Journalism and Mass Communication (M.A.)

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Professor Emeritus: A. Schleifer
Professor: H. Amin (Chair)
Senior Lecturer: S. Friedlander
Associate Professor: K. Keenan
Assistant Professors: R. Abdulla, N. Hamdy, I. Saleh
Lecturers: H. Fikry, R. Jones, J. Key, L. Pintak, M. Abo Oaf, Sh. Pasha

Master of Arts

The master of arts program in journalism and mass communication is designed to provide intellectual growth and advanced training for persons already engaged in mass media or public information work. Students wishing to specialize in a particular area, such as marketing communications or international business journalism, sociological or political communication, are encouraged to design a sequence of elective courses that best meets their interests.

Admission

In addition to the general requirements established by the university, the applicant must demonstrate a proficiency in English at an advanced level and obtain an acceptable score on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Applicants are admitted in the fall semester.

Students who have neither an undergraduate degree in journalism nor at least two years of significant mass media or research experience might be asked to overcome deficiencies through prescribed readings and/or a program of undergraduate courses completed with grades of B or higher.

Students entering this program may be required to take a diagnostic test to determine whether they need to take undergraduate prerequisites in order to eliminate academic deficiencies.

Courses

A minimum of 27 graduate credit hours is required, including the following four core courses:

JRMC 500 - Mass Communication Theory and Literature (3 cr.)
JRMC 502 - Current Issues in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 504 - Research Methods in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 550 - Seminar in International Communication (3 cr.)

Additional Requirements

Students should complete the following courses as early after admission to the program as possible. Additional coursework should come from the following list of Master of Arts courses, or because of the interdisciplinary scope of mass communication, students may, with adviser approval, take and apply up to three 500-level courses (9 hours) from other disciplines. A maximum of six credit hours of 400-level coursework may be approved and counted toward the required credit hours.

Master of Arts Courses

JRMC 500 - Mass Communication Theory and Literature (3 cr.)
JRMC 501 - Advanced Reporting and Writing (3 cr.)
JRMC 502 - Current Issues in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 504 - Research Methods in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 506 - Internship (3 cr.)
JRMC 550 - Seminar in International Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 570 - Seminar in Mass Communication and National Development (3 cr.)
JRMC 580 - Impact of Television: Issues and Developments (3 cr.)
JRMC 590 - Special Topics (3 cr.)

Comprehensive Examination

Master of Arts students must complete the following courses in preparation for the comprehensive examination. The examination procedure is described in the “General Requirements” section. An oral examination may be required in addition to the written examination. Students must pass comprehensive examinations before being permitted to begin work on their theses.

JRMC 500 - Mass Communication Theory and Literature (3 cr.)
JRMC 502 - Current Issues in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 504 - Research Methods in Mass Communication (3 cr.)
JRMC 550 - Seminar in International Communication (3 cr.)

Thesis

A thesis is required for all students. The department’s thesis committee must approve the thesis topic after the student, in consultation with an advisor, submits a formal proposal. Written in English, the thesis must be defended by the student before faculty members, and must conform to current university requirements, policies and procedures.

AUC New Cairo Campus

AUC Tahrir Square Campus

New York