by our College Data Analytics Team
With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major” ranking - to help you make that decision.
Journalism is the 69th most popular major in the country with 12,911 degrees awarded in 2021-2022. In , journalism graduates who were awarded their degree in , earned an average of $32,980 and had an average of $23,933 in loans still to pay off.
At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 1,474 journalism graduates with average earnings and debt of $58,979 and $43,370 respectively.
For this year’s “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major” ranking, we looked at 77 colleges that offer a degree in journalism. The colleges and universities that top this list are recognized because their journalism program is one of the largest majors offered at the school.
Check out our ranking methodology for more information.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.
The colleges and universities below are the best for master’s degree journalism students.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend St. Bonaventure University. It ranked #1 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. St. Bonaventure University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Saint Bonaventure, New York. The school has a small population, and it awarded 29 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Syracuse University. The school came in at #2 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major. Located in Syracuse, New York, this large private not-for-profit school handed out 70 degrees to qualified masters’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.1% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 90%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Emerson College. The school came in at #3 for the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major. Emerson College is a private not-for-profit institution located in Boston, Massachusetts. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 13 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Columbia University in the City of New York. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. New York, New York is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s journalism degrees to 380 students in 2021-2022.
The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 99%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.
Read more about Journalism at Columbia University in the City of New York
Out of the 77 schools in the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major that were part of this year’s ranking, Full Sail University landed the #5 spot on the list. Full Sail University is a large private for-profit school situated in Winter Park, Florida. It awarded 46 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.0% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #6, American University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. Located in Washington, District of Columbia, this fairly large private not-for-profit school handed out 16 degrees to qualified masters’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%.
School of the Art Institute of Chicago ranked #7 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. School of the Art Institute of Chicago is located in Chicago, Illinois and, has a small student population. In 2021-2022, this school awarded 3 masters’s journalism degrees to qualified students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
Read more about Journalism at School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Quinnipiac University landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. Quinnipiac is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school situated in Hamden, Connecticut. It awarded 34 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.2%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.
With a ranking of #9, University of Missouri - Columbia did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. Mizzou is a large public school situated in Columbia, Missouri. It awarded 45 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 88%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Academy of Art University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking, coming in at #10. San Francisco, California is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out masters’s journalism degrees to 1 students in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Nebraska - Lincoln landed the #11 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. UNL is a public institution located in Lincoln, Nebraska. The school has a large population, and it awarded 28 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Georgia ranked #12 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. University of Georgia is a public institution located in Athens, Georgia. The school has a large population, and it awarded 53 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 95%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #13, Point Park University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, this small private not-for-profit school handed out 1 degrees to qualified masters’s journalism students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.8% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
University of Illinois at Springfield came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. University of Illinois at Springfield is a small school located in Springfield, Illinois that handed out 8 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Journalism at University of Illinois at Springfield
University of Arkansas at Little Rock ranked #15 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. This medium-sized school is located in Little Rock, Arkansas, and it awarded 4 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Iowa landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. Iowa is a public institution located in Iowa City, Iowa. The school has a large population, and it awarded 38 masters’s degrees in 2021-2022.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 88%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Boston University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking, coming in at #17. Boston, Massachusetts is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out masters’s journalism degrees to 38 students in 2021-2022.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 94%.
Regent University did quite well in the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking, coming in at #18. Regent is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Virginia Beach, Virginia. It awarded 12 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
DePaul University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. DePaul is a large school located in Chicago, Illinois that handed out 21 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of Kansas came in at #20 in this year’s edition of the Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. University of Kansas is a large school located in Lawrence, Kansas that handed out 25 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 85%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Morgan State University landed the #21 spot on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Baltimore, Maryland, and it awarded 4 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
Harvard University ranked #22 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. Harvard is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It awarded 31 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 96%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 7 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one.
With a ranking of #23, Georgetown University did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. Georgetown is a large school located in Washington, District of Columbia that handed out 17 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 98%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.2% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
With a ranking of #24, University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras did quite well on the 2023 Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras is a fairly large school located in San Juan, Puerto Rico that handed out 15 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 1.8%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Journalism Report
Northeastern University ranked #25 on this year’s Schools for a Master’s Highly Focused on Journalism Major list. This large school is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and it awarded 16 masters’s journalism degrees in 2021-2022.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.5%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
