School of Journalism and Mass Media

Robin Johnson, Director (347 Admin. Bldg 83844-3178; phone 208-885-6458).

The University of Idaho School of Journalism and Mass Media is Idaho’s only accredited program for the study of journalism, mass communication, and related fields. The school offers bachelor’s degrees in five fields: advertising, broadcasting and digital media, film and television studies, journalism, and public relations.

Students with degrees from the school pursue careers with advertising agencies, radio and television stations and networks, film and video production companies, cable and satellite operations, newspapers and magazines, other print and online media, and public relations firms. They also work as public information specialists for non-profit agencies, private corporations and within the government. Many graduates seek advanced degrees in law, public administration, strategic communication, and the humanities and social sciences.

The school’s curriculum is based on a premise that journalists, broadcasters, film and television producers, public relations professionals, and advertising executives should be broadly educated. Accordingly, students must take at least 75 of the 120 credits needed for graduation outside the school. As a unit of the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences, the school also provides conceptual courses to students in other fields of study as well as university General Education core courses related to the role of media in a global society.

Students seeking the B.A. degree are required to demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language; those seeking the B.S. degree must complete an 18-credit minor or area of emphasis.

Students enrolled in a Journalism, Public Relations, Advertising, or Broadcasting and Digital Media major may not double major in any of these four programs. Students enrolled in the Film and Television Studies major may not double major in Broadcasting and Digital Media.

Students enrolled in a Journalism, Public Relations, Advertising, or Broadcasting and Digital Media major may not pursue a Journalism, Public Relations, Advertising, or Broadcasting and Digital Media minor. Students enrolled in the Film and Television Studies major may not pursue a minor in Broadcasting and Digital Media.

Many students in the School of Journalism and Mass Media supplement their academic experience by working for the independent student media outlets on campus, including the Argonaut newspaper, the Blot magazine, and KUOI-FM. Students are also strongly encouraged to pursue internships at professional media organizations throughout the region.

The school has been accredited since 2014 by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC), the agency responsible for the evaluation of professional journalism and mass communications programs in colleges and universities. The council found the UI’s School of Journalism and Mass Media in full compliance with nine standards dealing with governance, faculty qualifications, diversity, curriculum, facilities, and student services. For more information about the benefits of accreditation, please see: www.acejmc.org/accreditation/value-of-accreditation/.