International Family Studies

The College of Journalism and Mass Communications offers a Master of Arts degree with specializations available in media studies, professional journalism, and integrated media communications (IMC). Applicants seeking admission to the IMC program will be required to complete a basic statistics course if they have not taken one as a part of their undergraduate coursework.

The master's degree is designed to build or enhance professional knowledge, skills, and leadership in journalism and mass communications. The program is designed to accommodate the needs of students with an undergraduate degree in a journalism and mass communications; journalism, advertising, public relations, marketing and education professionals; or students with careers and undergraduate degrees in areas other than journalism and mass communications. Applicants with an undergraduate major in an area of study other than journalism and mass communications, or students with little or no professional related experience may be required to complete undergraduate journalism and mass communications courses.

All of the specializations are available by distance education. The college offers synchronous (real-time) and asynchronous (flexible) distance courses, all of which are interactive. The synchronous courses are interactive between campus and distance students, and typically meet one evening a week. Overall, the program's interdisciplinary curriculum combines up-to-date knowledge with practical application and individualized experience.

Gain cutting-edge theoretical knowledge about the various influences and effects of the media. A thesis is required.

Requires a minimum of 30 semester hours with a thesis.

• 9 required hours of course work in the major
• 9 hours of electives
• either a 6 hour professional project
• OR, 6 hours of advanced coursework in the major
• 6 hour thesis
• 8 credit hours in addition to the thesis must be earned in courses opened exclusively to graduate students.

Who Should Consider This Degree

• Media professionals who want to enhance or add areas of expertise
• Media professionals who want to advance in their field
• Business professionals who design public relations and communication materials for companies
• Middle and high school teachers who produce or work with student staffs to produce school publications
• Media professionals who wish to fulfill personal and professional goals
• Full-time professionals who want flexible course schedules and delivery options
• Independent, self-motivated individuals with a strong commitment to degree completion

Media Studies Thesis Track: Option I(30 credit hours)Required Courses

In addition to the courses below, 8 credit hours (in addition to the thesis) must be earned in courses open exculsively to graduate students.

*Denotes courses offered only to graduate students.

• JGRD 915 Mass Media Theory* 3 credit hours
• JGRD 919 Mass Media Research* 3 credit hours
• JGRD 954 Government and the Media* 3 credit hours
• JGRD 899 Thesis 6 credit hours
• JGRD 992 Professional project or advanced coursework 6 credit hours

Electives 9 credit hours

Application for Graduate Admission$50 non-refundable application processing feeOne set of transcripts, uploaded to MyRED (seeupload requirements)If your native language is not English: verification of English proficiencyIf you are not a US citizen and you expect to hold an F or J visa: financial resource information English Language Requirements TOEFL paper-based test score : 600 TOEFL iBT® test: 100 Technological Requirements PC Processor: Core 2 Duo or Equivalent or better Operating System: Windows XP (Home/Professional) or higher Web Conferencing: Web Camera/ Sound Card & Speakers/ Microphone or Headset with Microphone Internet Connection: High-speed DSL or Cable Modem Browser: Windows IE 7.0 or higher/ Firefox 3.0 or higher Anti-Virus: Current & Updated Anti-virus Software : Microsoft Office 2007 or higher Plug-Ins (download) : Java/ Windows Media Player/Acrobat Reader/Flash/Shockwave/Powerpoint Viewer MAC Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo or better Operating System: OS 10 X Snow Leopard Web Conferencing: Web Camera/ Sound Card & Speakers/ Microphone or Headset with Microphone Internet Connection: High-speed DSL or Cable Modem Browser: Windows IE 7.0 or higher/ Firefox 3.0 or higher/ Safari 3.0 or higher Anti-Virus: Current & Updated Anti-virus Software : Microsoft Office 2007 or higher Plug-Ins (download) : Quicktime

The Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid provides information on loans and need-based funds.

Accreditation

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, one of six regional accrediting agencies. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has been continuously accredited since 1913. The Office of Academic Affairs is responsible for coordinating University efforts to prepare for the accrediting agency’s periodic site visits and reviews. The university last underwent a comprehensive self-study and site visit during the 2006-07 academic year. The next comprehensive evaluation will be in 2016-17.

UNL’s Statement of Affiliation Status (confirmation of accreditation) can be accessed on the Higher Learning Commission’s website.