UIUC Journalism/Media Reputation

I have been admitted to University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign for the fall 2018 semester. I plan to go into journalism and I was wondering how their reputation is and if they have a good journalism program.

They have offered me great aid and scholarships, and I would only have to take out 3,000 in student loans & have a 3,000 work-study, which is less than I thought I’d ever pay for college.

I have also been accepted to ASU, DePaul, and Fordham, where I’d have about 15,000 left to pay at each school after scholarships (not counting loans).

@kuhlm44937 I see you’re in IL (me too) I say follow the $$. Don’t go into Debt then use all of your $$ to travel for work etc Unless it’s your dream school (and you need a reason why), really think about it. I’m in Chicago and I literally had no idea how popular IL Urbana Champaign is but many outside of IL are anxious to get in (at least for bfa programs) My son didn’t even bother to apply and wonder if we missed something :). He too got into Fordham. We visited several times as he was waitlisted for Juilliard and we love it there as well. I wonder if he would tire himself of the upper west side. It’s not like where NYU is or Chelsea, Pace university or the other schools.
Good luck to you! Hope you find your space. Maybe attend acceptance student day ? I don’t know how far you are but from here, I’m assuming it’s a 1.5-2 hr drive
good luck to you

@kuhlm44927 Wondering where you ended up??My son would like to major in Journalism as well. He has been accepted as a Direct admit to Mizzou and has received acceptance letters from Marquette and Loyola. Illinois is also at the top of the list.

@gatspygirl Hi there! apologies for a late response, as I haven’t visited this website in forever! I ended up going to UIUC, and I love it here. The Big10 campus town is amazing, and the journalism program is really impressive here at U of I. I have professors who have worked at the Washington Post, and have had experience being an editor at a newspaper company. We even have other journalism professors that have received Pulitzers for their investigative journalism work which I found super impressive!

I’ve been super happy with my choice, and it has been so nice to not be so obsessed with money. (I ended up taking out a 1,400 loan for the year, whereas I would’ve been taking out at least 15,000 at the other schools). It’s amazing being at a big school like this and being a part of something bigger than yourself.

I looked at Mizzou too, and one of my profs actually went to their J-School, but UIUC was so much more affordable for me. Are you in-state for Illinois?