Postgraduate program

  • MASTER OF JOURNALISM

    Our program offers you:

    About the program

    The Monash Master of Journalism program is designed to facilitate career change or entry to an exciting and challenging profession.

    Our program is housed in one of the largest journalism schools in Australia and is taught by leading, award-winning journalists, industry practitioners, renowned journalism academics and industry guest lecturers. 

    It is informed by strong links with industry, contemporary research and established networks of leading universities and institutes in journalism education, nationally and internationally. Our students have been published in prestigious outlets and secured graduate employment in sought-after roles at high-profile media outlets.

    The program caters for people who have an undergraduate degree in any discipline. While it is an entry-level qualification for those who have not previously studied journalism, the program is also valuable to current journalists who wish to improve their writing or research skills or gain a deeper understanding of the vital role journalism plays in democracies. It is suitable also for journalists who wish to transfer to other media, say from regional print to metropolitan radio or television. 

    Our students come from a broad range of undergraduate backgrounds –degrees, like bachelors of arts, science and business – and also highly specific degrees, like law, pharmacy and medicine.

    Award winning staff with strong industry links

    The Journalism staff members at Monash University are highly qualified professionals who have held senior positions in the industry and who have excellent teaching and research qualifications, with all either holding or currently completing their doctorates.

    Among them we have journalists who have run major newspapers, magazines and television programs and have won three Walkley awards – including a Gold – and a Logie for TV Journalism. We also recruit staff from industry as required and these people are always current journalists working at the top of their profession.

    Students benefit from the credibility of their teachers and are made aware of industry needs and trends. This facilitates good judgments about how to pursue desirable job opportunities and to transform their careers.

    Outstanding graduate outcomes

    Monash has been offering the Masters of Journalism program since 2010. Here are the views of two former students.

     katie 3CRKatie Weiss

    The Monash course has given me indispensable tools to succeed in the competitive media industry, and I am forever indebted to it. My mentors went out of their way to provide me with continuous support throughout my career endeavours and encouraged me to continue striving. I have worked for the ABC as an online journalist, interned at the Age, and am now the sole politics reporter for Central Australia’s major News Ltd newspaper. Lecturers in the course generously introduced me to invaluable contacts, job opportunities and, most importantly, gave me vital skills to source work and remain on top of my game. My time at Monash taught me that the right attitude and commitment can lead to a wealth of opportunities and unique life experiences.

    Rhiana WhitsonRhiana Whitson

    What makes Monash University’s course better than the others? It’s the teachers. They know what it’s like to work as journalists. It’s inspiring to learn from people who have excelled in their careers. They have a tireless thirst for journalistic innovation. In what can be a highly competitive industry such guidance is priceless – I still keep in touch with my former lecturers.  The course’s strong focus on multiplatform journalism, such as online, social media, video, radio is another asset to anyone looking for a career in journalism. Work experience is also encouraged and facilitated. With teachers and mentors like those on staff at Monash, an eager student will go far. Students should just make sure they’re prepared to put their hand up for every opportunity that comes their way. While I was a student at Monash I completed internships at the Herald Sun, Crikey, Fairfax Community Network, Triple R and 3CR. I also contributed to the Dangerous Ground student investigative journalism website. I left the course to work as a full time journalist at Fairfax Community Network and now work for the ABC as a Cross Media Reporter in Gippsland.

    Flexible study options

    The Master of Journalism may be completed in 18 month (three semesters) on a full-time study basis or 36 months (six semesters) on a part-time basis.  Master of Journalism double degree programs may be completed in 24 months (four semesters) on a full-time study basis or 48 months (8 semesters) on a part-time basis. Full-time students undertake four units each semester. Generally we offer the units, particularly the major units, in both day and evening mode so that we can accommodate students’ work patterns.

    There are two streams in the course:

    (a)  The first is the journalism practice stream, where students produce journalism for publication or broadcast and put together a portfolio to help find employment or develop a new path in their careers. This is real journalism done by dealing with real people in the real world – precisely what prospective employers want.

    (b)  The second stream is journalism studies, which is the scholarship of journalism. It encompasses media studies, sociology, history and the political economy of the journalism industry. It includes a unit in journalism and the law, covering issues such as defamation, contempt, copyright and privacy.

    The course has compulsory core introductory units. These are ‘APG4773 Research and Reporting’ and ‘APG4774 Reporting with Sound and Image’, which address all four media (radio, TV, Print and online).  By the time they have completed these units, students have a basic introduction to news reporting.

    Students then have a range of electives where they can choose to specialise in particular media. We offer radio, video, print and online. In print, we offer both print features for long-form writing as well as editing and publishing for subediting and layout. We have specialisations in environmental and investigative reporting and a specialist reporting unit which varies from semester to semester. Recently it centered on travel and lifestyle writing, for which there is a big demand.

    Finally, there is a capstone set of project units which bring together the two streams of the degree. Students are fully supported through academic supervision to produce a 24 point journalism research unit which will be of outstanding professional quality in their chosen medium of print, internet, television or radio and which can then be showcased to prospective employers.

    A distinctive element of the Monash experience is that it not only prepares students for professional employment, it is taught in a manner that is appropriate for a postgraduate degree in a university.  Students receive a rounded scholarly education as well as a professional education. This sets them up to be highly qualified professionals.  

    Monash Journalism students also have the option of undertaking a combined (double) Masters degree, depending on their interests and career aspirations:

     For more details visit the handbook.

    Experiential learning

    Students are encouraged to publish in mojo, Dangerous Ground and Glen Eira Voice , which are independent publications produced by postgraduate and undergraduate journalism students at Monash. They are sources of local news and current affairs, and provide a resource for the creation of original works of journalism in textual, video and audio form. They are very important in students being able to demonstrate that they are employment-ready.

    Many subjects in the program have significant ‘hands-on’ application including:

    The emphasis of the course is for students to produce work that is publishable. Students are given maximum in-class and fieldwork opportunities,

    International relevance

    The program is engaged in prestigious international research collaborations and enjoys links with research institutes and reporting centres around the world. These include the US-based Centre for Investigative Reporting in Berkeley, California, the Centre for Public Integrity and the Investigative Reporting Workshop in Washington, and leading Journalism programs in the UK and Europe. Monash is also a key partner in the Europe-Australia led Global Environmental Journalism Initiative, which joins eight universities from Europe and Australia in the production of environmental journalism and research into the field.

    Monash Journalism students have access to international study opportunities through the Monash Abroad program, linking them to leading universities around the world, including our partner universities in the Global Environmental Journalism Initiative. 

    See Monash Abroad.

    The Monash program is growing rapidly. We’re preparing to add partner degrees with universities in the UK and the European Union.

    Research led teaching

    Our teaching staff members are actively engaged in research across all aspects of the practice of journalism, and our program is engaged in prestigious research collaborations with universities and centres in Australia and around the world. We are particularly focused on investigative and environmental journalism and how they relate to the more traditional scholarly modes of research and publication.  This focus provides excellent opportunities for mid-career journalists to draw on their experience and skills for a major research project, such as a book or documentary for example, and to benefit from an academic framework for their work.

    The following are some of the current research interests of staff

    • The nature of investigative journalism
    • The news media and climate change
    • Journalism and contemporary music in a digital context
    • The democratic role and regulation of journalism
    • Journalism and war

    Key staff profiles

    Professor Chris Nash, a Walkley award winning journalist, has worked professionally in radio and television at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and as an independent documentary film producer/director. His best-known documentary film Philippines, my Philippines had international television and film festival release. 

    Associate Professor Philip Chubb is a Gold Walkley and Logie award winning journalist. Philip has held senior editorial positions in newspapers (the Age), magazines (Time) television (ABC) and multimedia publishing.

    Further information

    Arts Graduate student co-ordinator Carol.Hinschen@monash.edu

    Philip.Chubb@monash.edu

  • Student Press
     At Monash Journalism we conduct journalism practice in strict accordance with the Australian Journalists’ Code of Ethics, which in turn reflect the ethical principles and standards of the International Federation of Journalists, and with regard to the regulatory processes of the Australian Press Council.   mojo is an independent news and current affairs website publishing professionally-edited multimedia news, ... Read more