Schools with strong writing/journalism programs.

Parent Cafe
21

I have a master’s in journalism. I wouldn’t waste my time on a bachelor’s in journalism. At its heart, it’s a craft, not an academic discipline. Get your undergraduate degree in a field you love, then start writing. I went back for the journalism degree only because I was changing careers and getting a master’s seemed the easiest way to do so. (My company also paid for 3/4 of my tuition, so that helped!)

But if you can write well and think critically, you can learn the trade of journalism on the job.

22

For significant practice in writing, these colleges appear in a US News category, “Writing in the Disciplines,” and would offer your son a range of selectivity options:

Harvard
Stanford
Duke
Williams
Swarthmore
Brown
Cornell
Carleton
Hamilton
Grinnell
UMichigan
Middlebury
Kenyon
NC State
Elon
UC-Davis
UMissouri
George Mason
Colorado State
Washington State

23

I only recommend j-school to students who are really serious about journalism, because the best programs are pre-professionally focused (ie: vocational), and it’s such a grease fire of an industry right now that if you want to do it, you need to be wholly committed (and go in with eyes open). To those, I say go to the best j-school you can (b/c they provide vocational training, essentially, that most employers do not want to have to train new hires in), gun for a job in the industry, but be prepared to not be a journalist because it may not work out. (best laid plans and all… also journalists are paid so, so poorly. SO POORLY.) But if you’re really passionate, you can’t go wrong with a top j-school on your resume–it does and can open doors/provide solid footing to get a job. But!

The advice kicking around here for a student who is less ardently committed at this juncture is very very sound: you 100% can become a journalist without majoring in it, and this may be the better path for someone who isn’t sure. That said, I would recommend attending at school that at least has either internship connections/programs and/or a strong tradition of journalism on campus (ie: school paper, etc.) so your son can pursue those opportunities to see if he likes it/get journalism experience on his resume (you’re not getting hired anywhere without SOME experience). Or, apply to schools with strong journalism programs as some other major, but minor in journalism. Generally speaking, majoring in almost anything at an elite school + some journalism experience on campus/through internships = you will be a strong candidate to get a job.

24

Practice in writing will not necessarily include practice in editing, which I think is key for journalists.

25

Re #23, yes, but practice in writing does not preclude practice in editing.

26

I think the greatest value I received from my undergraduate degree in journalism was my instructors’ insistence on precision. Factual mistakes mattered, and my classmates and I were downgraded for every one. In contrast, the occasional error would have been tolerated (perhaps because it was overlooked) in the many-pages-long papers I had to write in my history and political science classes, in which I had nearly enough credits to have a minor.

27

@Olympia2

This might help. The list below are the eligible schools for a California foundation’s annual journalism scholarship. The board of the foundation considers these the top schools. St. Bonaventure students have won 15% of all the awards, 60 total have been awarded by the foundation. USC is in second place with 7%. Many “top” schools have not won a single award. What is more astonishing is that St.Bonaventure has less than 2500 students.

Arizona State University

Ball State University

Boston University

Butler University

California State University-Northridge

Indiana University-Bloomington

IUPUI

Iowa State University

Loyola University-New Orleans

Michigan State University

Northwestern University

Ohio University-Athens

Penn State University

State University New York at Brockport

St. Bonaventure University

Syracuse University

Trinity College-Hartford

University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA)

University of Florida-Gainesville

University of Hawaii at Manoa

University of Iowa

University of Kansas

University of Maryland-College Park

University of Minnesota at Twin Cities

University of Missouri

University of Montana

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

University of Oregon

University of Pennsylvania

University of Southern California (USC)

University of Wisconsin-Madison

University of Iowa

University of Kansas

University of Maryland-College Park

University of Minnesota at Twin Cities

University of Missouri

University of Montana

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

University of Oregon

University of Pennsylvania

University of Southern California (USC)

University of Wisconsin-Madison

28

^ Why are no LACs eligible to compete? That skews any recommendations right off.

29

Washington & Lee has a solid Journalism program

Hollins has a great MA Writing program

30

Trinity is on the list. I suppose because LACs don’t usually have Journalism majors. The award is limited to students studying journalism from a limited group of schools. That is the list the foundation accepts entries from.

31

Correction to post #26. The foundation has awarded 80 scholarships with St. Bonaventure winning 12, 15%.

32

My BA is in Journalism. I earned the degree at UW-Madison. (The “bucky” in “prezbucky” is in honor of Bucky Badger, UW’s mascot).

There are some things you’ll learn in J school that will help to prepare you for a career in journalism:

  • How to track down and conduct interviews and perform other research
  • How to structure a story
  • How to write and edit according to established style guidelines, like AP Style, NY Times Style, etc. These style guidelines are proudly prescriptive and pedantic and should be learned, because major media firms tend to espouse (one of) them.

I was not interested in becoming a professional journalist; I was interested in Advertising, and at UW that major is part of the J School. What the UW J School made me realize is that I love writing. I could have found that as an English major, sure, but I was not going to major in English; studying Journalism led me to discover that love. I am not a professional journalist, but I have written a novella (The Legend of Bambo, still available on Amazon in hard copy or as an e-book – pardon the shameless plug) and edited several novels. This love of the written word persists some 18 years after my days at UW ended.

If you love to write, any major in the Humanities, Business or Social Sciences will provide ample opportunity. But if you’re sure that Journalism is your calling, there are practical techniques you will learn there that will make the transition into the workplace an easier one.

33

Another UW-Madison J School grad here. I was going to say that I didn’t become a professional journalist but maybe I actually did; I have a law degree and have been an editor for a legal publishing organization since graduating from law school. My J School education was great.

34

CU Boulder has a new school of Media. There was a J school, and then there wasn’t, and now there is this new college.

35

I lived in the Denver area (Golden and Littleton) for a few years. The U of Colorado is in Boulder, which is maybe half an hour northwest of Denver. If you want great hiking and scenery, it’s a solid option. UW-Madison is a great school on a great campus in an outstanding city, but it lacks mountains.

36

Forgive me if it’s already been mentioned, but the University of North Carolina Wilmington has an excellent Creative Writing program. It’s the perfect place for anyone who enjoys being 10 minutes from the beach and studying in one of the most picturesque areas of the East coast.