In response to recent studies that working journalists want more professional education, USC Annenberg’s School of Journalism will offer a unique 10-month M.A. program in specialized journalism beginning Fall 2007.

A 2002 report sponsored by the Knight Foundation revealed that the lack of training opportunities is the top professional concern of U.S. journalists, outranking even pay and benefits. In addition to basic skills, journalists and their managers desire training and education in specific topic areas to enhance their coverage of beats such as health and business. For more about the study, visit http://www.knightfdn.org.

“Almost more than any other profession, journalism depends on intellectually versatile practitioners – people skilled in the immediate tasks of the craft, to be sure, but also fluent in the purposes and function of civil society. Such nimbleness of mind and technique can only be achieved – with quality journalism as its result – through a process of continuous learning,” said Carroll D. Stevens, former director of the Knight Foundation Fellowships for Journalists in Law at Yale Law School when the study was released.

USC Annenberg’s program will offer training and an advanced degree in any one of four specialized topics: education, religion, science, and urban ecology.

“As a major university with a leading journalism school, USC can provide seminars and workshops in specialized reporting, course offerings across many different disciplines and discussion programs with prominent scholars and community leaders that can help meet the needs of the profession,” said Geoffrey Cowan, dean of the USC Annenberg School.

In addition to the journalism classes taught at USC Annenberg, students will take courses with faculty from USC’s other highly regarded academic units, including the Rossier School of Education, School of Policy, Planning and Development, and College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

“Leaders of American journalism believe that there is a strong and increasing need for expertise in substantive areas covered by the U.S. news media and of great importance to the society that they serve – expertise that is lacking in the newsrooms of most newspapers, magazines, broadcast outlets and news Web sites,” said Michael Parks, the Pulitzer Prize-winning former editor of the Los Angeles Times who now directs USC Annenberg’s School of Journalism.

Top faculty in the program (pictured clockwise from top left) will include award-winning science author and reporter K.C. Cole; former New York Times education reporter Bill Celis; author, journalist and holder of the Knight Chair in Media and Religion Diane Winston; and Larry Pryor, a former environmental affairs reporter and editor with the Los Angeles Times, Louisville Courier-Journal and former editor of USC Annenberg’s Online Journalism Review.

The program will enroll students divided among the four areas of specialization. It is intended for mid-career professionals with a record of excellence. Recent journalism school graduates with strong academic records and internship experience may also be considered.

Applications for the program are due June 1, 2007. For details about the application process, visit http://annenberg.usc.edu/specialized

Located in Los Angeles at the University of Southern California, the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism is among the nation's leading institutions devoted to the study of journalism and communication, and their impact on politics, culture and society. With an enrollment of more than 1,900 graduate and undergraduate students, USC Annenberg offers degree programs in journalism, communication, public diplomacy and public relations. For more information, visit our home page.