Hi everyone!
I’m an international student who has recently been admitted by all these wonderful schools, but now has trouble deciding which to attend. My intended major is journalism. Among all these schools, only UNC and BU have undergraduate journalism programs. Other schools have communication/media studies majors that are somewhat similar, but not as hands-on. I’m not sure if I should go to UNC/BU so that I can study journalism as an undergraduate, or study something else like com/poli sci (would love to hear other recommendations of majors for an aspiring journalist), and apply to j school later. What do you guys think? Which option would better help me to become a journalist in U.S.? And which school is best for that option? All input is welcomed! Thanks a lot!
P.S. I didn’t receive scholarship from any of these schools so tuition is roughly the same for them.
Honestly, you can’t lose. All great choices. Now it comes down to:
– where in the US do you want to live? East Coast or West? South or North?
– how actively do you want to be doing journalism WHILE you are at school or over the summers
– where are the alumni working? What cities? How many in leading roles in journalism?
I went to one of these schools (UVA) and had a wonderful experience. I was interested in journalism and focused my attention on the college radio station (eventually running their News and Information team). I wound up (many years later) working alongside many journalists at a news brand. Their degrees were from lots of places, and many of them did not major in journalism…but they all DID a lot of journalism at their schools-- on newspapers, sites, radio stations.
Find out what kind of journalism happens on campus outside the classroom. Find out where the journalism alumni work. If EVERYTHING is equal then I might veer towards UCLA since it’s located right within a major media center and it might lend itself to more internships with major brands. UCB, too, since it’s so close to the technology that is driving journalism. But any of those schools will give you the kind of great Liberal Arts education you’ll need to be a journalist (critical thinking, writing, analytical thinking, intellectual curiosity).
thx! That’s really helpful!
I can answer any questions you have about BU journalism specifically. I don’t see UCLA or UCB giving you a particular edge unless you specifically want to do entertainment or tech journalism–if so, they do both offer geographic/networking advantages, specifically UCLA (b/c there’s a lot of media in LA). Meaning, there are plenty of successful journalists to come out of UCB and UCLA but I think it’s erroneous that people think those schools give you a magical leg up b/c they’re in Cali/bc of the names of the schools–like I said, really only if you’re gunning for entertainment journalism. The reason to choose either would be b/c you love the culture & academics at those schools–they’re both amazing. But they’re also SUPER different from BU, UNC & UVA. (I think the UCLA quarter system is always worth bearing in mind! I wouldn’t have liked it, personally)
I really think it’s comparing apples, oranges and then throwing in some pears (and thinking about which you’d like to eat!). They’re all stellar choices, so weigh what you want. If you want a trade-based, practical journalism education, BU is the best of your choices IMO. There are immense resources in COM and a lot of options–I majored in Magazine Journalism, b/c why not be delightfully specific? If you lean more in favor of choosing the best all-around academic experience (and/or weighing weather/environment heavily) where you’ll gain a sound foundation via a communications degree, I’d call UCLA, UCB and UVA square. They each offer a world class education. Personally, I wanted the trade-based education in a major East Coast city, ergo I ended up at BU. Like I said–happy to answer specific questions! (FWIW, I personally know alum from BU, UCLA and UCB who are journalists–I just don’t happen to have any friends who are UVA or UNC alum XD)
After weighing all the pros and cons, I’ve decided to go with UCB. Thanks everyone!
After weighing all the pros and cons, I’ve decided to go with UCB. Thanks everyone!