Mar 28, 2024  
2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2018-2019 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Journalism, B.A.


Requirements for the liberal arts major in journalism, B.A. program


The journalism major builds on the liberal arts education by teaching students skills and theory necessary to produce meaningful content for news, public relations and advertising organizations. The curriculum is designed to endow students with a solid practical and technical knowledge base as well as an understanding of the legal, ethical and theoretical aspects of journalism and its critical role in a democracy. Students learn the dual concepts of press freedom and press responsibility. Due to the broad nature of the journalism curriculum, students can either generalize or develop a special emphasis within the major by taking a series of courses in print journalism (including media design), broadcast and online journalism, public relations or advertising. Students in the program are encouraged to develop expertise in different disciplines through minors or a double major. All journalism majors must complete a capstone course and a senior portfolio is recommended.

To earn the Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in journalism, students must complete a minimum of 40 credits in journalism courses distributed as follows: 

2. Capstone Requirement - 4 credits selected from


4. At least 16 elective credits from journalism or public relations courses; COM 2650 or COM 2656.


5. Senior portfolio


The portfolio is a recommended exhibit of a journalism major’s learned skills and experience. It should be posted online and include an introduction, resume and samples of published or broadcast work and /or pertinent scholarly research or projects. The internship often is the best source for portfolio content. Majors should attend a portfolion workshop (offered in fall and winter semesters, dates TBA) for details.

Note


Students using this catalog to meet journalism major requirements may also use any course subsequently approved as satisfying requirement in the visual journalism requirement category and published in a later catalog.

Additional Information


In addition to these major requirements, students must complete the Oakland University General Education Requirements , the College of Arts and Sciences College Exploratory Requirement , and an appropriate number of free elective classes to meet the overall credit requirement for the degree (in most cases 124; some degrees may require a greater number).

As a general rule, no more than eight credits of course work used to satisfy one major, minor or concentration may be applied toward another, but exceptions to this rule may be allowed with the written approval of the program coordinators.