Master of Science in Journalism Curriculum

Program Overview

The School of Journalism and Mass Communications offers the M.S. for the Major General Edwin “Forrest” Harding Fellows. The program is designed to prepare fellows to manage military publications. To earn the degree, a student must complete 30 graduate credit hours with at least a B (3.0) average, and complete a media seminar project.

Learn more about the MSJ Program

Questions?

If you have questions about any of our graduate programs, contact Jammie Johnson at jamjohn@ku.edu.

Major Components of 30-Hour Requirement

The student entering the program takes

21 hours in core courses in Journalism and Mass Communications.
6 hours of electives either inside or outside the school. The student also completes an acceptable Journalism and Mass Communications seminar project (JMC 840) for 3 hours.

Core Course Requirements

The core graduate courses help students develop strong research and critical thinking skills. 7 courses are required:

JMC 832 Leadership and Management in Marketing (3)
JMC 500 Multimedia Journalism Bootcamp (3)
PUAD 824 Creating Good Public Policy (3)
JMC 608 Ethics and the Professional Practice (3)
JMC 615 Social Media and Emerging Technologies (3)
JMC 618 First Amendment and Society (3)
JMC 867 Social Media Metrics (3)

Advanced Course Requirements

The student completes 6 graduate-level electives, and an acceptable media seminar project.

JMC 840 Seminar in Media Publications (3)
Electives (6)

Enrollment Requirements after Completing Course Requirements

There is no requirement for continuous enrollment after courses are completed and prior to completing the media seminar project. Students must be enrolled in at least one hour of credit in the semester in which they graduate.

A student must complete the M.S.J. degree within seven years of admission.

Outside Courses

A student may take up to six credit hours outside the school. Any student who wants to take an elective course outside the school must have permission from the instructor of the course, the school offering the course, and the graduate director of the journalism school prior to enrolling in the course. The student should be prepared to indicate how the course contributes to the master’s program. Submission of a course description or syllabus from the course may be required for approval.