About the Journalism Bachelor’s Program
The journalism degree program prepares students for meaningful careers in today’s leading news organizations. Journalism classes are steeped in traditional journalism values and emphasize the importance of storytelling, clarity, conciseness, accuracy, and fairness in reporting.
Augmenting journalism education based in valued traditions, the College of Media & Communication journalism faculty and staff work with news organizations in the Southwest to provide students meaningful internships and other career-advancing opportunities.
Texas Tech offers a multi-platform journalism program. All journalism majors study the unique attributes of print, broadcast, and online news content and production. Students have the opportunity to produce news and information using a variety of media including social, print, broadcast and online.
In order to ensure expertise in a content area, journalism majors are required to choose either a 15-credit interdisciplinary specialization, an 18-21 credit minor, or a second major. Suggested cognates include strategic communication, media economics and management, visual communication, bilingual journalism, international/intercultural communication, education and social issues, communication studies, political journalism, health/science/environmental studies, and digital/social media studies. Students may pursue additional cognates with advisor and department chair approval.
Communication Literacy Requirement. Students attending Texas Tech University for the first time in the Fall 2017 term or later will complete a Communication Literacy (CL) requirement in their program(s) of study. Texas Tech University’s transition from the Writing Intensive requirement to the Communication Literacy requirement signals the university’s awareness that in addition to the fundamental role that writing plays in enabling students to explore, develop, focus, and organize a message, other types of communication must also be taught as appropriate for a student’s discipline. Throughout each program of study, then, students must be given ample opportunity to develop their skills in forms of communication central to that program.
Students majoring in Journalism are expected to demonstrate communication proficiency in courses across the degree curriculum. In particular, the journalism faculty wish to ensure that students are first and foremost capable writers, but also that they are able to communicate visually, digitally, aurally, within an organization, and interpersonally among various professional constituencies. The CL plan for the journalism major is comprised of 15 credits (five courses): JOUR 2310 , JOUR 3311 , JOUR 3314 , JOUR 4350 ; ADV 4313 or COMS 3332 or EMC 3358 or JOUR 3370 or PR 4351 .
Total Hours: 120
Students majoring in journalism are required to complete 58 hours from the following core courses: MCOM 1100 or one-hour JOUR practicum; MCOM 1300 , MCOM 1301 , MCOM 2350 , MCOM 3300 , MCOM 3320 , JEM 2301 , JEM 2302 , JOUR 2300 , JOUR 2310 , JOUR 3311 , JOUR 3312 , JOUR 3314 , JOUR 3350 , JOUR 3355 , JOUR 3380 , JOUR 3390 , JOUR 4350 , JOUR 4370 , PHOT 3310 .
Journalism students must also choose either a 15-hour interdisciplinary specialization, an 18-hour minor, or a second major.
