UMW’s Minor in Journalism, directed by Sushma Subramanian, is an 18-credit program designed to help students pursue their interest in writing, editing, and publishing and to prepare for careers in journalism. Many students add this minor to a Major in English or a Major in Communication and Digital Studies, but it is flexible enough to complement nearly any major. Students can gain practical experience and earn academic credit while working for The Weekly Ringer, UMW’s student-run newspaper, and all students completing the minor are required to complete internships with news organizations. Recent internships have included The Fredericksburg Free Press, The Reston Letter, and The Free-Lance Star.

Required Courses

Core classes prepare students with a solid foundation in journalistic methods.

JOUR 200:
News Journalism

JOUR 300:
Investigative Journalism

JOUR 301:
Magazine Journalism

Any student at UMW can serve as editor, reporter, or photographer for The Weekly Ringer, the independent, student-run newspaper for our campus community. Students may earn academic credit for this work (typically one credit per semester) as JOUR 380: Practicum Journalism. Three credits of JOUR 380 are required for the Journalism Minor.

Cover of Weekly Ringer

Complete at least one course from the following list of Minor Electives.

  • COMM 357: Social Media
  • DGST 395: Applied Digital Studies
  • DGST 101: Introduction to Digital Studies
  • DGST 303: Digital Media Studio
  • DGST 306: Media Production for Social Change
  • ENGL 312: Creative Writing: Nonfiction
  • PSCI 363: Mass Media Politics
  • JOUR 401: Special Topics in Journalism

As the culmination of the Minor in Journalism, students must take their work beyond the conventional classroom either with an Individual Study or by participating in a 3-credit internship with a news organization. Our students have worked with several newspapers and organizations in the region including recent internships with The Fredericksburg Free Press, Fredericksburg Advance, The Free-Lance Star, and The Reston Letter.

Alumni Testimonials

“My News and Investigative Journalism courses with Prof. Subramanian helped me to establish a good foundation for writing news articles. They also provided realistic opportunities for me to learn how to gather information and interview sources, all of which are things I’m now doing on a daily basis. I felt more prepared going into my job as a daily news reporter thanks to those courses.”
Emily Hemphill (’23), Reporter for The Daily Progress

“All of the journalism minor’s course requirements certainly helped equip me with essential skills for working in a news environment. … JOUR 300 and 301 familiarized me with different types of journalism, interview styles, interaction with sources as well as responsible and ethical approaches to reporting.”
Grace Schumacher (’23), Reporter for FauquierNow

Ready to take the next step?

Apply to UMW

Request more Information about Journalism at UMW

Declare the Minor in Journalism