The Bachelor of Arts in Journalism has two options: news and public relations.
The option in news. Students who chose this option study the basics of journalism: information gathering, interviewing, reporting, writing, editing, and visual presentation skills. The option focuses on thinking, researching, and understanding the diverse society in which we live.
Journalists play an important role in a free and democratic society as they serve a public in need of information about its leaders, political institutions, and the culture. A journalist is part watchdog and part entertainer. The job requires guts, instincts, and talent. At its highest form, journalism educates and provides information that people need in their everyday lives. Students who graduate with a degree in the news option spend at least one semester and often two or three semesters working on the department's laboratory newspaper, The Orion, which may be the most honored college newspaper in the country. By practicing journalism, our students learn to tell the stories that need to be told.
Students in the news option are trained to
Understand and apply the principles and laws of freedom of speech and press, including the right to dissent, to monitor and criticize power, and to assemble and petition for redress of grievances;
Demonstrate an understanding of the history and role of professionals and institutions in shaping communications;
Understand concepts and apply theories in the use and presentation of images and information;
Demonstrate an understanding of professional ethical principles and work ethically in pursuit of truth, accuracy, fairness, and diversity;
Think critically, creatively, and independently;
Critically evaluate their own work and that of others for accuracy and fairness, clarity, appropriate style, and grammatical correctness.
The option in public relations. PR practitioners are the facilitators of communication between an organization and the outside world. It’s the job of the PR professional to be the voice of the company, to create goodwill, and to develop relationships with key internal and external audiences, such as employees, consumers, and journalists.
At the same time, the practitioner is responsible for educating upper management about how others perceive an organization’s reputation, brand, image, messages, products, and services.
The PR professional must constantly watch for new trends, monitor the news media and social networks, know what the competition is doing, and be able to identify opportunities and obstacles for organizations.
Students in the public relations option are trained to
Conduct effective primary and secondary research for clients;
Help shape informed, ethical decisions that achieve mutually beneficial outcomes for clients and publics;
Write for print, broadcast, and online media;
Create strategic communication plans that connect clients with and target messages to a variety of stakeholders;
Develop methods to measure and evaluate plan success; and
Identify and engage with emerging technologies and identify their influence on communication.
Grading Requirement
All courses taken to fulfill program course requirements must be taken for a letter grade except those courses specified by the department as credit/no credit grading only.
Course Requirements for the Major: 48 units
Completion of the following courses, or their approved transfer equivalents, is required of all candidates for this degree. Courses in this program may complete more than one graduation requirement.
National accreditation standards require a journalism major to take a 48-unit journalism curriculum. Of the 120-unit degree program, it is recommended that 72 units be taken outside of the departments of Journalism and Public Relations; Communication Arts and Sciences; and Media Arts, Design, and Technology. The following courses, if taken as General Education, will apply to the 72 outside units: CMST 131, CMST 132, CMST 234, CMST 255. Community college transfer students may apply 18 units to the 48-unit major in agreement with the Journalism Transfer Model Curriculum (equivalents to JOUR 101, JOUR 210, JOUR 260W, JOUR 265, lower-division student media, and lower-division photojournalism).
Students must earn a grade of C or higher inJOUR 260Wto advance to subsequent writing courses in the Department of Journalism and Public Relations.
JOUR 327 may be taken in Group B by public relations option students only.
2
JOUR 329 is repeatable, with instructor and advisor permission, up to six units to count toward the major: Three units for the option in news; three units toward Group B.
3
JOUR 445 is repeatable, with instructor and advisor permission, up to six units to count toward the major: Three units for the option in public relations; three units toward Group B.
4
JOUR 489 is repeatable, with instructor and advisor permission, up to three units toward Group B.
Formal Minor Requirement
All journalism majors are required to complete a formal minor. GE Minors do not fulfill this requirement.
Major Option Course Requirements
Students must select one of the following options for completion of the major course requirements.
To complete the total units required for the bachelor's degree, select additional elective courses from the total University offerings. You should consult with an advisor regarding the selection of courses which will provide breadth to your University experience and possibly apply to a supportive second major or minor.
See Bachelor's Degree Requirements for complete details on general degree requirements. A minimum of 39 units, including those required for the major, must be upper division.
General Education Requirements: 48 units
See General Education and the Class Schedule for the most current information on General Education Requirements and course offerings.
This major has approved GE modification(s). See below for information on how to apply these modification(s).
JOUR 460W is an approved major course substitution for Upper-Division Arts and Humanities (UD-C).
Diversity Course Requirements: 6 units
You must complete a minimum of two courses that focus primarily on cultural diversity. At least one course must be in US Diversity (USD) and at least one in Global Cultures (GC). See Diversity Requirements for a full list of courses. Most courses taken to satisfy these requirements may also apply to General Education.
Upper-Division Writing Requirement
Writing Across the Curriculum (EM 17-009) is a graduation requirement and may be demonstrated through satisfactory completion of four Writing (W) courses, two of which are designated by the major department. See Mathematics/Quantitative Reasoning and Writing Requirements for more details on the four courses. The first of the major designated Writing (W) courses is listed below.
The second major-designated Writing course is the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GW) (EO 665). Students must earn a C- or higher to receive GW credit. The GE Written Communication (A2) requirement must be completed before a student is permitted to register for a GW course.
