Journalism MJ < Temple University

LEW KLEIN COLLEGE OF MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION

Learn more about the Master of Journalism in Journalism.

About the Program

Temple’s one-year Master of Journalism program puts students at the vanguard of new approaches to journalism and civic media that are engaged, collaborative, community-centered, solution-oriented and equitable. This degree combines hands-on multimedia work with the study of journalists’ evolving roles and practices. Students actively grapple with issues in today’s ever-changing media environment, including shifting technologies, funding structures, media policies, and evolving journalistic practices that prioritize care over clicks.

The 30-credit program is designed to help both current and aspiring journalists deepen their versatility as professionals, change-makers and thought leaders. The cohort-centered program starts with a “bootcamp” course exploring the Philadelphia media landscape and ends with a summer capstone where students design an in-depth reporting or civic media project independently or in collaboration with a newsroom or organization. The program requires core courses in multimedia reporting and journalism concepts and ethics, as well as three elective courses to be taken from among graduate and upper-level undergraduate offerings in journalism and across Klein College.

Time Limit for Degree Completion: 4 years

Campus Location: Main

Full-Time/Part-Time Status: While the degree program can be completed on a full- or part-time basis, full-time enrollment is strongly encouraged.

Areas of Specialization: Coursework is demanding and prepares students to work as professional journalists in the media of their choice. Students may choose to develop a specialization through their electives and capstone with opportunities in community-centered and engaged journalism, solutions-oriented and collaborative journalism, data and investigative journalism, audio/podcasting, broadcasting and video, photography, sports journalism, and more.

Job Prospects: The program is dedicated to training professional practitioners in journalism and media careers. Former students have also found success as freelancers and entrepreneurs.

Non-Matriculated Student Policy: Non-matriculated students are encouraged to begin with introductory and required courses. If accepted to the program, those courses may be applied toward the degree program, provided grade requirements have been met. Consistent with Graduate School policy, students are permitted to take up to 9 credits before deciding whether to apply formally to the program.

Financing Opportunities: Merit scholarships are awarded on a competitive basis by the admissions committee.

Admission Requirements and Deadlines

Application Deadline:

Fall: February 15

Admission is open for the Fall term only. Applications are accepted after the deadline, but late applications cannot be guaranteed merit scholarship consideration.

APPLY ONLINE to this graduate program.

Letters of Reference:
Number Required: 2

From Whom: Letters of recommendation should be obtained from college/university faculty members, professional supervisors or others familiar with the applicant’s academic and professional competence. At least one letter should be from an academic reference unless the applicant has been out of school and working professionally for an extended period of time.

Bachelor's Degree in Discipline/Related Discipline: A baccalaureate degree is required for admission. Applicants with undergraduate degrees in fields other than journalism and communication are welcome provided they can demonstrate sufficient interest in and proficiency with journalistic communication and practice.

Statement of Goals: In approximately 1,000 words, present your strongest statement, which integrates your answers to the prompts below into a coherent essay, to allow us to assess your institutional fit. Toward this end, please review the descriptions of our program, curriculum and faculty, also incorporating this content into your statement. The prompts include:

Your interest in journalism and your view of its place in society;
Your career goals in journalism/civic media; and
Your interests, experiences, and academic or professional achievements that you bring to the program.

Standardized Test Scores:
GRE: Optional. Scores submitted are preferred to be at least 65% on the verbal section with a writing score of at least 3.5. If you elect to not submit GRE scores, a writing sample is required.

Applicants who earned their baccalaureate degree from an institution where the language of instruction was other than English, with the exception of those who subsequently earned a master’s degree at a U.S. institution, must report scores for a standardized test of English that meet these minimums:

TOEFL iBT: 105
IELTS Academic: 7.0
Duolingo: 110

Resume: Current resume or curriculum vitae is required.

Writing / Multimedia Production Sample: If you elect to not submit GRE scores, you are required to submit at least one of the options below so that your readiness and ability/potential to engage rigorously with graduate-level work can be assessed:

Journalistic writing samples (preferred) and/or other media work in multimedia formats, such as broadcast news packages, photojournalism (longform photo essays or published images accompanying news stories), short documentaries or news video (3-15 mins), data journalism projects, audio journalism/radio (3-15 mins), etc. These media portfolio samples can be work that you produced in a professional capacity, such as published news articles, arts & entertainment reviews, features, editorials, etc. or these can be from coursework, campus media, editorial internships, etc.
1. Please provide 2-3 portfolio examples that can be a mix of any of these media formats or can highlight one particular skill i.e. writing, photography, video, etc.
2. Links to online presentations of multimedia work are preferred but writing and photo samples can be submitted as PDF files.
3. Please include a cover sheet indicating in what publication or for which course and on what date the material was produced or published.
A formal academic paper from your undergraduate work that represents your best academic writing. Please include a cover sheet on which you indicate:
1. your name,
2. the institution where you took the course for which the paper was produced,
3. the course number and title of the course for which the paper was written,
4. the professor for whom you wrote the paper, and
5. the term in which you took the course.

Transfer Credit: Graduate credits from an accredited institution may be transferred into the MJ program, subject to approval of the Master of Journalism Committee. Requests to transfer credits must be submitted during the first term of matriculation so that the student’s future curriculum can be planned. The maximum number of credits a student may transfer is 6.

Program Requirements

General Program Requirements:
Number of Credits Required Beyond the Baccalaureate: 30

Required Courses:

Plan of Study Grid
Year 1
Summer II		Credit Hours
JRN 5301	Introduction to Urban Journalism	3
	Credit Hours	3
Fall
JRN 5302	Reporting Lab 1	3
JRN 5303	Journalism Concepts	3
JRN 5308	Multiplatform Journalism	3
JRN Elective		3
	Credit Hours	12
Spring
JRN 5305	Reporting Lab 2	3
JRN 5306	Journalism and the Public Interest	3
Two JRN Electives		6
	Credit Hours	12
Year 2
Summer I
JRN 9995	Master's Research Project	3
	Credit Hours	3
	Total Credit Hours	30

Culminating Event:
Capstone Project:
JRN 9995 Master's Research Project constitutes the culminating event. Students complete an independent reporting project that results in a journalistic masterwork analogous to a thesis that will be pitched to a professional news organization, creating the foundation for a portfolio of published work.

Accelerated Programs

Undergraduate students may opt to pursue an accelerated +1 program, enabling them to complete both a bachelor's degree and master's degree in less time than the traditional route.

The accelerated pathway for the Journalism MJ is available to all undergraduate students with two free elective courses available, except Journalism majors.

Cohort code: XMJOURN

Minimum Cumulative GPA: 3.25

Graduate Courses Approved to Count for Both Undergraduate and Graduate Degrees

Course List
Code	Title	Credit Hours
JRN 5303	Journalism Concepts	3
JRN 5306	Journalism and the Public Interest	3

Suggested Academic Plan

Plan of Study Grid
Year 4
Fall		Credit Hours
JRN 5303	Journalism Concepts	3
	Credit Hours	3
Spring
JRN 5306	Journalism and the Public Interest	3
	Credit Hours	3
	Total Credit Hours	6

Admissions Criteria

This +1 program is available to all undergraduate majors except Journalism.

Candidates for the +1 program must:

apply in Spring of Junior year by April 1.
have completed 45 credits of coursework at Temple University to apply.
provide the following application requirements:
- statement of goals,
- resume, and
- two letters of recommendation from full-time Temple University faculty members.

Application: https://form.jotform.com/62155949771164