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A
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Major
- News-Editorial option
- Magazine option
- Visual Communications option
Minor
Option declaring forms
Introduction
The Department of Journalism and Media Studies offers
three options for students seeking a bachelor of arts degree in journalism.
Students may choose to focus on news-editorial writing, magazine writing
or visual communications. Our students acquire skills and aptitudes
to succeed in today’s expanding world of news, including Web-based,
interactive and digital journalism. Classes blend theory and practice
to explore legal rights and ethical responsibilities while covering
news under realistic deadlines and conditions. Seniors graduate with
a diverse portfolio of professional work and the confidence to compete
for a challenging range of jobs as reporters, editors, photojournalists,
news researchers, page designers for print and on-line publications
and organizations.
The Department of Journalism and Media Studies operates
two ancillary programs: the Neighborhood News Bureau and the Science
Journalism Center. Both provide educational opportunities for students
and service to the community.
Requirements
for the Major in Mass Communications
To be admitted to the core curriculum in journalism,
students must have completed general education requirements or a minimum
of 45 hours with a 2.75 minimum overall grade-point average, including
ENC 1101 and 1102 with a minimum grade of "C" in each. Applicants
must establish a minimum score of 60 percent on the Department of Journalism
and Media Studies’ English Diagnostic Test prior to entering MMC
2100 (Writing for Mass Media). (Students who transfer MMC 2100 or its
equivalent must pass the English Diagnostic Test with a score of at
least 70 percent, which is the same score required for the successful
completion of MMC 2100 at USF.) Both courses in the core curriculum
(MMC 2100 and MMC 3602) must be completed with a minimum grade of "C"
before any other journalism/ journalism/ journalism/mass communications
course may be taken. Students failing to achieve a minimum grade of
"C" in both MMC 2100 and MMC 3602 will be disallowed as majors
in the department. A 2.5 GPA in journalism/mass communications courses
is required for graduation, and no student may graduate with a grade
lower than "C" in any journalism/mass communictions course.
The journalism/mass communications major requires
six hours of core curriculum courses (MMC 2100 and MMC 3602) and 31
hours of a combination of required and selective sequence courses for
a total of 37 hours in journalism/mass communications within the 124-hour
degree requirement. Six hours in journalism/mass communications writing
courses (three hours in addition to MMC 2100) are a part of the graduation
requirement.
Journalism majors are required to take a minimum
of 80 hours in courses outside the journalism department, with no fewer
than 65 hours in the basic liberal arts and sciences. (Liberal Arts
courses are listed in materials available from the undergraduate adviser
at the Academic Advising Center in Davis Hall.) No more than 44 hours
of journalism/mass communications courses may be applied toward the
bachelor's degree within the 124-hour graduation requirement.
Journalism majors taking more than 44 hours of journalism/mass
communications courses, regardless of the departments in which those
courses are listed, must add those hours to the 124 hours required for
graduation. In particular, film and photography courses offered in other
departments may be considered to journalism/mass communications courses
and added to the 124-hour degree requirement.
At least twenty-two (22) hours of resident department
courses are required. All material submitted by students as assignments
in writing, reporting, editing, photography and electronic newsgathering
and production classes is subject to publication or broadcast. The Department
of Journalism and Media Studies uses a variety of media outlets.
Sign Language may be used as an option by journalism/mass
communications majors to fulfill the language requirement.
Most journalism/mass communications courses have prerequisites
as specified in the course description (these prerequisites are separate
from the State Mandated Common Prerequisites for program admission listed
in the USF catalog). Refer to each prerequisite listed to determine
progressive prerequisites for each course. Students also should note
that the journalism/mass communications major is a four-semester program
at a minimum and that some courses are offered only during the day or
one an academic year.
Prerequisites (State-mandated
Common Prerequisites)
Students wishing to transfer to USF should complete
the A.A. degree at the community college. Some courses required for
the major may also meet General Education Requirements thereby transferring
maximum hours to the university. If students transfer without an AA
degree and have fewer than 60 semester hours of acceptable credit, the
students must meet the university’s entering freshman requirements
including ACT or SAT test scores, GPA, and course requirements.
The transfer student should also be aware of the immunization,
foreign language, and continuous enrollment policies of the university.
Students should complete 18 semester hours outside
the journalism curriculum at the lower level prior to entering the university.
If these courses are not taken at the community college, they must be
completed before the degree is granted. A grade of “C” is
the minimum acceptable grade. Students are encouraged to complete the
following prerequisites, or major, support, or elective courses if available,
during the program of study at the community college, and when feasible
in General Education/Gordon Rule courses.
* English Composition (minimum grade
of "C") (6)
* MMC 3602 Mass Communications and
Society (3)
Prior to being admitted to the Department of Journalism
and Media Studies, a student must:
* Complete a minimum of 45 semester
hours including all General Education requirements and six hours of
English composition (with a minimum grade of "C"), earn a
2.7 overall GPA, and pass a departmentl-administered English Diagnostic
Test.
* A maximum of nine semester hours
in journalism/mass communications courses will be accepted from a community
college or other lower-level program toward a degree in journalism.
It is suggested that the nine hours include the equivalent of the department
core curriculum and one sequence introduction course. Approval by an
academic adviser is required.
Required Upper-level
Coursework for the Mass Communications Major
Department Core Curriculum
* MMC 2100 Writing for the Mass
Media
* MMC 3602 Mass Comm and Society
JOURNALISM Requirements
News-Editorial
Option
* JOU 2100 Beginning
Reporting
* JOU 3101 Advanced
Reporting
* JOU 4104 Public
Affairs Reporting
* JOU 4200 News
Editing I
* MMC 4200 Communications
Law
* MMC 4203 Media Ethics
* JOU 4206 Newspaper
and News Publication Design
or
* PGY 3610C Photojournalism
I
Selective Requirements (10 hours required, selected with advisor's
approval)
Other Requirements:
* ECO 1000 Basic
Economics
* PHI 1103 Critical
Thinking
* POS 2041 American
National Government
* POS 2112 State
and Local Government and Politics
or
* POS 3142 Intro to Urban Politics
& Government
and
* SYG 2010 Contemporary Social Problems
Magazine
Option
* JOU 2100 Beginning
Reporting
* JOU 3101 Advanced
Reporting
* JOU 3300 Magazine
Article and Feature Writing
* JOU 4200 News
Editing I
* JOU 4212 Magazine
Design and Production
* MMC 4200 Communications
Law
* MMC 4203 Media Ethics
* MMC 4420 Research
Methods
Selective Requirements (7 hours required, selected with advisor's
approval)
Other Requirements: The following courses are required outside
the School to complete sequence requirements:
* ECO 1000 Basic
Economics
* CRW 2100 Narration
and Description
* PHI 1103 Critical
Thinking
* POS 2041 American
National Government
* POS 2112 State
and Local Government and Politics
or
* POS 3142 Intro
to Urban Politics and Government
and
* SYG 2010 Contemporary
Social Problems
See specific courses for prerequisites.
Visual
Communications Option
* JOU 2100 Beginning
Reporting
* JOU 4200 News
Editing I
* JOU 4206 Newspaper
and News Publication Design
* MMC 4200 Communications
Law
* MMC 4203 Media Ethics
* MMC 4936 Selected
Topics: Visual Communication and New Media
* PGY 3610C Photojournalism
I
* VIC 3001 Introduction
to Visual Communications
* VIC 3943 Visual
Communications Practicum
Suggested Selective Requirements (minimum 6 hours)
Approved Mass Communications Courses
Other Requirements:
* ECO 1000 Basic
Economics
* SYG 2010 Contemporary
Social Problems
Additional Requirements:
* At least 90 hours must be outside
Mass Communications, 65 of which must be in liberal arts and sciences
* A 2.5 GPA in Mass Communications
courses with no Mass Communications grade lower than C
Here are the forms
(PDF) you need for declaring a Journalism option. Please download them
and either fill them out on a computer or with a pen.
- Pre-Journalism New Student Information Sheet
- Change of Major to Journalism
- Worksheet for entry into the USF St. Petersburg
Journalism Program
Requirements
for the Minor in Mass Communications
The minor in mass communications is available
to students pursuing any other major at USF. Students who wish to minor
must apply for admission to the School of Mass Communications and must
meet all admission standards required of majors. Please see "Requirements
for the Major in Mass Communications" for more admission information.
The minor in Mass Communications requires a minimum
of 18 hours of School coursework, including:
* MMC 2100 (3)
* MMC 3602 (3)
The other 12 hours may be selected from among department
offerings and must include a minimum of 9 hours at the 3000-level or
higher. All major course prerequisites must be met. A grade of "D"
or "F" will not be counted toward a mass communications minor
and a 2.5 grade point average in all minor coursework must be maintained.
All minor hours must be completed at USF.
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