Philip Merrill College of Journalism | University of Maryland

Instructions for Four Year Plan: Jour 100

Please print out the “Sample Four-Year Plan Worksheet” and the “Four-Year Plan” sheet. Use the “Sample Four-Year Plan Worksheet” sheet as a guide to help you see what requirements you need to meet and when you can plan on meeting them. The four-year plans presented here are just examples. You should individualize your four-year plan based on your interests. On the “Four-Year Plan” sheet, write in your classes so that you can see them in a semester-by-semester layout. Turn these two sheets into JOUR100 Professor Norm Lewis by October 9 and make sure to include your name, phone number and email address on each sheet. You will be contacted by a Journalism advisor only if there IS a problem with your four-year plan. If you have any questions, please call the Journalism office at 301-405-8814.

Completion of these Four Year Plan sheets cannot substitute for advising meetings. The plan does not take into account liberal arts requirements, miscellaneous credits, or requirements for a double-major or minor. If you are double-majoring, minoring or studying abroad you also must seek appropriate advising.

Print the Four Year Plan Worksheets [pdf]

Four-Year Plan Guide

When filling out your four-year plan you do not have to specify courses in the blanks, only requirements. See examples of this on the four-year sample sheets.

First Semester Classes
After your Freshman Orientation last summer, you should have your first semester classes already settled and a general understanding of our College’s requirements.

Receiving AP/IB Credits
If you have not already done so, you should speak with an advisor regarding any AP/IB credit that you have received and find out if that credit exempts you from specific required classes.

Taking JOUR100, 181, 200 and 201
Remember that all freshmen in the College take JOUR100 and JOUR181 during their first semester. Freshmen are expected to complete JOUR200 by the end of their second semester.
To stay on track with your journalism classes, you should have taken JOUR100, 181, 200, and 201 by the end of your third semester.

Note: Select freshmen are invited to take JOUR201 during their second semester, which we call the “fast track”.

Meeting the Fundamental Studies Requirement
Students must complete their Fundamental Studies English and Math requirements by the end of their first 30 credits (usually the end of your freshman year).

Fulfilling Lower-Level CORE Requirements
Second semester is a time to complete many lower-level CORE requirements such as a non-lab science course or your Distributive Studies courses-- an HL, an HA, an HL/HA/HO/IE, and a diversity course.

Understanding Diversity
The University requires every student complete a Diversity CORE course.
One way to fulfill this requirement is to take a course that counts as a Distributive Studies CORE course AND a diversity course.

Working on your Journalism Required Classes
Second semester is also a time when you can complete many of the journalism required classes such as HIST156 or 157, GVPT100 or 170, or COMM100, 107, 200 or 230. Many of these courses overlap with Social Sciences CORE requirements.

Satisfying Honors, Gemstone or Scholars Requirements
If you are in any University program, such as Honors, Gemstone, or Scholars, remember that you also have to meet specific requirements for your citation.

Choosing an Abstract Thinking Skills Option
For the College, you also have to meet Abstract Thinking Skills Requirements:
You can either complete the “Foreign Language Option” (2 classes in a foreign language with at least one course at the intermediate level); OR you can take the “Math Option” (STAT100, MATH111, 113, 115, 140, 220, or any course that has those courses as a prerequisite and a CMSC course numbered 102 or higher); OR you can take the “Combination Option” (An intermediate foreign language class, and a MATH List class or a CMSC class).

Handling Four-Credit Courses
Two time-consuming CORE classes are your Lab Science and Economics class (ECON 200 or 201). Both of these are four-credit classes, so plan accordingly to avoid taking the two courses during the same semester.

Finishing your Journalism Classes
After completing JOUR201, Journalism students must meet the following requirements:

One News Editing course:
JOUR202- Print OR JOUR262- Broadcast

One News Writing and Reporting II course:
JOUR320- Print OR JOUR360- Broadcast

Ethics: JOUR300
Graphics OR Online Journalism: JOUR350 OR JOUR352
Internship: JOUR399
Advanced Skills: Three classes between JOUR321-389 (broadcast students must take JOUR361)
Media Law: JOUR400
Journalism and Society: JOUR410-469
Journalism Research: JOUR470-479

Completing Upper Level Requirements
After your fourth semester, you will most likely be finished with your lower level CORE requirements, so you can focus on your concentration, upper-level requirements and fulfilling your other journalism classes. When filling out your four-year plan, you do not have to specifically list certain courses, but can write “Concentration course 1” or “Advanced Studies CORE course 1” or “Upper Level Elective 1” since you may not know exactly what classes you will be taking.

Picking a Concentration
Journalism students are required to have a concentration, which consists of a minimum of four upper-level courses (12 credits in the 300s and 400s) in a certain department (not JOUR or COMM).
Some students in the College of Journalism decide to double major or minor in a certain department and these courses can almost always count for a concentration. Check with your advisor.

Wrapping up the Abstract Thinking Skills Requirement- Statistics
For the Abstract Thinking Skills requirement, students also must take a statistics course (usually after their sophomore year).

Junior English
All University students are required to take Junior English unless they receive an “A” in ENGL101. If a student gets an “A” in freshman English, they have the option to exempt from Junior English and take an Upper Level Elective. Students complete Junior English once they have earned 60 credits.