Master of Science Degree

The 10-month M.S. program offers aspiring and experienced journalists the opportunity to study the skills, the art, and the ethics of journalism by reporting and writing stories that range from short news pieces to complex narrative features. Students learn how to think critically and deeply, to be both ethical and street smart, working with New York City as their laboratory.

Students may choose from one of four specializations: newspaper, magazine, broadcast or new media. Applicants interested in investigative reporting may apply to the Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism, a sub-specialization of the M.S. program. Students may also enroll in this program on a part-time basis.

Course Details

During a full academic year, you will complete assignments in reporting, writing and editing in the high-pressure deadline atmosphere of the journalism profession.

Experienced working journalists are your teachers, and they critique your assignments and closely supervise your production of laboratory newspapers, magazines, television and radio programs and new media. New York City, in all its vastness, complexity and diversity, is your working laboratory.

Most of the curriculum consists of required courses, but there is wide variety among the requirements. You can choose to specialize in such areas as international reporting, business and economics writing, coverage of the arts or metropolitan reporting.

The core course, Reporting and Writing I, covers the basics of journalism applicable to all media:

• how to do research
• how to write a lead
• how to structure a story
• how to cover a neighborhood or a government agency
• how to cover spot news and investigative stories

The fall term offers an overview of the profession as you begin to confront its ethical and philosophical aspects. In the seminars, basic skills are refined and issues brought into focus.

Working on the Bronx Beat, a student-run weekly newspaper Rebecca Castillo

In the spring term, you will tailor your schedule to your particular interests. Workshops include the in-house broadcasting of news programs, working on a magazine (attendance at the Delacorte Lecture Series is required of all magazine concentrators), a television documentary, a newspaper, the Columbia News Service or experimenting with new media, such as nyc24.org.

The curriculum includes one- and two-day seminars, workshops, and electives, and the tight schedule is demanding. Full-time students should expect to be occupied with schoolwork most of the time Monday through Friday and during many weekends.

The master's project, which spans the autumn and spring terms, requires intensive research and writing. You must produce a substantial piece of journalism. The project is intended to

• test your ability to conduct and sustain in-depth research over several months
• challenge you to gather and organize large amounts of material
• train you to write that material in clear, accessible, and professional-quality prose

The project encourages you to think beyond a daily deadline and it provides practice in the highest level of long-form reporting, writing, and producing. Many projects end up being commercially viable, but this is not the main goal.

These projects offer a chance for you to experiment with new topics and to practice a form of writing or production, which many journalists have little time to try until well along in their careers.

Students are required to take the courses listed in the bulletin (requirements are subject to change), as well as one elective drawn from the journalism curriculum or another division of the University. This elective is usually taken during the spring.

The full-time minimum load per semester is 15 credits, the maximum 19. Thirty earned credits are required for a degree, but most students graduate with 34 or more.