media and communications/journalism uni course

marshmallow

hey, is there anyone who does media & comms at Unimelb, or RMIT? I want to go to RMIT as they seem a lot more hands on, but my parents are really bugging me to go to Unimelb. Anyone who knows what it's actually like to study @ either of them please tell me.
Also anyone who studies media & comms at any other place, tell me why you chose that particular uni, not Unimelb or RMIT. Thank u!

FH

marshmallow hi! i (sorta) do media and comms at uni, but i major in journalism at monash (1st year).

it is quite similar to media and comms besides some core units relating to the media which you need to take. i think monash has state of the art facilities- broadcasting studio, audio equipment, cameras, etc. the course is structured so you can gain practical work and build a portfolio.

monash also has mojonews, a student run news portal which i am newly apart of, and also helps in building a portfolio.

unimelb in relation to media and comms isn't the best from what ive heard, thus my decision to study at monash. rmit also has a good course too, i think this is something you should also decide at open days in august.

frog_of_spades

FH Hii I'm also interested in studying media and comms, so i was just wondering at monash is the focus more on the broadcasting and video + audio parts of journalism or more the writing aspect? This is probably super vague sorryyy 😭 I'm most interested in investigative journalism, but mostly the writing part. Do u know if monash teaches much about the writing process, including research skills, and the interview part of journalism as well?
Also it's ok if u don't know the answers!! I'll definitely be going to the open days later this year so I'll make sure to check out monash and rmit as options and ask them about it there 🙂

FH

frog_of_spades hi! investigative journalism is super cool, and also the field of journalism i am interested in!!

i think it's important to remember in this day and age that direct written forms of journalism aren't as popular as they were 2 decades ago, due to the likes of social media, streaming media online (spotify, youtube), making the news more accessible. and monash definitely takes this into account with their course, as there is not so much a focus on audio/broadcasting journalism, but units tend to lean towards those forms. this isn't a discouragement by any means, as you should keep in mind that prior to the broadcast or audio being recorded, there needs to be written. written will always be important, and that will never change. what is important that you also diversify your skillset, thus broadcasting and audio journalism, as well as documentaries etc being offered at monash.

i would assume written skills are taught. i am apart of mojo news (student run news at monash) and there is an emphasis on writing skills and interviewing skills from the outset, so even as a first year student who is yet to practice journalism in their classes, i get to do so outside of the class environment.

hope that helps a little bit, and sorry for the yap 😭

frog_of_spades

FH Hii thank u for replying and giving some insight into this major! This helps a lot. 🙂
I get what you mean about taking into account modern media and delivery of news etc, so it's cool to hear that monash has a focus on that, and the mojonews club also sounds really fun!

julia_p3

hi, i'm in a similar situation to you except i'm more interested in rmit. i posted a similar question on their reddit page so i'll share what people told me in their responses:

the journalism degree is very practical, e.g. you learn how to handle filming and recording equipment and you learn interviewing skills.
the assignments are also hands on, i think someone said they had an assignment where they chose an issue and photographed people affected by the issue.
basically there's not a lot of theory, but imo that's sort of a good thing since journalism as a career requires you to be active and have practical skills rather than simply being able to write 2,000 word essays (which is what unimelb emphasises from what i've heard).
rmit has lots of industry connections such as the ABC.
lots of student media, e.g. the swanston gazette, syn radio.
you also get to pick a "minor stream", meaning you can do some subjects from a specific discipline. this includes politics, literary studies, and film, but i'd recommend looking at the rmit handbook to see what they entail.
if this is something that matters to you, the lectures are in person. a lot of unis have online lectures which some people aren't a fan of so it's something to consider.

from what i've heard, people doing the course at rmit seem very happy with it. if you haven't done so already, i would recommend going on forums specifically for rmit and monash (e.g. on reddit or some other forum website).

i hope this helped and good luck with your decision! obviously your parents do get a say but ultimately you should make the choice that is right for you.

marshmallow

julia_p3
Thank you so much for this!!!
If my parents force me into unimelb, do you think it would be worth doing one of those graduate diploma things, except at rmit post-graduation? I like the sound of rmit.
Would be it good to learn some practical skills so i can maybe boost employment or smth?? Its fine if u dont know, its rlly vague, sorry!

julia_p3

hi, i'm not 100% sure but i'll give you my opinion (emphasis on opinion) because i don't go to unimelb so i don't fully know how they do things.

basically i think that a grad diploma is something that you would have to consider in the final years of your degree because remember this is literally years away for you, things can change a lot in even one year, e.g. you may get lucky and get a journalism job straight out of your b.a or you may even decide not to do journalism.

from what i've seen and heard online, the media & comms major for the b.a at unimelb is quite broad so you won't only be focusing on journalism. i'm not sure how practical the major is but the broadness can be a benefit as it allows you to pursue other jobs in media if you decide not to do journalism.

i'm sure you will at some point learn practical skills since this is a practical discipline, and unimelb has a student-run newspaper i'm pretty sure so you can definitely develop some journalism skills there and it would be great to add to your resume when applying for jobs. i'm sure there's other student-run media like a radio, podcast, or whatever, and the uni offers internship subjects (but i'm not sure what their connections are for journalism). this would definitely assist you in gaining practical skills and it looks good when applying for jobs. you can also do a second major in something else like politics to increase your employability, as it's helpful for journalists to have a deeper knowledge of what they're focusing on.

i'm sure your parents have told you this but unimelb is basically the most prestigious university in our country and it has an excellent reputation on the global stage so i don't think your ability to get a journalism job would be significantly diminished by going there, even if it is more theory-based.

you should really sit down with your parents and have a long discussion about this. i'm sure that they want the best for you so if you really do prefer rmit you should try and let them hear you out so you can save yourself potentially one extra year of studying (if you do a grad diploma). creating a pros and cons list with them may really help as they may see that unimelb isn't the only pathway to a career. and also hear them out. yes they may come from different times but generally our parents are older and wiser than we are so sometimes they have valuable insights that wouldn't even come to our minds.

sorry for the long post, i went absolutely nuts researching unis last year when i was in yr 12 and i'm repeating the process again now that i'm looking to transfer into journalism. and please take this with a grain of salt because this is my opinion and i am not attending rmit or unimelb so i'm not an expert. i hope this helps and if you have anymore questions don't hesitate to ask!!