PhD Programs in Journalism

University of Pennsylvania

• The University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg School for Communication offers a five-year doctoral program. Courses offered in 2010 included Attitude and Behavioral Prediction, Global and Comparative Media Systems and Race, Media and Politics. A 2004 study by the National Communication Association ranked Penn highest in the country for doctoral programs in the subfields of Critical-Cultural Communication, Health Communication, Mass Communication and Political Communication.

  University of Pennsylvania
  Annenberg School for Communication
  3620 Walnut St.
  Philadelphia, PA 19104
  215-898-7041
  asc.upenn.edu

Columbia University

• Columbia University's journalism school is known mostly for its master's programs. However, the school also offers a doctorate in communications. While the master of science and master of arts programs focus on developing skills for new and mid-career journalists, the doctoral program takes a more academic and interdisciplinary approach. Students are required to take courses not only in journalism but also in business and political science. Many students also study sociology and history.

  Graduate School of Journalism
  Columbia University
  2950 Broadway MC 3801
  New York, NY 10027
  212-854-8608
  journalism.columbia.edu

University of Missouri

• In 1934, the University of Missouri became the first institution in the U.S. to award a journalism doctorate. The program in 2010 had more than 80 faculty members. Missouri also offers dual journalism-law degrees. Journalism doctoral students may jointly pursue a degree in law or a Master of Laws in Dispute Resolution.

  Missouri School of Journalism
  Administrative Offices
  120 Neff Hall
  Columbia, MO 65211-1200
  573-882-4852
  journalism.missouri.edu

University of Texas at Austin

• The University of Texas at Austin requires doctoral students to take three sequences of coursework in the areas of theory, research methods and journalism/mass communications studies. Students must also specialize in two areas of study that relate to their dissertations and demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language.

  University of Texas at Austin
  Graduate School of Journalism
  Bldg. CMA, Room 6.144
  2504A Whitis Ave.
  Austin, TX 78712-0115
  512-471-1845
  journalism.utexas.edu

University of Wisconsin-Madison

• The University of Wisconsin-Madison admits an average of 10 students annually to its doctoral program in Mass Communication. The school says it has been recognized for having the most productive graduate students when it comes to journal publishing and that its faculty members are among the most cited. Students pursuing doctorates must pass preliminary examinations before they begin writing their dissertations. Recent dissertation topics have included Contested Citizenship: The 2003-2004 Media Debate Over the Muslim Headscarf in France and The Journalist's Duty to Go to Jail: Confidential Sources, Journalism Ethics and Freedom of the Press.

  University of Wisconsin
  School of Journalism & Mass Communication
  5115 Vilas Hall
  821 University Ave.
  Madison, WI 53706
  608-262-3690
  journalism.wisc.edu