Journalism school

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A journalism school is a school or department, usually part of an established university, where journalists are trained. An increasingly used short form for a journalism department, school or college is j-school. One journalism school in Australia is now known as Jschool.

Many of the most famous and respected journalists of the past and present had no formal training in journalism, but learned their craft on the job, often starting out as copy boys/copy girls. Today, in many parts of the world it is usual for journalists to first complete university-level training which incorporates both technical skills such as research skills, interviewing technique and shorthand and academic studies in media theory, cultural studies and ethics.

Current preference within the United Kingdom is for entrants to first complete a non media-studies related degree course, giving maximum educational breadth, prior to taking a specialist postgraduate pre-entry course, most of which are either recognised by the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) or the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ).

1 Top journalism schools
2 Debate about the role of journalism schools
3 See also
4 External Links

[edit] Top journalism schools

There have been various attempts to rank journalism schools, and the question of which are the "best" or "top" journalism schools is frequently raised on the internet by students. Many institutions claim to be leading schools of journalism, and there is inevitably debate about which are the most appropriate criteria with which to evaluate and judge journalism schools.

ASIA

Two "top 10" lists have been compiled in India: [1] and [2].

AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND

In Australia, a ranking of all journalism schools in the country has been assembled based on graduating students' assessments of the quality of their courses: [3]. The New Zealand Training Organisation has published a list of that country's journalism schools recognised by industry.[4]

EUROPE

Issues from a European perspective in evaluating journalism schools are discussed by the president of the European Journalism Training Association: [5].

In Russia the MSU Faculty of Journalism is the leading journalism school. The majority of textbooks on journalism in Russian was written by the the MSU scientists.

LATIN AMERICA

An evaluation of developments in journalism education in Latin America has been undertaken by Professor Rosental Calmon Alves[6].

NORTH AMERICA A listing (unranked) of leading Canadian journalism schools has been assembled by Campus Access[7]. Journalism schools are listed and classified on the "J-Schools & Programs" page of The Canadian Journalism Project

In the United States the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) [8] applies nine standards in evaluating university programs: mission, governance and administration; curriculum and instruction; diversity and inclusiveness; full-time and part-time faculty; scholarship: research, creative and professional activity; student services; resources, facilities and equipment; professional and public service; and assessment of learning outcomes. The ACEJMCC has awarded accreditation to 109 university and college programs of study in journalism and mass communications, but does not attempt to rank the courses or programs.

Editor & Publisher has presented an unranked list of leading journalism schools [9], while U.S. News & World Report produces annual lists of the top schools in advertising, print, and other categories based on responses to questionnaires sent to deans and faculty members. A list based on a variety of resources claims to identify the "ten most popular journalism schools in the United States"[10]. One critic has pointed to the anecdotal nature of much j-school ranking in the absence of effective tracking of journalism graduates' career paths[11]. Schools such as Columbia University, Indiana University, Univeristy of Kansas, University of Missouri, Michigan State University, Northwestern University, and University of Wisconsin are typically considered among the best in the United States based upon the success of those who attended these institutions.

[edit] Debate about the role of journalism schools

One of the most cited critiques of a journalism school was Michael Lewis's article in The New Republic (1993), "J-school ate my brain" ([12]), which was strongly criticized by University of Maryland College of Journalism dean Reese Cleghorn in American Journalism Review: [13]. Discussion of the issues raised by Lewis was evident a decade later in the Chronicle of Higher Education colloquy on journalism education, [14], Columbia Journalism Review's "Searching for the perfect j-school", [15], and "The j-school debate" in the Christian Science Monitor, [16]. Alternative approaches to journalism education were suggested in Jack Shafer's Slate article "Can J-school be saved? Professional advice for Columbia University" [17]. An article in The Australian discusses "What makes a good school of journalism".[18].

On the internet, a range of weblogs have been set up by journalism students to chronicle or to criticize their journalism colleges. Examples are: [19], [20], [21], [22]. An example of a weblog criticising university journalism education in Australia is [23]. One journalism school in the UK, at the University of Westminster, has established a clearing house where all students are expected to contributte to the development and content of their own eduation and training using blogs.

Various commentaries on journalism education are related to criticisms of contemporary news media standards and values. One example is a paper by Jan Schaffer, executive director of J-Lab: the Institute for Interactive Journalism[24]. A controversial paper to Australia's peak newspaper industry body PANPA (Pacific Area Newspaper Publishers Association) by Professor John Henningham ("Journalism sold short in media courses") blamed industry lack of interest and university cost-cutting for falling standards in journalism education[25]. In Canada, Mark Anderson of the Ottawa Citizen has argued the case for teaching business journalism in college rather than on the job[26]. Muncie Free Press proprietor Paul Mallasch has called for more j-school graduates to choose the participatory model known as citizen journalism [27], while issues of citizen participation are also discussed by American University professor and CBS journalist Danna Walker in her discussion of implications for journalism education in media industry restructuring flowing from internet challenges[28].