to worry yet; depends on where you get into and whatnot.</p>

<p>I think you’re generalizing a bit much in some aspects. Sure, some schools on your list are party schools, but that doesn’t mean you have to partake. Mizzou’s a big school, so it’s diverse; surely there’ll be plenty of students there focused. Same goes for Northwestern – You can find students who are like you and not THAT involved in their studies. </p>

<p>I think you should cross off Syracuse…no sense in having a bad time in college. Plus, Syracuse is also a party school from what I’ve heard, so there’s that too. </p>

<p>You don’t have to major in journalism to get into the industry; there are plenty of people who major in something. You could also always get a masters in journalism if you need/want to. </p>

<p>Yeah, Georgetown definitely isn’t ideal as far as the journalism minor goes, but they’re right in DC, so that means great internship opportunities. </p>

<p>You should make a list of the qualities you’re looking for in order from most importance to least. That should help you narrow it down some. If you really, really don’t want a party school, don’t apply to those schools. If you really, really want to major in journalism, then cross off ND and Gtown. Also, what about cost? Are you going to be needing financial aid or is cost not an issue?</p>

<p>Have you looked into any other j-schools? What about the University of Oregon? Or Texas? They’re big schools, but if you can deal with the party thing, they’re great j-schools. And like I said, it’s not like everyone’s going to be partying.</p>

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<p>I agree with the above Just because Mizzou has a culture of having students who may party (let’s be honest, almost all big schools do) doesn’t mean you have to partake in it. You can choose your own path and find friends that have similar interests. You shouldn’t cross it off just for that reason. You should also consider cost. As a journalism major, you have to be prepared in case you don’t immediately find a gig after graduation because of the competitive nature of the field. So that means avoiding debt if possible and choosing a lower cost school</p>

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<p>Its interesting you mention the party situation at some schools and not others. Essentially all schools are party schools if that is what you want to do and there is no need to party at any school if you want to avoid it.</p>

<p>But perception is everything. You didn’t include partying as a con for Syracuse yet is was just ranked the #1 Party school in the country by Princeton Review. Now I don’t really think any individual would be any more or less inclined to party there versus any of the other schools on you list but obviously there is some party scene.</p>

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<p>Go where you get an offer that gives you the least debt. Make sure you have practical sports journalism/media training and internships no matter which route you take. Apply to some safety schools.</p>

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<p>^ Financial is a very important aspect of where you go. Not many students realize how much pull that has. If your dream school offers you no money and a school that you didn’t really love offers you a full ride, what would you take? Some people would say the dream school, because you’re accepted and you can work it out later. That perception is why student debt is a rising danger. </p>

<p>Nevertheless, it’s good that you have your pros and cons laid out. Personally, I wouldn’t go to a school that didn’t have the major/concentration I wanted. I want to major in biochemistry. A minor in it doesn’t cut it for me. I would cross out Notre Dame and Georgetown for solely those reasons, but if you feel confident that a minor in journalism would work for you, you don’t have to take my word for it. </p>

<p>About the party scenes…a lot of schools are like that. You’re not going to escape the party scene. While some schools may be considered crazier than others (Penn State is a popular choice when referring to partying), all schools have it. </p>

<p>Based on your other pros and cons, I would cross out Syracuse (Is your SAD really bad? If so, don’t be miserable.) Also, wouldn’t Northwestern and Marquette have bad winters too? I don’t know how Chicago and Milwaukee are, but they might have awful winters too. I would cross out Marquette because if their journalism program is that bad, it’s really not the school for you. It’s great that you feel comfortable there, but if it doesn’t fit your academic goals, it’s not the way to go. </p>

<p>I have heard great things about Mizzou and its journalism school. I don’t know about USC or Florida, but they seem good too. </p>

<p>Good luck in your search! Hope this helped somewhat. </p>

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<p>If you have SAD, Northwestern may be as problematic as Syracuse–Chicago winters are brutal. Really you have to cross most of the Northeast off your list, which unfortunately is where some of the best j-schools are. (I went to Boston University, which might be a great school for you, btw, but it of course has long winters… though not as bad as Syracuse) </p>

<p>Some schools in warmer areas that have good j-schools/programs: Washington University (St. Louis), University of Georgia (I went to hs in GA and this is where kids who needed to use their Hope scholarship/didn’t want to leave the South went for j-school), University of Maryland… bonus to the latter two is they are definitely sport schools and you could become a sports writer for the school paper and build your clips. </p>

<p>I do recommend majoring in journalism, though, specifically broadcast journalism if you want to be on-air talent (or a producer). Good j-schools have really good networking/internship opportunities which will be key in getting your foot in the door in the industry. You’re on the right track, re: schools that also have strong ties to film/TV… you mention ESPN and the way into something like that may actually be through a TV internship program and not a journalism one. I would really look at each school’s study abroad/internship programs and see where they have relationships. Some j-schools specialize in hard news connections, others in politics, others in entertainment/TV/media.</p>

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<p>My son attended Syracuse and USC journalism schools–both terrific for broadcast journalism. He got several on-air job offers within 2 months of graduation. Really depends on which coast you want to begin your career on.</p>

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<p>@bearcrusher69 I’m currently a freshman at USC pursuing the exact same career and it is amazing! Granted I’m only in my first semester and all my 4 unit classes are GEs and writing, but there are so many opportunities here! Already in my first semester, I’m writing for USC’s newspaper covering our women’s volleyball team. I also had the incredible opportunity to cover the Breeders’ Cup Horse Racing World Championships as a credentialed media member through the newspaper. I also take a 2 unit production class where I help crew two shows weekly at our campus TV station and help associate produce another show weekly. We even have a sports TV show that you can audition to host for! The amount and quality of journalists and journalism companies that visit this campus are fantastic. We had a few days where you could talk with representatives from ESPN, Fox Sports, and other major outlets. Working at our TV news station (ATVN) is also possible as a freshman, even before you are required to work there for your major. That’s what I’ve heard, but I didn’t go after ATVN this first semester since I thought it was very competitive and I needed to have other journalism experience at USC specifically before I could even stand a chance. So, based on what I’ve heard from some freshmen in ATVN, I’ll try to become involved next semester. Our journalism school also always has internship and job listings available for students. From what I know, our school wants us journalism major students to do AT LEAST 1 or 2 internships during our tenure here. Not to mention, our journalism school just got a new building and it has up-to-date state of the art technology for journalism. The only three things that honestly wouldn’t work well in your favor is that USC is far away from your hometown, USC is difficult to get into, and USC is quite expensive. If you can surpass the first two things, USC’s cost can be made manageable since they meet 100% need. However, that remaining balance is still bound to be quite large, so you better apply and win several scholarships. If you have any further questions, I’d love to answer them!</p>

<p>P.S. You can read my article on the Breeders’ Cup here:<br>
<a href=“The Breeders’ Cup: California Chrome, the experience and the races - Daily Trojan”>http://dailytrojan.com/2014/11/05/the-breeders-cup-california-chrome-the-experience-and-the-races/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Actually, Mizzou has the best most respected journalism program on your list. It is ranked higher than Syracuse, northwestern even ivy leagues. A problem you have to think about is not only if you can get into the school but also the program. If you probably can’t get into North Western Then you probably can’t get into Mizzou’s journalism program. All these schools have cut throat program requirements you need to also factor in. Also Syracuse was just ranked the highest party school in the country.</p>

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Full disclosure: Syracuse alum and DD2 is currently studying journalism at Mizzou. @maylove231 is correct that Mizzou has been ranked the top journalism school by NewsPro (a journalism magazine) for the last two years. I would note, however, that you mentioned that you were interested in sports journalism and the best school, bar none, for sports journalism is Syracuse.

Given that you disclosed that you suffer from SAD, I would advise you to stay away from Syracuse, Marquette, and Northwestern as the winters and cloud cover in Chicago, Milwaukee, and Syracuse are brutal. Columbia, where Mizzou is located, is not exactly sunny during the winter. USC, Georgia, and the Cronkite School at the University of Arizona, are good choices for journalism given your condition.

As it relates to party schools, at any of the aforementioned schools you can choose to party or not to party - that is entirely up to you.

Good luck!

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Wherever you go, be sure to accumulate a terrific portfolio and complete multiple internships. That’s really the key to landing a job in the field.

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Ditto to stradmom - while I have a lot of respect for those great programs - if you go somewhere else find and complete strong internships. Job shadow now - go in for a day and shadow people in the newsrooms. Learn, observer and then get internships.