Ph.D. Minor in Journalism

We welcome doctoral students in other programs who want to increase their understanding of journalism practices and/or professional skills in the United States or globally.

Minor Requirements

The minor comprises 9 units from 500-level courses in the School of Journalism for which students have the prerequisites. In consultation with the director of graduate studies, you may select professional skills courses, journalism studies courses or a combination. Not all courses are offered every semester.

Students who want to communicate their field of interest with the public, for example, could select three of the following courses:

  • JOUR 506: Introductory and Advanced Reporting (fall)
  • JOUR 507: Reporting with Multimedia (fall)
  • JOUR 508: Journalism Theory and Practice (fall)
  • JOUR 509: International and U.S. Media Law (spring)
  • JOUR 511: Feature Writing (fall and spring)
  • JOUR 555: Environmental Journalism (spring)
  • JOUR 572: Science Journalism (fall)
  • JOUR 580: Advanced Multimedia (spring)

Students with an interest in international journalism studies might opt for three of the following courses:

  • JOUR 502: Media and Terrorism (spring)
  • JOUR 508: Journalism Theory and Practice (fall)
  • JOUR 509: International and U.S. Media Law (spring) 
  • JOUR 596F: Media Coverage of International Crises
  • JOUR 573: Reporting the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands (fall)

See the complete listing of journalism graduate courses.

Declaring the minor

After selecting a tentative slate of courses, you must complete a Doctoral Plan of Study, declaring Journalism as your Ph.D. minor. Submit the form via the GradPath forms in UAccess. (New users should begin with the "FAQ for Students" found on that web page.)

Comprehensive exams

Comprehensive exams – both written and oral – must include the minor. If a program chooses to offer the minor, then it must ensure that the student has a comprehensive knowledge of that field. The written exam can be done in a number of ways – a question or two added to the major program’s written exam or a free-standing short exam or integrative paper.

A minor is more than a couple of classes; it needs to be integrated with the your major and evaluated in a comprehensive way. Sometimes students want to add a minor late or to change minors. That is acceptable, but some arrangement needs to be made to ensure that there is a comprehensive written and oral examination over the minor field. The oral comp committee requires a fourth person because it must cover the minor. The final defense requires only three people because it does not require participation of the minor.

Contact Us

For more information on application and administrative questions:
E-mail: sbs-jour-grad@arizona.edu  

 

For advising questions:

Monica Chadha
Associate Professor, Director of Graduate Studies
monicachadha@arizona.edu