Language of Education: Turkish – English
Teaching Period: 4 years formal training
Chairperson of Department: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayça Demet Atay

Aim
Journalism is a profession with high public responsibility. News media do not just inform people about what is happening; but set the world agenda every day. The purpose of Journalism Undergraduate Programme at Near East University is to educate future journalists, who are aware of their responsibilities to the society, and who have a professional focus with ethical values and a rights-oriented perspective.

Objective
Our students are educated as future journalists with ethical and professional competencies, which enable them to work in any of the four branches of news media, namely press, internet, radio and television. Our curriculum includes practice-oriented courses such as news gathering and writing, interview techniques, photography and page design, as well as new media courses such as basic programming for new media, computer skills for new media, audio, image and video reporting, data journalism and verification and new media design. In addition to the comprehensive applied courses, our programme also includes theoretical courses such as political science, law, economics, sociology, ethics and cultural studies designed to improve the perspectives of future journalists.

Job opportunities for graduates
Our graduates can find job opportunities in newsrooms of newspapers, magazines, news websites, radios and televisions; they can be part of the editorial staff, and work as reporter, editor, managing editor and editor-in-chief positions. The graduates of the department can also manage the corporate communication units in the public and private sector, and work in public relations and advertising agencies.

Message from the Head of Department
A journalist thinks in a complex way, and writes simply. S/he is a complex thinker because s/he has to evaluate the events s/he has seen, observed and reported within multiple cause-effect relationships from a broad perspective. S/he writes simply, because the news, comments and analyses that s/he writes should be quickly understood in our fast-speed age. Her/his messages should be clear.

A journalist explains and makes sense of the world with her/his writings and photographs. S/he should be fair and ethical, supporting a rights-oriented perspective. Journalism education at Near East University does not only teach how to write news or take photos or set up a website. Practice is, of course, important and our students receive vocational education in a large number of practice-oriented courses. However, to be a good journalist, these qualities are not enough. A good journalist needs to make sense of what s/he observes, and express it accurately, for which s/he needs to have a good cultural formation. For this reason, journalism education in our university includes a wide range of theoretical courses such as sociology, law, economics, political science, ethics and cultural studies. Our undergraduate programme as a whole aims to educate students with awareness, social sensitivity, and high level of analysis and observation capabilities.

Our students can apply their theoretical knowledge to practice while working in Near East TV, Near East Radio and Communication Faculty Magazine. Our internship course also offers practical experience opportunities in the sector.

The success of our graduates in the sector reflects the quality of the Journalism Undergraduate Programme.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayça Demet Atay
Chairperson of Department of Journalism