facebook

is journalism difficult

by:    

As someone who was admitted into journalism, I'm wondering if it's difficult to maintain straight As in the program? Thanks!

Posted By: Rush
Page 1 of 1
#1by:    
#1    

Journalism is a very practical program, not an intellectual program per se. It's not terribly hard to get A's in the journalism classes where you go to lectures and get additional knowledge from a book. But when it comes to practical classes (film editing, on air experience, covering a meeting and putting together a well-organized story on deadline, crafting an original ad campaign or whatever your major is), you can be the smartest person in the room, but if you can't get the job done efficiently and originally you won't get an A. Plus so many people in the J-School have prior experience (doing videos, writing stories on deadline etc.) that the competition is really tough. The grading also tends to be quite subjective. Graduating with a degree in journalism means you should be a seasoned pro and some people take longer to reach that level than others. But that's what separates our j-school from others. Keep in mind also that employers probably look more at the quality of the practical examples of your work that you can show them than your gpa.

By: Well....
#2by:    
#2    

There are people who think journalism is just another major and that you can study your way to an A. That's not true. In order to graduate you have to have several semesters that provide experience in your field, either working on air at the TV or radio station, working at the daily newspaper, creating an ad campaign, editing the magazine etc. They involve extremely long hours (a broadcast student will spend dozens of hours a week at the TV station, often mostly nights and weekends), but it's worth it because when you graduate you actually have worked in your field (not to mention the opportunity for great internships). So it's a bout much more than the grades.

By: Reality
by: Yea   

It's not really an intellectual program as much as it is putting in work and being interested in your classes. You shouldn't have a problem hardly anyone ever fails out

By: Yea
Report
by: True   

You are more likely to burn out than fail out. It's hard work, but the reward is a REALLY good job.

By: True
Report
by: ^   

Not a fraction as much work as a stem course journalism is for lazy people

By: ^
Report
by: Yea   

Tell that to the weekend reporters and anchors at KOMU who are pulling 24-hour weekend rotations, covering the news for the city of Columbia, the region and providing national network feeds while keeping up with their other course work. You wouldn't last in the J-School for a minute. You know, I thought I wanted to go into microbiology. AP Physics, Biology and Chemistry came easily to me. Got 5s on all of my science-related AP tests and started out as a bio major. It was extremely unfulfilling and I changed focus my sophomore year and entered J-school after 60 credits. I've never worked harder and have never been happier. I'm in a field where I can really make a difference. So save your ill-informed opinions for people who respect you, if you can find some.

By: Yea
Report
by: ^   

OMG you're sooo right!!! Journalism majors are totallyyyy more well respected than STEM majors! What was I thinking!

By: ^
Report
by: ???????   

I'm sorry. Did I miss something? Who said journalists are more respected than STEM majors? Please clarify. I sure can tell you aren't a journalism major because your powers of deduction absolutely suck. In the meantime, be sure to also let me know how STEM majors help protect the First Amendment and guarantee constitutional rights for all citizens.

By: ???????
Report
by: ^   

"Save your opinions for people who respect you, if you can find some." Hmmmm I wonder how that conclusion was brought on. Keep going with your journalism lingo, it's hilarious that you think you sound intelligent.... Anyone could succeed in journalism! Too bad it's a dead end program.

By: ^
Report
by: Sorry   

Trying to sound intelligent? I don't even know what that means. But if it awed you, well, good for me. In the meantime, exactly what doe you mean by "I wonder how that conclusion was brought on." I didn't notice any conclusions. Now, let's pause for a minute because it suddenly dawned on me that English might not be your first language. And if that's the case, I apologize.

By: Sorry
Report
by: ^   

Hahahaha you are even more stupid than I thought. I seriously wouldn't recommend you have an ego about graduating with a degree in journalism. You might as well be an English major. Good luck with that, I heard English majors are like totally in demand!

By: ^
Report
by: ^   

Thx I'm an engineer though, of course undergrads in science aren't going to be employed, they need to do grad school to get a job. Geeze don't you journalists know anything .....

By: ^
Report
#3by:    
#3    

Who could be against journalism? Isn't that sort of like being against what America stands for? All I can say is that the journalism school has put this university on the map.

By: Wow
by: ^   

The major issue is that the field is dying, there just isn't a demand for journalists anymore.

By: ^
Report
by: ^   

Anything related to TV is dying and unfortunately professional news as a whole is dying because every random joe is getting the news out there. Sorry I know that sucks and if you're one of the top 5% of your program I'm sure you won't be affected by it but that is reality for your average journalism grad.

By: ^
Report
by: Hmmm....   

And who do you think those Random Joes are? It's hard to have a following without credibility and it's hard to have credibility without a journalism degree. The only ones who survive are those with a following. So, nice try, grandma. But it's time for you to do some wash or can some pickles because the world is changing and while journalism isn't what it used to be. the premier journalism school in the nation, with its 17+ specialties, has kept up just fine. In fact, it has led the charge.So do us all a favor and go away.

By: Hmmm....
Report
by: Well   

That explains a lot. Getting your news from a reality TV star and a bunch of lightweight podcasts doesn't exactly make you well-informed now, does it? And don't even get me started on the Wall Street Journal. I read it every day, too, and just roll my eyes. When did it become an apologist for the Republican Party? If you don't balance it with the New York Times or Washington Post, you aren't getting anywhere near the whole story. And you are woefully lacking in any news about foreign policy. You could try the BBC website. And when you decide to expose yourself to real journalism, you can come back and tell us why you still think journalism is a lightweight major.

By: Well
Report
by: ^   

I get all the news that I'm personally interested in from those sources and sadly I'm much more informed than the average girl my age. No matter how many names you throw out there, every single one of those outlets have been hurt by fall of journalism. Plenty of writers for those websites are freelancers with no job security, it's not an impossible industry to succeed in but if you honestly believe it's a booming field you're going to be hit with a harsh reality when you graduate. People like you with passion and drive for the field do impress me though, I would never have the guts to take the risk of entering such an unstable field. Greater the risk, the greater the potential return so I do wish you the best of luck.. seriously take my advice and switch out your Greek rank forum lurking time to learn some basic coding and make a personal website.

By: ^
Report
by: really?   

I absolutely disagree that you are better informed than most people our age. The average millennial has more than 10 news feeds a day. You are nowhere near that and those that you embrace are really light weight. You need to get out a bit more and hang with people who are actually smart. I have been observing your exchange with the j-school student and the gap between your intellect and ability to communicate is extremely wide. You may think you are well-informed, but that just shows how blissfully ignorant you are. And you certainly don't represent our generation, which prides itself on being involved and committed. As for coding, most of us are learning it in j-school.

By: really?
Report
by: ^   

Loveeee when people BS and accidentally give it away. You must be so intellectual seeing as you can even write a short paragraph without forgetting that you were pretending to be an outsider ("your convo with the j school student") and then admitting it was actually you at the end ("us in j school are learning to code.") Nice one. Good luck with that administrative assistant job you'll be lucky to land post grad.

By: ^
Report
by: How astute   

You must be right, because, after all, there is only one person in the j-school. There couldn't possibly be anyone else who would defend it. (Do you EVER think with that brain??????????????)

By: How astute
Report
by: ^   

You're a journalism student, why don't you read your post critically and tell me what's wrong with it. Way to answer within minutes loser that's too bad you didn't land an internship seeing as that's the main benefit with your super "prestigious" j school. How did you manage that one ???

By: ^
Report
by: Hmmmm   

Why don't YOU tell me what's wrong with the post because I sure can't figure it out? One person in the jschool has been defending it. Another comes to HER defense. Both have figured out how stupid you are. As for internships, I actually am a THIRD jschool student who finds your criticism sadly ignorant. In fact, it smacks of desperation. And while I don't know about the other two, I can tell you that I work the overnight shift because, surprise, news doesn't just happen from 9-5. So I just woke up. What's your excuse for posting at 11a.m.?

By: Hmmmm
Report
by: ^   

I got off for a nice long weekend, road trip tmrw :) I'm so sure you work the "night shift" as a journalist. What a joke. You're the same liar that goes off on anyone who suggests 3.5 isn't a good GPA too aren't you. No one else gets so rattled up by Greek rank posts, just youuuu little j school wannabe.

By: ^
Report
by: Hmmmm   

Just wondering who moves all of the stories that come out of a convention that ends after 11 a.m. Just wondering who moves all of the copy from the international overnight financial markets. Just wondering where all of the 5 a.m. newscasts get their regional, national and international news. just wondering who edits the visual montages of the lesser speakers at a convention. Just wondering who gathers and puts the many stories together when attacks happen in Nice or Orlando or the Middle East. Do you think it is someone who works 9 to 5? Or might it be someone working overnight in a newsroom or TV station or network news outlet. Also wondering if ^ has even one clue about what a journalist does?

By: Hmmmm
Report
by: ^   

Certainly not you, you spend your evenings writing stories on Greek rank. Oh wait, it all makes sense now....

By: ^
Report
#4by:    
#4    

Let's remember that people come on this site all the time, pretending to be stupid, saying outrageous and inaccurate things and hoping to get a rise out of people. Don't fall for it.

By: Don't fall for it

Before you type:  Please do not post individual names, defaming content, or spam. Remember, cyber bullying can be considered a crime.

Nickname:
Message:

#5by:    
#5    

J school is absolutely not difficult to stay in, especially if you had the grades to get in in the first place. As long as you put in a effort, you will pass. They grade critically but nothing overly harsh to the point where you should be concerned!

By: Yay
by: It seems...   

It's not really about passing anyway, because most people can pass just about any class at this university if they put for the effort. In the J-School its about the body of work you produce and can show prospective employers. If it's quality work you will get an A, of course. but what's much more important is that it impresses the professionals who are looking to hire others to join their ranks. That's where Mizzou students really shine. Did you know that there are scores of journalism schools in the nation where you can graduate without ever have done a newscast, produce a video, design an ad campaign for an actual client or cover a government beat?

By: It seems...
Report

Post Reply

Before you type:  Please do not post individual names, defaming content, or spam. Remember, cyber bullying can be considered a crime.

Nickname:
Message:

POPULAR ON GREEKRANK

Didn't find your school?Request for your school to be featured on GreekRank.