The Department has revised the Bachelor of Journalism and Communication (BJCO) programme. Fundamental to this revised programme is the updating of course units to match with current trends, as well as removing duplication of content from the previous curriculum. The balance between academic and practical aspects of learning have also been strengthened further in the revised programme. The revised BJCO programme will provide students with solid grounding in the principles of journalism and communication, as well as the technical and practical skills required to make them versatile professionals in the field. Media is an integral part of individual, social and institutional systems. Social and institutional life depends on the constant development and varied use of modes of media and communication. As such, it requires the systematic study of communication, media, and technology in national, regional and global contexts. Therefore, the revised Bachelor of Journalism and Communication will give the Department a framework for preparing students to respond to the new professional realities and to meet the expectations of the market. The programme continues to target students who want to study journalism, media and communication, including print journalism, radio and television journalism, public relations, digital journalism, strategic communication, visual communication to mention, but a few.
The objectives of the BJCO are to equip learners with the appropriate balance of multi-disciplinary knowledge, intellectual abilities, and professional skills in the field of journalism, communication and relevant humanities fields. At the end of the programme, learners are expected to analyse and apply journalistic and communication information to address social challenges and improve livelihood conditions at different levels in society.
The specific objectives of the programme are:
The Bachelor of Journalism and Communication degree is one of the most sought-after programmes in the field of humanities and social sciences. Graduates of this programme easily find employment in local and international newsrooms to work as reporters, writers, editors and sub-editors.
Our communication track equips our students with knowledge to work as information/communication/public relations officers/managers in both local and international organisations. The versatility of the programme enables our graduates to take on non-traditional communication/journalism roles such as fundraising officers, monitoring and evaluation officers and account executives.
Some of our previous graduates are currently working in prestigious local and international agencies such as UNICEF, FAO, the World Bank, the IMF, UNDP, Daily Monitor, New Vision, NTV, NBS, the President’s office, Office of the Prime Minister, Makerere University, among others. Increasingly, many of our graduates are also finding employment in the digital communication sector. They could also work in non-governmental organisations (NGOs), civil society organisations (CSOs) as well as in consultancy firms.
Finally, the graduates from thisprogramme will create their own jobs and become entrepreneurs as content creators, media owners, influencers, communication consultants, among others.
The will be a full-time programme.The approach to teaching will be blended, which will combine traditional face-to-face methods of teaching with electronic and online learning methods, particularly via the Makerere University E-learning Environment (MUELE) and other online tools as will be necessary. In addition, blended learning will include a range of instruction formats that will focus on practical and out-of-class tasks and learning assignments. The BJCO will be offered by coursework, examination, internship, (which will include student placement in media and communication organisation as well as community-based organisations among others) and special/research project. The curriculum comprises a combination of core, cross-cutting, and elective courses. Core and cross-cutting courses shall be compulsory and electives shall be optional. All courses shall be conducted on the semester system. Students will be admitted for DAY, AFTERNOON OR EVENING programmes as will be determined by the university from time to time.
BJCO targets those that qualify to be admitted to an undergraduate programme at Makerere university (such as S.6 leavers, mature age and diploma holders) and are interested in pursuing a career in journalism, new media, communication, public relations, academia and other related fields. Applicants for mature entry should have a diploma in media, journalism and communication or a related field.
The length of the BJCO shall be four academic years of two semesters each. The length of each regular semester shall be 17 weeks, with 15 weeks of tuition and two weeks of examinations. There shall be a recess term of eight weeks only in the second year (or as scheduled) and intended only for the field attachment.
It is proposed that Ugandan and East African students admitted to BJCO under the private sponsorship scheme pay Uganda Shs 3,200,000 per year (1,600,000 per semester) while other international students pay 4,000,000 per year (2,000,000 per semester). In addition, students will be required to pay all other functional fees that the university may find necessary for the smooth running of the programme and the university at large. See an indicative breakdown of the fees structure and budget in section 6.2.1.
A candidate shall be admitted to the BJCO if he/she satisfies any one of the general University entry requirements listed in below:
The Direct Entry Scheme:
A candidate shall be admitted to this programme under the Direct Entry Scheme if he/she obtains at least two passes in the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education examinations. Admission under the direct entry scheme will be based on the weighting criteria described below:
The essential subjects for admission to this programme will include two best done of Literature, Economics, History and Geography.
Admission will require on relevant best done of Divinity, Languages, Islamic studies and Entrepreneurship.
The desirable subjects will include all other subjects done at A-level.
The Diploma Holders Entry Scheme:
A candidate shall be admitted to the BJCO under the Diploma Holders Scheme if he/she holds at least a second-class diploma in the fields of journalism, media, communication or any related field from an institution recognised by Makerere University.
The Mature Age Entry Scheme:
A candidate shall qualify to be admitted to under mature age entry scheme if he/she sits and passes mature age entry examinations administered by Makerere University.
Under this scheme, applicants are required to possess a first degree from a chartered institution.
The curriculum comprises a combination of core and elective courses. Core and cross-cutting courses shall be compulsory and electives shall be optional.
A core course is one that is mandatory all students before they proceed to the next level while electives are course units from which a student is free to select to make the required graduation load.
All learners shall take three journalism and communication core course unitsDuring the fourth year, learners will specialise in either journalism or communication. They will take five core courses per semester and one elective of either a research project o professional project in the first semester.
Core Courses in the Humanities, Social Sciences and Languages:
Makerere University’s Academic Programmes Review (APR) Committee made two principal recommendations concerning the Department’s journalism and communication training model in its report of May 2010. These recommendations, which were endorsed by Senate in its special meetings of 5th and 13th May 2010, required:
That undergraduate students of journalism should undertake some broad academic quality education for the foundation years before embarking on the skilled courses of journalism
These recommendations brought on board cross-cutting courses that are based in other humanities, arts and language disciplines, from which students are allowed to pick courses.
In addition to the core course units from ournalism and ommunication,a student shall be required to offer both Political Science and Sociology as core supporting subjects in Year . In Year , a student shall retain one core subject of his/her preference between Political Science and Sociology and must follow the same subject through to Year . However, if circumstances demand, a student may change his/her subject in line with Rule 29 of the 5th edition of the University Prospectus.