University of Pennsylvania

Degrees offered

Penn does not offer a standalone undergraduate or graduate journalism degree. Journalism-specific study is instead available through concentrations and a minor nested inside broader majors.

• Communication, Culture, and Journalism Studies concentration (BA): One of four concentrations within the Communication major at the Annenberg School for Communication, covering media policy, news reporting, and political communication. Effective Fall 2026, this replaced the prior concentration formerly named Culture & Society.

• Literature, Journalism and Print Culture concentration (English BA): A concentration within the English major devoted to non-fictional literary genres associated with newspapers and periodicals, from historical figures such as Benjamin Franklin and Mark Twain to 20th-century practitioners including George Orwell and Joan Didion.

• Journalistic Writing minor: A six-course minor housed in the Creative Writing Program (English Department), open to students in all four Penn undergraduate schools, requiring one course in long-form journalism plus five further workshop courses in reporting, interviewing, investigative journalism, and multi-platform writing.

• Doctorate in Communication: Annenberg's five-year Ph.D. program supports doctoral research on journalism, media studies, and digital culture as part of its broader Communication research areas.

Programs and emphasis

Because Penn approaches journalism through a liberal arts lens rather than a professional journalism school, students build practical experience primarily through independent student media rather than required practicums.

• The Daily Pennsylvanian: An independent, student-run daily news organization founded in 1885 (as The Pennsylvanian) and incorporated as a nonprofit in 1984; it receives no funding from the university and also publishes 34th Street Magazine and the satirical Under the Button.

• WQHS Radio: Penn's only student-run radio station, broadcasting online 24/7; its programming is primarily music-focused (indie, experimental, and local genres) rather than news-focused.

• Penn in Washington: A general-purpose academic and internship program based in Washington, D.C. Media and journalism internships are one track among several (alongside government, law, policy research, and international relations); the program is not journalism-specific.

History

The Annenberg School for Communication was founded in 1958 by publisher, diplomat, and philanthropist Walter Annenberg as the Annenberg School of Communications, and was renamed the Annenberg School for Communication in 1990. The Journalistic Writing minor and the Communication, Culture, and Journalism Studies and Literature, Journalism and Print Culture concentrations sit within the undergraduate curricula of Annenberg and the English Department, respectively, rather than forming a separate journalism unit.

As a Daily Pennsylvanian article on Penn's journalism opportunities put it in September 2025, Penn does not have a journalism school, but the DP and the Journalistic Writing minor give students practical experience some dedicated journalism programs do not.

Key faculty and leadership

Sarah Banet-Weiser: Dean, Annenberg School for Communication.
Julia Bloch: Director, Creative Writing Program (oversees the Journalistic Writing minor).

Location and contact info

Annenberg School for Communication
3620 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104

The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc.
4015 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: (215) 422-4640

Website
https://www.upenn.edu