Awards
Target Award
Award Description:Master of Arts - MA
Alternative Exit
Programme Offerings
Full-Time
F2F-JMU-SEP
Part-Time
F2F-JMU-SEP
Educational Aims of the Course
To provide journalism skills training of newsgathering, writing and production in print, online and broadcast for students who have no previous experience in the journalism industry; To provide working journalists or those with a serious interest in journalism the opportunity to critically evaluate the products of journalism; To provide students with the skills to be able to critically analyse and understand the structures and frameworks within which journalism works; To enable students to synthesize knowledge from several different disciplines to apply it to journalism; To allow students to develop research skills at Masters level evidenced by a research dissertation; To enable students to develop the ability to situate the study of Journalism within the broader debates in media and cultural theory; To provide students with a working knowledge of international relations that is relevant to the concerns of mainstream news organisations; To provide an educational experience which facilitates the development of all students irrespective of race, gender, physical ability and sexual orientation; To offer an opportunity for students to evaluate and critically analyse the vocation of Journalism as practiced internationally; To assist students to develop their understanding and knowledge of the practice of Journalism internationally; To develop intellectual skills of effective communication through media technologies, research skills and the ability to situate the study of Journalism within the broader debates of global media and cultural theory as well as providing transferable skills of effective teamworking and self-sufficiency. The programme allows students to gain a sound understanding of the nature and operation of journalism in a rapidly changing international environment. As with all Master's level programmes, study will be at, or be informed by, the forefront of the academic and professional discipline. Students will show originality in the application of knowledge, and they will understand how the boundaries of knowledge are advanced through research. They will be able to deal with complex issues both systematically and creatively, and they will be encouraged to show originality in tackling and solving problems. They will have the qualities needed for employment in circumstances requiring sound judgement, personal responsibility and initiative, in complex and unpredictable professional environments.
Learning Outcomes
1.
Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of the development and operation of media in a national and international context;
2.
Demonstrate a comparative understanding of the roles that media play in different societies;
3.
Demonstrate the ability to critically analyse particular media forms and genres and the way in which they organise understandings, meanings and effects;
4.
Demonstrate a critical understanding of the role of technology in terms of media production, access and use;
5.
Demonstrate a critical awareness of the economic forces which frame the media and the role of such industries in specific areas of contemporary political and cultural life;
6.
Show an ability to examine and critique the social, cultural and political histories from which different media and communication practices have emerged;
7.
Show an ability to evaluate key production processes and demonstrate competence in professional practices relevant to media and communicative industries.
Teaching, Learning and Assessment
Students are taught with a wide mix of teaching methods including lectures, demonstrations, screenings, seminars, workshops, work simulations; tutorials, group and individual project work, live projects, supervised independent learning, open and resource-based learning, multi-media and new media learning, production practice; large and small group and individual learning and teaching situations; tutor-led, student-led and independent learning sessions. Specialist IT resources and other studio-based resources play an important part in the delivery. Essays, reviews and reports; seen examinations; individual and group presentations (whether oral and/or technology based); critical self- and peer-evaluation; role-analyses/evaluations; logbooks, diaries and autobiographical writing; individual or group portfolios of work (whether critical, creative, self-reflective, or the outcome of the professional practice); group and individually produced artefacts, including productions in sound, audio-visual or other media; individual and group project reports; research exercises; tasks aimed the assessment of specific skills (e.g. IT skills, production skills, research skills, skills of application).
Programme Structure
Programme Structure Description
Participants must choose EITHER 7124JOURN Multimedia Journalism and 7029JOURN Magazine Production or 7128JOURN Advanced Broadcast Journalism (for students who have not worked as professional journalists) OR 7025JOURN Reflecting on Professional Practice and 7030JOURN Journalism Project (for students who have worked as professional journalists).