Course Structure

Subjects and Requirements

All unit-bearing subjects are 2 or 3 units each and involve 45 classroom hours. Students are required to complete at least 27 units. Subjects are basically taught in English.

Concentration in International Journalism

Core Subjects:

Electives:(Students choose 4 electives.)

Concentration in Business and Financial Journalism

Core Subjects:

Electives:(Students choose 3 electives.)

# Students with mother-tongue level English will be exempted from this course. Students of Business and Financial Journalism need to take another elective course to achieve enough units for graduation.

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Special programmes and activitie

a) The Tutorial System

All of you will be assigned individually or in small groups to one or more tutors with whom you will have regular meetings. The arrangement is based on the Oxbridge tutor system, which provides for a very close relationship between academic staff and students. In our case, tutors will be both academic and professional, people who have long journalism experience and/or long journalism teaching experience. The meetings are designed to allow students the opportunity to discuss matters that come up in class, or any matter related to international news, or to any aspect of the course. Meetings can be held at any venue convenient to both tutors and tutees, whether at a news media office, a cafe or restaurant, someones home or a room on campus, but the idea is that the location will be conducive to conversation. Each session will last 1-2 hours. The aim of the tutorial system is to enhance learning by encouraging students to clarify matters they have difficulty with in class and to discuss issues relevant to their course in a situation where there is time and opportunity to speak as well as listen.

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b) English classes

The language of instruction in all classes is English. All students will undergo an English test prior to the start of the semester to ascertain your English ability, and anyone who has less than near-native-speaker English will be required to attend the first-semester subject JOUR 4060 Advanced English for Journalism. This subject is a service subject and carries no units, so those who are exempt do not need to replace it with another subject.

c) Pulitzer Prize Winners' Workshop

Each year, we will invite four to six Pulitzer Prize Winners to share their expertise and experience with our students and local media professionals in a variety of intellectual activities. The first of its kind in Asia, the Workshop aims to enhance the interviewing and reporting skills of students through the analysis of the prize winners stories. At the inaugural Workshop in October 2007, more than 20 lectures and forums were conducted and were well-received by the more than 3,000 participants.

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d) Media Salon

The Media Salon will bring you at least once a month a visit from important figures from journalism and other sectors of the community who will talk about their area of expertise and provide a platform for you to learn more about the local and international world. They will include diplomats and business people as well as international media practitioners and experts, and they will participate in talks and forums and other activities that will focus on work practices, local and international issues and other topics helpful to students. The objective of the Salon is to provide a place for students to interact with a wide selection of people from the industry and the community.

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e) Local and overseas field trips and other activities

Classes will visit international news organizations in Hong Kong such as Bloomberg, Associated Press, Agence France Presse and Reuters, as well as local English-language media, so that students can see at first hand how these outlets operate. In some cases small groups will be given direct experience at one or other of these companies.

In the last three years, at least one overseas field trip was undertaken each year. In 2009 our intended destinations are Prague and London. The idea of the excursion is to experience the lifestyle and media of other countries with the aim of understanding the different ways the news has developed and the forms it takes in the contemporary world.

Internships are not guaranteed to students on the MA programme, but if suitable placements come available (usually for the period after the final examination) students will be informed and we will try to help with applications and any necessary visa arrangements.

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