Independent Study Project in Journalism
Independent Study Project in Journalism – syllabus
(ISPJ 3000 / 6 credits)
Students propose, research, and execute a full-length feature (in the media format of their choosing), which will be considered for publication or broadcast in a media outlet. Students have the rare opportunity to work alongside journalists whose bylined pieces regularly appear in media outlets around the world. Professionals provide hands-on advice and mentoring at every stage of story development, sharing expertise gathered from years in challenging global reporting situations. Story topics are assessed based on originality, richness, and appeal to a broad global audience. Students learn what it means to organize a story, select sources, question deeply, work toward balance, be alert to bias (and clichés), respond to an editor’s feedback, check facts, rework and rewrite, strive for clarity, and achieve accessible, flowing prose along with, in many cases, images and sound.
Sample Independent Study Project in Journalism topics:
- Women’s fight for inheritance rights
- The desert marathon
- The difficulty of sustaining traditional crafts in Morocco
- Surfers and the economic and cultural impact of the surfing business
- Sexual harassment and legal efforts to combat it
- Alternative energies and sustainable development
- Urban development and mega-projects
- Music festivals as political statements
- The attempts to save endangered species in Morocco
- Access to healthcare for migrants in Morocco
Browse this program’s Independent Study Projects / undergraduate research.
OR
Internship and Seminar
Internship and Seminar – syllabus
(ITRN3000 / 6 credits / 180 hours)
This seminar consists of a five-week, 180-hour internship with a local community organization, research organization, media outlet, cultural institution, or nongovernmental organization. The aim of the internship is to enable students to gain valuable experience and enhance their skills in journalism, media, and/or communications. SIT will use its extensive network to facilitate an internship placement for students. The organization and the student’s internship activities, including the Internship Learning Agreement, must be approved by the program’s academic director. Weekly two-hour reflection and assessment classes are held with the academic director to review the progress of the internship, including learning associated with the internship experience, and to draw out broader issues related to program themes, positionality, culture, and ethics in the context of the internship.
Sample internships
- Documenting an active agenda of cultural events and guest speakers and covering youth and education issues in the region at The Connect Institute (Agadir), an alternative higher education institution
- Assisting the publishing of original investigative reporting as well as a blog on literary/publishing/cultural news at En Toutes Lettres (Casablanca), an independent publishing house
- Supporting digital community radio programs at E-Jussour (Rabat/Tangiers/Ouarzazate), a media platform for NGOs
- Producing and posting articles at Morocco World News, an English-language news site
- Helping Racines, a cultural NGO, set up a site to report on cultural news around Morocco