group of U of M Students in front of a windmill in Spain

Learning Abroad in Strategic Communication, Journalism & Mass Communication

    "You don’t understand your own culture until you’ve experienced that of another. I think studying abroad is something everyone needs to do. It makes you think differently about your own upbringing, the place where you grew up and the places you’ve already been."

    -- Olivia, London program, BA 2019

     

     

    Academic Planning Recommendations

    Most universities in other countries do not offer the professional courses taught in HSJMC. However, many offer fascinating media courses that fulfill context course requirements or other courses that can supplement your studies in the major.

    The following programs have worked well for HSJMC students because these programs offer pre-approved coursework that will apply to all three majors:

    Liberal Education Requirements 

    Search the U Credit Abroad Search.  You may also submit any liberal education course not yet evaluated for approval online. 

    Major and Minor Requirements

    Look for junior-senior level courses that may apply to either the context course area or the non-journalism supporting course area of your program plan. If you find a professional course of interest, you must get preliminary approval for this course from HSJMC. Final approval for professional courses may not be given until the coursework you did in the learning abroad course is reviewed by HSJMC.

    To determine whether programs or classes you have chosen will fulfill major requirements, talk to an adviser or faculty mentor in HSJMC.

    • For context courses: bring course descriptions and syllabus (if available).
    • For professional courses: bring a syllabus to obtain preliminary approval. Final approval for professional courses may not be given until after HSJMC faculty review the syllabus and the work you did—including all written or visual assignments—for the course. 
    • If the course has not been pre-approved, you must complete a Transfer Course Work Petition and submit it with the course description or syllabus to 110 Murphy Hall. The DUS will use these materials to determine if the study abroad course will apply to the major.

    Who will advise me and help me with course approvals? 

    Learning Abroad Center advisers can help you find program and course information to help you prepare for your study abroad academic planning discussion with your academic advisers. Once you have narrowed your options, use the Academic Planning for Study Abroad (APSA) form to structure your academic planning.

    • Meet with your college adviser to get approval for your learning abroad program and courses 
    • Meet with the HSJMC adviser to get preliminary approval for major courses
    • Meet with your minor adviser to get preliminary approval for minor courses

    College/Department Scholarships for UofM Students

    Programs

    Africa and the Middle East

    Kenya

    MSID—International Development in Kenya

    • Program Type: Field Study
    • Offers credit through coursework, research, and internships that focus on development, globalization and social justice.
    • Past internship placements include community centers, health education organizations, women’s groups, orphanages and small sustainable businesses.
    • No prior language required.
    • Meet with your adviser well in advance to see how MSID may fulfill Journalism internship and directed study credits.

    Senegal

    MSID—International Development in Senegal

    • Program Type: Field Study
    • Offers credit through coursework, research, and internships that focus on development, globalization and social justice.
    • Past internship placements include community centers, health education organizations, women’s groups, orphanages and small sustainable businesses.
    • Two years of French required.
    • Meet with your adviser well in advance to see how MSID may fulfill Journalism internship and directed study credits.

    Americas

    Ecuador

    MSID—International Development in Ecuador

    • Program Type: Field Study
    • Offers credit through coursework, research, and internships that focus on development, globalization and social justice.
    • Past internship placements include community centers, health education organizations, women’s groups, orphanages and small sustainable businesses
    • Two years of Spanish required.
    • Meet with your adviser well in advance to see how MSID may fulfill Journalism internship and directed study credits.

    Chile

    IES Chile—Santiago

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Choose either from a wide variety of courses at the IES Center or enroll in regular university courses at the Universidad de Chile and the Pontifícia Universidad Católica.
    • Take advantage of community engagement in connection with any of the program courses.
    • Internships available in business, the arts, and governmental agencies.
    • Taught in Spanish by Chilean faculty.

    Asia and Oceania

    Australia

    University Study in Australia: James Cook University

    University Study in Australia: University of Melbourne

    Macquarie University (available through Arcadia Australia)

    University of Adelaide (available through IFSA Australia)

    University of Wollongong (available through Arcadia) 

    • Program Type: Host-Country University
    • Study in a university alongside degree-seeking students from Australia; host country universities work especially well for students interested in experiencing a different academic system and for students who want to select journalism and mass communication from a wide variety of offerings—with a distinctive Australian approach.
    • These universities have been selected for courses, internships, and other factors that may be of interest to journalism students.
    • In the past, credit and coursework from these universities have transferred by well for Journalism students.

    Study & Intern in Sydney

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Choose from a variety of courses that focus on Australian culture; areas include politics, art, cinema, business and the environment.
    • Enhance your experience by participating in a 6-credit internship at places such as Nickelodeon, ABC, or the Australian Film, Television, and Radio School.

    Japan

    IES Japan—Tokyo

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Combine Japanese language and culture coursework with field study and internships at Kanda University for International Studies (KUIS).
    • Students with an appropriate level of Japanese language skills can enroll in regular KUIS courses.
    • In the past, KUIS has offered courses in communication, including Intercultural Communication, Non-Verbal Communication, and Interpersonal Communication.

    New Zealand

    University of Canterbury (available through IFSA New Zealand)
    University Study in New Zealand: University of Otago

    • Program Type: Host-Country University
    • Study in a university alongside degree-seeking students from New Zealand; host country universities work especially well for students interested in experiencing a different academic system and for students who want to select journalism and mass communication from a wide variety of offerings—with a distinctive New Zealand approach.
    • These universities have been selected for courses, internships, and other factors that may be of interest to journalism students.
    • In the past, credit and coursework from these universities have transferred by well for Journalism students.

    Thailand 

    MSID—International Development in Thailand

    • Program Type: Field Study
    • Offers credit through coursework, research, and internships that focus on development, globalization and social justice.
    • Past internship placements include community centers, health education organizations, women’s groups, orphanages and small sustainable businesses.
    • No prior language required.
    • Meet with your adviser well in advance to see how MSID may fulfill Journalism internship and directed study credits.

    Europe

    Austria

    IES Austria

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Offers the option of taking English-taught courses in a non-English speaking country, while studying German language and Austrian/Central European area studies courses.
    • Students with advanced level German language proficiency may take courses at the University of Vienna, where the Institute for Communication Science offers a wide range of courses in journalism (print, radio, television, multi-media) that focus on the practical, historical, theoretical, cultural, and business aspects of the field

    Denmark

    Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS)

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Enroll in a wide variety of courses taught in English and enjoy exciting study tours; first, a short tour of Denmark followed by a longer tour to and of London. Study tours are covered in the program’s cost.
    • DIS has a track specifically for Communications and Media Studies, covering political and cultural communications issues such as communication across cultures in Europe, European news media in transition, European film and International marketing and branding.
    • Students are required to take the course Current Trends in Media, which examines the changing media landscape of Denmark, and the different modes of communication.
    • Students may choose from many other courses across the DIS curriculum to form a semester program tailored specifically to their interests.
    • The program also offers a course that is equivalent to Jour 4263.

    France

    IES France—Paris

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Choose from courses in French language and area studies, including business, economics and the humanities.
    • Enrollment in regular French university courses available for students with adequate French experience.
    • Internships are available in business, non-governmental organizations, journalism, and education.
    • Instruction is in French by French faculty.

    Language & Culture in Southern France

    • Program type: Host-Country University
    • Based out of Paul Valéry University, the liberal arts division of the University of Montpellier, the program provides an extremely flexible course structure.
    • Choose from a mix of customized courses with American and foreign students, and regular University of Montpellier courses with French students.
    • Paul Valéry curriculum includes a rich array of courses, in various disciplines, not only on France but also on southern European politics or the Mediterranean more broadly.
    • University courses in communication and journalism are available for students with advanced French.
    • Internships are available.

    Germany

    Exchange in Germany

    • Program Type: Host-University Study
    • This bilateral exchange is with Freie University of Berlin
    • Courses are available in Journalism

    IES Germany—Berlin

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Courses include areas such as business, cinema, economics, German language, literature and theatre, political science, natural sciences and a communications course focusing on the media in Berlin.
    • Students have access to Humboldt University and the Free University of Berlin, where they can study media theory, television and radio, and extensive offerings in practical, historical, theoretical and analytical communications.
    • Internships are available in art, business, education, mass media, social service, politics, and theatre.
    • Instruction is in German by German faculty.

    Ireland

    Study Abroad in Dublin

    • Program Type: University Study and Study Center
    • Several classes at Dublin City University have been approved as context courses within SJMC including Ethics of Journalism, Analyzing Advertising, Digital Media Skills, Beginning Photojournalism, and more
    • Internships are available in a variety of fields
    • Study tours to Western Ireland and Northern Ireland are included

    Italy

    Study & Intern in Florence

    • Program type: Study Center
    • Includes a week-long study tour to Sicily.
    • Internship placements are available in a variety of fields, with no Italian language required.
    • Two courses, History & Sociology of Modern Consumerism and Made in Italy: Retail Merchandising in Florence are pre-approved in students' major plan

    Netherlands

    University of Amsterdam

    • Program Type: Host-Country University
    • Students directly enroll in the International School for Social Sciences and the Humanities (ISHSS) at the Universiteit van Amsterdam.
    • Sample courses include Communication and Society; Digital Epistemology; Intercultural Communication in a Changing World; Journalists at War; Memory, History, and the Cinema; Making Sense of the News; and Television in a Changing Europe
    • Classes are taught in English.

    Spain

    Study & Intern in Toledo

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Strong humanities/social science curriculum includes courses on Latin American politics, Spanish politics, Spain and the EU, modern Spanish history.
    • Toledo also offers internships for journalism students, where they can write articles for the local newspaper or work at the local TV and radio stations.
    • Courses are taught in Spanish

    IES Spain—Madrid

    • You may participate on a UofM affiliated program (affiliate) not listed in the Learning Abroad Center's catalog. However, you will need to apply through our application system.
      NOTE: This specific track and term of this program will not be found within our application system. Select “Program Not Found” on the application, and enter your specific application information in the fields given to request an application. Our staff will review your application and update your program, track, and term information.
    • Program type: Study Abroad Center
    • Language and area studies program with a broad range of center courses, including internships, plus access to regular courses in Madrid universities.
    • Courses include Image of Women in Spanish Advertising and Advanced Journalistic Writing.
    • For students with advanced Spanish skills, direct enrollment is available at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, which offers classes in four areas of Journalism.
    • Instruction is in Spanish; 4 semesters of prior Spanish are required. Fall or spring semester, academic year, or summer.

    United Kingdom

    Study & Intern in London

    • Program Type: Study Abroad Center
    • Offers courses in a wide variety of topics, such as language, business, marketing, political science, and advertising.
    • Fully immerse yourself in London society through internships in a number of fields.
    • Complemented by tours in and around the city.
    • Courses of note that may count as context courses include Visualizing Britain—British Film and Television Documentaries; British Broadcasting Today; Ethics in the Media; Post-War British Popular Culture.

    University of Westminster (available through IFSA United Kingdom)

    • Program Type: Host-Country University
    • Westminster’s School of Communication and Creative Industries is considered one of the largest, best-equipped and most prestigious centers of learning in the UK for studies in art and design, film, music, journalism, and mass communication.
    • The University offers high-quality courses in these areas, as well as in business and technology, humanities, social sciences, languages, biosciences, and architecture.
    • Sample courses include Social Theory and the Media; Media Law and Ethics; News and Public Opinion; and Political Economy of the Mass Media.

    Additional Options to Consider

    Global Seminars

    • 3-week, 3-credit programs at the 3000-level led by University of Minnesota faculty and staff over Winter Break or May Session.
    • Fulfill Liberal Education requirements, or earn major/minor credit.

    Freshman Seminars

    • Freshman Seminars Abroad combine on-campus instruction during spring semester with a study abroad component during spring break.
    • Seminars are 3 credits at the 19xx level and most fulfill a liberal education requirement.
    • Seminars are designed specifically for first-year students as an introduction to study abroad.

    Non-Credit Opportunities

    • Non-credit opportunities can be a great option for students who do not need academic credit but want to gain skills and experience abroad related to their field of study.

     

    Student Experiences

    Visit the Learning Abroad Center's Student Experiences web page for details on other students' experiences studying abroad.