Start your journey in Journalism with our International Year One program. Gain skills and progress to a Bachelor's degree. Apply now!
Program Description The International Year program will provide you with the solid foundation you need to be successful in your university degree. Offered as a one, two, or three quarter program, you will study a range of subjects to develop your language and study skills, while focusing on your chosen field. After successfully completing your International Year, you will be able to progress to your undergraduate degree at Western. Journalism is the work of supplying content, primarily news, for the ever-expanding world of mass media. Journalists are responsible for gathering information, analyzing and editing it for a mass audience, and dispensing it using some form of media platform. Increasingly the methods of distribution have become more complex, but the basic mission of a journalist remains the same: to serve the public by finding, defining, writing, and editing information. Journalism — Public Relations majors at Western study theoretical and practical communications in a liberal arts setting. Students gain practical experience on Western’s award-winning student media, and majors additionally take field internships with newspapers, magazines, broadcast stations, public relations agencies, and other professional organizations. Courses in the Public Relations sequence follow the News-Editorial emphasis, adding communication skills important for careers in this rapidly growing field. While enrolled in the Journalism program, students are offered a number of learning opportunities including working as writers, photographers, or editors on University Publications; learning from industry professionals; and working hand-on with community organizations to gain experience in the field. Student publications at Western include the weekly newspaper, The Western Front; the quarterly magazine, Klipsun; and the quarterly environmental magazine, The Planet. Policy for the publications is set by the Student Publications Council, and the majority of the funding is from student fees. All Western students are eligible to participate in publications staff work.
