Courses and Requirements for the Minor

Student working on a project

To complete the minor, students must take at least six Journalism courses, including two required classes and four electives. The minor also requires completion of an internship at a news media outlet.

All courses are open to non-minors unless specified otherwise.

The two required courses are:

  • JOUR-1100 Introduction to Journalism
    Offered in the fall and spring
    This course is designed to explore the basic principles and practices of journalism as they are being carried out today, from skillful interviewing and research, to developing sources, verifying information, and understanding ethics and laws surrounding the creation and presentation of daily journalism on a variety of platforms. Each class meeting is focused around recognizing the role of accurate, transparent journalistic practices and their importance to society and to democracy.
    Note: This is the gateway course for journalism minors.
     
  • JOUR-4970 Journalism Capstone
    Offered in the fall and spring
    Candidates for the minor take this course in their senior year. This course requires one substantial piece of journalism to be developed, reported and written during the semester with an eye toward publication.

Electives

Students may choose four electives in order to complete the minor.

The list of electives below is not comprehensive, and not every course is taught each semester. This is a sample of some courses we’ve offered in the past and may currently be offering. Current lists of courses will be maintained by the registrar. Courses that students wish to count toward their electives that are not on the list must be presented for review to the Journalism Program Director or Asst. Director before the student takes the course.

  • Investigative Journalism
  • Investigative Data Journalism
  • Political Journalism
  • Covering the White House
  • Campaign Journalism
  • Beyond the Game: Sports Today
  • The Media & the Law
  • Media and Social Justice
  • Media Careers
  • Free Speech
  • Literary Nonfiction
  • Government-Media Relations in the Digital Age
  • Pop Culture, Race & The Media
  • Broken News: Journalism & Citizenship
  • Crime and Media
  • Science and Environmental Journalism
  • Telling the Truth
  • Podcasting