Until further notice, the University of Arizona, in accordance with the guidelines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, encourages all employees to work remotely. Our offices are closed to the public, but you can reach the School of Journalism Monday–Friday 9am-5pm:
- Andrés Domínguez (520-621-7556; dad4@arizona.edu)
- Carol Schwalbe (520-300-0693; cschwalbe@arizona.edu)
- Maggy Zanger (520-661-2742; zanger@arizona.edu)
- Paloma Boykin (520-314-3918; boykin1@arizona.edu)
Get COVID-19 updates and information for the University of Arizona community. Also, see SBS resources for continuing instruction and learning.
B.A. Degree Requirements
These requirements are for catalog year 2019 and beyond. If your catalog year is before 2019, please see your undergraduate advisor about your degree requirements.
Foundations
- 1st Year English or equivalent
- MATH 107 or MATH 112 (or higher)
- 4th semester second language proficiency
General Education
- 6 units Tier 1 Individuals & Societies
- 6 units Tier 1 Traditions & Cultures
- 6 units Tier 1 Natural Sciences
- 3 units Tier 2 Humanities
- 3 units Tier 2 Natural Sciences
- 3 units Tier 2 Arts
- 3 units Diversity
Minor
Required, minimum of 18 units (or double-major)
Required Courses
- Complete all of the following courses (33 units)
- If you are in Broadcasting Specialization, you will take your corresponding courses instead of JOUR 307 & JOUR 411
- Complete two Journalism electives (6 units)
This survey course provides an overview of news journalism, its history, future and role in a democratic society. It will cover the basics of journalism values, principles, law, ethics, writing and reporting.
Reporting news through images and graphics; introduction to all aspects of photojournalism, including law, ethics, history and critical decision-making.
Gathering, evaluating, and writing news. Completion of this course with a grade of C or better also satisfies the Mid-Career Writing Assessment (MCWA) requirement.
Basic legal concepts for print, broadcast, online, and photojournalism, including access to courts, public records and meetings; subpoenas and shield laws; prior restraint; libel; privacy; source confidentiality; intellectual property; obscenity; and FCC regulations.
Comprehensive and accurate news presentation with emphasis on interview techniques and coverage of major news stories. Completion of this course with a C or better also satisfies Mid Career Writing Assessment (MCWA).
Study and practice of newsgathering on executive, legislative, and judicial levels in city, county, state and federal governments, with emphasis on both deadline writing and in-depth stories.
Theory and techniques of copy editing and headline writing; introduction to layout and design.
Analysis of ethical theory and how it relates to journalists' roles and responsibilities in a democratic society. Case studies involve questions of bias, accuracy, privacy and national security.
Students in Arizona Sonora News produce strong enterprise stories in written and multimedia formats, which are then provided to media for professional publication. Students learn the techniques of search engine optimization and key word construction, and apply what they have learned in their other classes through the major. This engaged learning news service class enables students to demonstrate that they can produce professional quality work.
Broadcast Specialization
- Complete the following courses (9 units)
- Complete two Journalism electives (3 units)
This course is an introductory class on broadcast news writing, focusing mainly on writing for television with some instruction on writing for audio/radio. Students spend the semester learning basic television and audio/radio writing formats. Ethics in broadcast journalism are introduced and discussed. Toward the end of the semester, students may combine their own original video to use in some assignments.
Course introduces students to television reporting and production and the ethical decision-making skills needed to success in the advanced TV course, JOUR 490C Arizona Cat's Eye.
This course is designed to enhance and further develop your video news writing, reporting and production skills that you acquired in 280 and 385. It is a building block for 490C/Arizona Sonora News. Through extensive hands-on experience, you will write, report, shoot, produce, and edit hard news feature and in-depth stories for broadcast and the web. Ideally, by the end of the semester you will have produced several "air" quality news reports that you can include on your résumé reel. This course may be repeated once for credit.
Digital Specialization
- Complete following courses (6 units)
- Complete two Digital JOUR electives
This is a multimedia course that will introduce you to multimedia reporting which is some combination of text, still photographs, video clips, audio, graphics and interactivity presented on a Web site in a nonlinear format in which the information in each medium is complementary, not redundant. Through interactive exercises you will learn about four basic elements: audio; shooting still photographs and video; editing; and storytelling using a variety of multimedia platforms.
Writing the feature articles for newspapers, magazines or other media; specialized reporting and writing techniques.
General Specialization
- Complete the following courses (6 units)
- Complete two General JOUR electives
This is a multimedia course that will introduce you to multimedia reporting which is some combination of text, still photographs, video clips, audio, graphics and interactivity presented on a Web site in a nonlinear format in which the information in each medium is complementary, not redundant. Through interactive exercises you will learn about four basic elements: audio; shooting still photographs and video; editing; and storytelling using a variety of multimedia platforms.
Writing the feature articles for newspapers, magazines or other media; specialized reporting and writing techniques.
Global Specialization
- Complete the following courses (6 units)
- Complete two Global JOUR electives
This is a multimedia course that will introduce you to multimedia reporting which is some combination of text, still photographs, video clips, audio, graphics and interactivity presented on a Web site in a nonlinear format in which the information in each medium is complementary, not redundant. Through interactive exercises you will learn about four basic elements: audio; shooting still photographs and video; editing; and storytelling using a variety of multimedia platforms.
Writing the feature articles for newspapers, magazines or other media; specialized reporting and writing techniques.
Electives
Additional elective courses may be taken to fulfill the 120 total units or 42 upper-division units. List of all undergraduate courses
