Future j-students will need more credits

By Sara Lettus
J-School Web Reporter

Students entering the journalism school in the fall of 2007 will have to complete a minimum of 35 credits instead of the currently required 30.

Carol Van Valkenburg, professor and head of the print department, said the faculty made the decision in order to expose students to new things as journalism evolves.

“It will introduce students to media all across the platform,” Van Valkenburg said, “audio, visual, print and photography.”

While the new credit requirements will be in place in fall 2007, further changes to the program will not be done until the move into the new building is made.

“We’ll take the first year to re-access before we adopt a new curriculum,” said Van Valkenburg.

Above all, the journalism school wants to “explore all possibilities,” she said.

Van Valkenburg said the main goals are to get adjusted to the new building starting in fall 2007, make sure everything – equipment, labs – is working efficiently, then look at the program and propose changes.

After that, Van Valkenburg said, new classes, a new emphasis and the need for more professors will be considered.

A new class will most likely precede the two reporting classes already offered – Beginning Reporting (J270) and Public Affairs Reporting (J331). This new class will introduce students, no matter what their emphasis, to a range of fields in journalism, said Van Valkenburg.

Adding a New Media option has also been considered. But with new classes and possibly a new emphasis, an increase in faculty will most likely be needed.

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