Print this page. About the Program
The School of Journalism and Mass Communications is a professional school that is strongly grounded in the liberal arts. We emphasize the value of a broad educational foundation and proficiency in mass-communication skills. In addition to our instructional programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels, we offer an extensive program in continuing education and provide wide-ranging journalism services that benefit both the community and the profession. Our research programs are assuming an increasingly important role in scholarly study, and the school is accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. Undergraduate students pursue the degree of Bachelor of Arts Journalism and Mass Communications. The Electronic Journalism sequence provides an understanding of the theories and practices of radio and television news. Courses concentrate on news, but also cover announcing, writing, producing, and directing.
Career Opportunities
Graduates in journalism and mass communications have a wide range of career options, including:
• announcing, reporting, writing, editing
• directing and producing
• advertising copywriting
• public relations counseling and consulting
• photojournalism and commercial photography
• art directing
• media planning and media managing
• graphic designing and production coordinating
Electronic journalism majors gain experience as reporters and producers through internships with television networks such as CNN in Atlanta and stations WIS TV, WLTX TV, and WOLO TV in Columbia. The University Career Center is available to assist you in choosing a career direction and increasing your marketability upon graduation. For additional information, call the center at 803-777-7280. The University Career Center is available to assist you in choosing a career direction and increasing your marketability upon graduation. For additional information, call the center at 803-777-7280.
Admission/Progression Requirements
To be admitted into the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, you must meet all University admissions standards and School of Journalism and Mass Communications requirements. University requirements for freshmen include a completed application, specified nonrefundable application fee, high-school record complete up to the time of application (including record of at least 20 academic units of study earned as required by the University), and entrance examination scores (either SAT or ACT). To facilitate your orderly progress toward a baccalaureate degree, our undergraduate program is divided into upper and lower divisions. Details for all applicant categories can be found in the Undergraduate Bulletin. Lower-division students have earned fewer than 60 semester hours and must maintain a minimum USC grade point average of 2.50. Admission to the upper division is based upon a minimum 2.50 cumulative USC grade point average upon completion of 60 or more semester hours and completion of JOUR 201 and 202 with grades of “C” or higher. You are also expected to pass all of your journalism and mass communications courses with a minimum grade of “C.” Because all your assignments must be word processed, you must also demonstrate reasonable speed and accuracy in keying skills.
Programs of Study (126 hours)
The Bachelor of Arts degree is available for Electronic Journalism. You will be required to earn 84 hours of general education requirements consisting of course work including 15 hours of English; nine hours of humanities and fine-arts courses; 24 hours of social and behavioral sciences, history, and business courses; 18 hours of natural sciences, numerical reasoning, and foreign language courses; and 18 hours of minor courses. You must also complete up to three hours of non-journalism electives. All journalism and mass communications majors must also complete six core courses, including Survey of Mass Communications, Law and Ethics of the Mass Media, and Principles of Journalism.
Of Special Interest
The School of Journalism and Mass Communications creates a professional environment for our students, and we enhance that environment by serving as the headquarters for the South Carolina Broadcasters Association, the South Carolina Scholastic Press Association, the South Carolina Scholastic Broadcasters Association, and the Southern Interscholastic Press Association. We are recognized as one of the leading journalism programs in the nation, offering the first nationally accredited degree program and the only nationally accredited graduate degree program in mass communications in South Carolina. You can gain practical experience through numerous opportunities, including The Gamecock newspaper, Garnet and Black Quarterly magazine, and The Carolina Reporter. Professional organizations for students include the Public Relations Student Society of America, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Student Advertising Federation (SAF), and the National Association of Black Journalists. Our SAF chapter has received 10 years of national recognition from the American Advertising Federation. Our facilities include television studios, digital stereo radio control rooms and studios, and the Associated Press broadcast news service, plus complete photojournalism studios and print production facilities for electronic editing, graphics, and photocomposition. We also jointly operate Newsplex, a $2 million multimedia newsroom of the future, with Ifra, a German-based consortium of news publishers and news technology vendors. Our nationally known media professionals will work closely with you to advise you on course selections, career options, and extracurricular activities. Electronic journalism seniors are in the newsroom five days a week producing a live, daily television newscast. The newscast airs on a local cable channel and on the USC campus channel.
Broadcast Journalism Department's Web site