UM photojournalism students and graduates have recently won numerous national honors. Our rigorous curriculum develops graduates skilled not only in the technicalities of fine shooting, but in the training to portray subtleties of the human condition.

Photojournalism is as much about journalism as it is about photography. Our students learn not only how to take pictures, but what pictures to take to best convey a story. Because they are journalists as well as photographers, we expect them to succeed in reporting, editing and design classes as well as photo classes.

We teach students how to handle a camera, how to develop and print in a dark room and on a computer, and how to select photos for publication so that they have maximum impact. From shooting to developing to printing to editing, our students learn to make images that tell stories and stun viewers. Our students also learn the ethics of photography and the history behind their craft.

Once our pre-journalism students apply and are admitted to our professional program (see: How the Undergraduate Major Works) in the photo option, they take courses in a prescribed order: Intermediate Photojournalism and News Editing I (copy editing) in fall of their first year; News Editing II (design), Media Law and Advanced Photojournalism in the spring. In fall of their final year in the professional program, students must take Picture Story/Photographic Essay and our Senior Seminar, and either Documentary Photojournalism or the Native News Honors Project. Students also may choose from a variety of electives.

The education and training pay off. Our photo students have recently earned job or internships with the Associated Press, The Chattanooga Times Free Press, the Muskegon Chronicle, the Idaho State Journal, the Tacoma News-Tribune, the Bugle magazine published by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, the Great Falls Tribune, the Bozeman Chronicle and many others. Our students sometimes also work in professions outside journalism that require photography or design skills.

For more information about the photojournalism program, contact Keith Graham the director of the photo program.