Journalism Minor

Overview of the Minor

As an interdisciplinary, pre-professional program, the Journalism minor grounds students in an academic subject area (their major) while giving them the tools to translate and transmit knowledge to a particular audience.  It rests on Monmouth College's commitment to train students to be critical thinkers and exceptional writers in the context of a strong liberal arts curriculum.  Journalism students major in traditional liberal arts majors—English, History, the Sciences, International Studies, Political Science, etc.—while pursuing a journalism minor, adding an additional career option to their program of study at the college.  

The journalism program attracts strong students interested in researching and writing about the world in which we live.  The program features a high level of student engagement through involvement with journalistic activities—campus radio and television, student newspaper, and regional reporting.

Objectives of the Minor:  Students in journalism learn to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the history and role of professionals and institutions in shaping journalistic communication;

2. Demonstrate an understanding of the diversity of groups in a global society in relationship to journalistic communications;

3. Understand concepts and apply theories in the use and presentation of images and information;

4. Work ethically in pursuit of truth, accuracy, fairness and diversity;

5. Conduct research and evaluate information by methods appropriate to the academic discipline(s) in which they work;

6. Write correctly and clearly in forms and styles appropriate for the audiences, disciplines and purposes they serve;

7. Critically evaluate their own work and that of others for accuracy and fairness, clarity, appropriate style and grammatical correctness;

8. Think critically, creatively and independently and correctly apply quantitative concepts;

9. Apply tools and technologies appropriate for the communication professions in which they will work;

10. Understand and apply First Amendment principles and the law appropriate to professional journalistic practice.

Key Features of the Minor.

The minor is designed to complement a liberal arts program that includes a strong major, as many practicing journalist come from academic backgrounds other than journalism programs.

The minor provides the key skills necessary to profit most from a practical experience in the form of an internship.  These elements include knowledge and skill in reporting (as taught in COMM 260), news writing for various media (as taught in PUBR 363) and visual design/layout principles for various media (as taught in PUBR 367).

An appropriate and well-supervised internship as required for the minor is critical to obtaining entry level positions in the media generally and is a key to career development.

The Journalism program offers a variety of opportunities for students to obtain pre-professional experience in order to be prepared for the world of journalism and related careers. In addition to the internship experience students participate in on-campus media (The Courier and MC-TV), write for the new Warren County News Wire serving local professional news outlets, and seek opportunities to write part-time for professional local media in the Monmouth area or in their hometowns.  Some opportunities for internships can be found here.

A Journalism Minor consists of a minimum of 17 semester hours of credit including the following:

• COMM 260 – Introduction to Journalism: Reporting and Writing  (Prerequisites: COMM 101, ENGL 110)

• PUBR 363 – Media and Public Relations Writing,   (Prerequisites: COMM 261 or PUBR 341)

• PUBR 367 – Layout & Design, 

• An approved internship (or COMM 495/6) (0-2 course credits) 

• At least one workshop credit in COMM 116 or 214 or 216 (.25 - .5 course credits)
  

• Two elective courses, neither of which is in a student’s major department or which counts toward the major, selected from the list below (or approved by the journalism coordinator):

ARTD 236 – Photography

BUSI 105 – Introduction to Commerce

BUSI 307 – Marketing

COMM 261 – Mass Media and Modern Society

COMM 491 – Seminar in Freedom of Expression and Communication Ethics

ECON 200 – Principles of Economics

ECON 340 – Economics and Law

ENGL 301 – Advanced Composition

HIST 112 – U.S. History 1900- Present

HIST 122 – Latin American History II

HIST 319 – History of the Contemporary World

MATH 106 – Statistics

PHIL 201 – Critical Thinking

PHIL 207 – Ethics

POLS 311 – Parties and Elections

POLS 333 – US Foreign Policy

SOCI 102 – Social Problems