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I previewed this post way back in February.

Whoops.

Thankfully, the topic is still just as timely now as it was when I first wrote about it. Some journalism schools have seen an increase in enrollment, despite the treacherous state of the industry.  The economy seems to be on a rebound, but the central questions and concerns about the business (yes, business) of journalism remain.

The time for journalism schools to evolve has come.

Why journalism?

When it came time to apply for college, I was pretty certain that writing would be involved in my schooling and future career. I looked at Indiana schools for programs that piqued my interest. I happened upon Ball State University’s magazine journalism program, and I knew it was for me.

My interest in the magazine major had an ulterior motive: I also happened to be obsessed with cars. My dream job, at the time, involved writing for an automotive magazine so I could “drive all the supercars I would never be able to afford unless I went into business solely to make money.” In retrospect, it was a weird reason to pursue a journalism degree but I’m glad it went that way. It got me through the door.

I applied to Ball State (and no where else) and got an acceptance letter a few months later. When I came to campus, my plan was to double major in magazine journalism and business. One of my mentors from high school suggested that everyone would be better off with a business degree, and I agreed.

I went to school. I partied a lot. Somehow I got good grades. I started working for expo, the student magazine, and the Ball State Daily News, the student newspaper. My friends at the newspaper pushed me to take leadership roles, so I did. The newsroom became my second home.

Eventually, the allure of a business major left and was replaced with a love for design. I picked up a design major at the urging of the department chair Jennifer George-Palilonis, who happened to be a friend of my family. Around the same time, I thought it would be a good idea to pursue a philosophy minor. I graduated in December, after four and a half years, with the magazine and design majors and without the philosophy minor.

That’s the basic story. Now on to the good stuff: What I really got out of my time in journalism school.

What journalism school gave me

As I look back, it’s obvious that the people were the most important part of my time in school. I met new people, different people, smart people and even a few dumb people. It wasn’t all about the people, even though I would have loved it that way. I also took a variety of basic courses and got to spend a lot of time studying writing and design.

The magazine major gave me a strong base in reporting and writing. I learned about mechanics, spelling, grammar and style. I learned about the importance of research and fact-checking. I had the opportunity to explore basic – and later more advanced – storytelling through text. I also learned about some of the particulars of the business of magazines, but only to the extent that it would help me get a job or start a career in the field.

The design major gave me a strong base in visual journalism. Most importantly, I learned about design theory and how to apply it in various media. I explored some of the best practices in design, and had a chance to put my skills to work in class. There was also a technical aspect of the design major because many classes spent some time teaching software basics.

The design program introduced me to multimedia. I learned about the advanced models of storytelling that the Web allows. It became a passion, and still is today.

I was lucky enough to be chosen for various immersion programs during my time at journalism school. I took a class called iMedia, where we designed and implemented a mobile news site optimized for the iPhone. I took a class where we put together a prototype for a Web site where all student media could publish. I reported on an “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” build for a blog and, eventually, a book.

In short, I had absolutely amazing opportunities that weren’t a part of the typical curriculum. I’m thankful for the chance to put my skills and learning to real-world practice. I wish everyone could have had the same opportunities, but that wasn’t the case.

I also had to complete an internship for my degree. I spent a summer as the design intern at the Kalamazoo Gazette in Michigan. I met and worked with a bunch of great journalists. I saw the professional world and, frankly, how it was going to be hard to make a living in it if things didn’t change.

I also worked student media. This experience was so valuable that I’m going to devote an entire section to it. Anyone who goes to journalism school and doesn’t get involved with the student media outlets simply isn’t getting an education.

As I mentioned before, journalism school was ultimately about people. I made contacts with professors who introduced me to people in the professional world, and the networking began. I can’t stress enough how important it was to be surrounded by people who were well-known and respected for their previous work in journalism.

That’s the abridged version, but I would be remiss if I didn’t say a few things about student media. After all, it was the place where I spend the majority of my time during school.

What student media gave me

Most of my learning in journalism school took place in student media. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot in the classroom. It would have amounted to a strong theoretical base without the chance to put the knowledge to use, however.

As a freshman, I started out with four positions in two student media outlets. At expo, I was a designer and a reporter. I designed a spread about a record store that was close to campus, and my first story was chosen for the cover of an issue. At the Daily News, I started out as a copy editor and columnist. I worked a few nights a week on the copy desk and wrote a column every other week.

Ultimately, I decided to work for the Daily News despite my magazine major. The decision came down to the fact that the newspaper published every day. It also had something to do with the people at the DN because I knew the editor, Dave Studinski, from high school. He got me through the door and encouraged me to become a part of the organization.

In my time at the DN, I took on various roles: I was opinion editor, summer editor-in-chief, chief designer, design leader, assistant design editor, online editor and multimedia editor. It was all a learning process, and it was all wonderful.

In the early days, I learned the importance of good writing and fact checking. I was either doing the writing myself or checking behind others to make sure the final story was the best it could be. I also learned about the importance of scheduling and budgeting; the magazine and newspaper were complex machines that required a high level of planning and forethought to be successful.

Perhaps most importantly, I learned what journalists are ultimately meant to do: Serve an audience. I understood some aspects of the importance of journalism (I remember the “watchdog” function being drilled into my head during class) but it was student media that gave me an introduction to what publishing for an audience was all about. As forum editor, I was head of an outlet where people might come to express their concerns and opinions about various things. Not surprisingly, many people wanted to complain about the paper and what we were or weren’t doing. It was frustrating and sometimes disheartening, but it allowed me to realize that without the audience the work would be meaningless.

As I moved up in the hierarchy, I learned more about management than I ever thought possible. Not only did I have to figure out what we were going to publish and when, but I also had to figure out the best people to get the job done. I learned the importance of delegation. I couldn’t be everything to everyone and everywhere at once — I had to assign jobs and duties to people. Through it all, I had to inspire, cajole, praise, admonish and sometimes punish people. I’m sure I didn’t do it well all the time, but I tried my damnedest.

As editor, I was also given a very limited introduction to the business of journalism. My duties were limited to interacting with the advertising side on occasion and managing pre-determined payroll, but I still think the experience was valuable. It was an introduction to some of the very basic economics of employment.

When I moved into design, I found another place to practice and hone skills from the classroom. I took pieces from other people in the newsroom and presented them in an aesthetically appealing and understandable way. At times, I even got to put all of my knowledge to use. The most memorable time was when I reported on a BDSM group on campus, helped with the photoshoot for the story and designed the front-page package. The best part was that I was doing it all in front of a large and very real audience instead of inside the isolated bubble of the classroom.

My multimedia and technical Web skills are all a direct result of student media. I had to figure out how the Web worked so we could publish on it. I also had to figure out the social nature of the Web, which was totally different than anything I could have imagined. I learned about the power of social networks and community in a digital format. It was just the beginning of an education that will continue far into the future, I’m sure.

Above all, I learned about time management and critical thinking. I could have (and sometimes did) spend days in the newsroom doing what I loved. I had to realize, however, that there were other important areas to attend to in life. It couldn’t be all about the newspaper, even if it did take a huge commitment every day. Student media, despite taking up insane hours, days and months in my life, taught me how to manage my time in other areas of life.

Likewise, my student media experience helped to hone my real-world critical thinking skills. I had to think about the best way to approach a problem: Were we doing it this way out of habit or because it was the best way to get to the solution? I had to make smart, reasoned decisions every day in the newsroom. Those skills have transferred into other areas of my life in the real world.

It all comes down to one simple fact: If I hadn’t been involved in student media then my life would be completely different. I wouldn’t have the same skill-set, I wouldn’t think in the same way and, most importantly, I would have been woefully unprepared for a career in journalism.

What I didn’t get

My experience in journalism school was amazing. I learned a ton and had awesome opportunities on a regular basis. In retrospect, however, I think there are a few areas that were lacking. Remember, I’m writing this with my idea of the perfect journalism education in mind.

First, and most disconcerting, is my total lack of formal training in any other field than journalism. I had what Ball State calls “core classes” to give me a feel for some other disciplines and areas, but I wouldn’t consider myself an expert in any of them. I’ve heard people describe journalists as people who know a little bit about almost everything. That’s all fine and well, but the most successful journalists (in my eyes, at least) focus on a certain niche. Even your local paper has a reporter who focuses on education, while another focuses on the government, and another focuses on business.

Wouldn’t it be beneficial to train journalists in more than journalism? I think so.

I would have loved to study technology and its affects on society, but I didn’t realize it until too late. I could have taken on another major, but it wasn’t financially possible unless I started it out in my first year. I think it’s going to turn out just fine in the end, but a course of study in another field would have been ideal.

I also didn’t get any high-level technical training. I learned a lot about the technical aspects of journalism, but I learned them on my own. Would I trade any of the knowledge I have for some technical skills? Of course not. All of the “traditional” journalism I learned is extremely valuable and I wouldn’t give it up for the world. In the same vein as before, however, I think it would have been better if I had been pushed to take some technical classes at the beginning of my studies. Specifically, I probably would have double-majored in journalism and computer science if I had known how valuable it would be.

Lastly, and most important for the current state of affairs in journalism, I had no training in business. I took a few business classes of my own accord before I dropped the business major, and even that wasn’t enough. If I hadn’t taken those, my understanding of business would have been limited to one economics class that focused on how to minimize mistakes when reporting about money and companies.

Surely, this can’t be the best way to prepare journalists for the real world.

As I said at the very beginning, journalism is a business. It might have been acceptable to ignore the business side of things in the past. In fact, the journalism culture almost required that you were on the editorial side or the advertising side. Mere talks with the “other side” might have been frowned upon. I think it goes back to the ridiculous notion that journalists are somehow totally impartial in coverage. Trying to figure out a way to make money from journalism is not the same as taking money from Company X to say nice things about it, however.

It’s clear today that journalists can’t keep ignoring the economics of the business and still expect to have a job. My journalism education almost totally ignored the business of journalism, and I’m at a disadvantage as a result. I don’t think everyone who is going into the field needs to have an MBA from Harvard, but it’s quite obvious that more time needs to be spent learning about the topic. Future journalists can’t afford to be great reporters, editors, photographers and designers who let “the other side” figure out the money. Well, they can. But it might lead to them losing their jobs.

The future of journalism schools

Based on my experience, journalism schools of the future need to give students at least four things: A strong base in the basics of journalism, expert knowledge in a field other than journalism, some business knowledge and a lot of time in student media. There are a lot of journalism programs out there doing some of these things, but I haven’t been able to find one that does all four successfully.

Columbia offers a graduate program in journalism and computer science, but I’m still not sold on the idea of a master’s in journalism. They also offer other dual degrees (also all master’s programs) including journalism paired with business, international & public affairs, law or religion. Those programs are mighty tempting, but I’m convinced that journalism schools should be an undergraduate affair for most people.

If I could go back in time (I hate how often I think about this possibility) then I would probably triple major in magazine journalism, journalism graphics and computer science. I would also minor in business. That seems like a lot, but I think I could have done it in four (OK, maybe five) years if I scheduled it all out correctly. That doesn’t seem like a viable option for the majority of people, however. Out of all the people I know, there might be a few who would even be interested in taking that path. I don’t know how many of them would actually be able to do it, because of financial issues or otherwise.

So, what to do? I think the reputable journalism programs out there (hint, hint Ball State) should require double majors for undergrad programs. Part of this idea, of course, would require the journalism department to be responsible for making those double majors as seamless as possible. That means working with other colleges to make sure that the substance of classes is adequate (without overlap) and that the program can be completed in four years. The reputable journalism schools should also focus more on the business of journalism and theories about the Web and how it works. I think a minimum of two classes in each topic should be a requirement embedded within the journalism major.

So, the program of study looks like this: A set of journalism classes in a particular area (writing, design, photography, etc), at least two classes about the philosophy of the Web, at least two classes about business, and another major, which could be just about anything. I think journalism schools should focus on computer science, business, economics and political science to start out with, however. That path would almost guarantee a good journalist for anyone who was able to make it through.

I say almost because I left out the most important part: Student media and real-world experience.

First off, let me just say that I am absolutely opposed to the idea of requiring student media participation. Some schools do it, and even cycle students in and out of the various publications as part of their studies. I think a lot of the value of student media is lost when going down that route. The only people who should be involved in student media are the ones who want to be there and have an interest in seeing the publication do well. A better option is to make student media more accessible and attractive to all journalism students.

One of the reoccurring reasons for staying away from student media has to do with time. I constantly heard, “I don’t have time to join the newspaper because of X, Y and Z.” I didn’t listen if the reasons included anything along the lines of, “I have too much schoolwork” or, “I won’t have time to hang out with my friends.” I went to journalism school and I know the course load isn’t that bad. At Ball State, everyone had to to through a ridiculously pointless class that’s main goal was to write a 100-page epic about a specific topic. The idea was to teach you “research methods” that you should have learned in middle school. I digress, but the point is that even that class wasn’t too bad. The friends excuse seems logical, but I fail to understand why you don’t have friends in student media. If you do, then you can hang out with them and work at the same time.

The legitimate reason to skip out on student media also had to do with time, however. Many people couldn’t join because they had a well-paying job to cover tuition and the bills, which left no time for student media work. I completely understand this predicament, even though I was fortunate enough to be able to work for student media instead of having a job. I did make some money at the Daily News, but not enough to live on.

The solution here seems obvious: Make student media a worthwhile job. The benefit here is twofold. It gives people the chance to work in the field, be published and actually make enough money to live on. It also requires the student media publications to be profitable enough to afford salaries for workers. No one should be saying, “We can’t make money doing this” and students are no exception.

Student media isn’t real-world experience, no matter how close it is. Because of this, an internship requirement is a good idea, but I think it should be very specific. Internships should be tailored to fields of study and more than one should be required. If a student is majoring in design and computer science, for example, she should be required to intern as a designer at one publication and as a developer at another. This requirement means that part of the journalism department’s obligations would be to cultivate a strong pool of potential places for students to intern. The department shouldn’t find the internships for students, but it should have a viable network of companies it works closely with.

The future is just as unknowable as it ever was. If journalism schools require two majors, focus more on business and the philosophy of the Web, make student media possible for everyone, and require multiple internships then I think everything will turn out just swell. The industry is changing drastically, and journalism schools need to start doing the same.