Journalism
Visit the Department Web Site »
The student experience within the Journalism and Mass Communication Department at Humboldt State University is designed to: (1) prepare students for a career in the print and broadcast media, public relations, or a related field; (2) provide an understanding of the rights, responsibilities and role of the mass media in our country and throughout the world; (3) provide journalism skills for those not planning to work in related fields but who believe they can benefit from these skills; (4) develop better critical-thinking skills as consumers of news and the mass media; and (5) prepare students for graduate work leading to the teaching of journalism or a research career or professional degrees such as law.
Through the skills courses, students will gain experience in gathering, writing, and producing news or other content for the electronic media, print media and public relations. Our classes are small enough for students to receive individual attention and help, in or out of the classroom. Our approach is to help students develop their professional skills and make them feel like a part of our department.
Journalism majors have a choice of four areas of emphasis within the major: News-Editorial, Public Relations, Broadcast News and Media Studies.
Students will have the opportunity to gain practical experience through a variety of campus media. These include the award-winning campus newspaper, The Lumberjack, and the award-winning campus magazine, Osprey, as well as the news departments of the campus radio stations, KHSU-FM and KRFH-AM, and television production workshops. We have strong ties with local and statewide news, broadcast, and public relations professionals. There are also opportunities for off-campus internships with a variety of community media and organizations.
Journalism majors in all emphases are expected to take a wide variety of courses in the social and physical sciences, creative arts, and liberal arts, and to create a minor or area of study in at least one of these disciplines. The ability to type is necessary in all journalism courses. We encourage learning a second language
Degrees Offered
BA, Minor