First year study programme in Aarhus

Nowhere in the world are current cultural, technological, and political changes as visible as in the field of journalism. Take Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an example. AI amplifies cultural differences in news consumption and news preferences. AI enables chatbots to write better and faster than most “real” human journalists. And the past decades have shown us how AI can be misused politically for surveillance purposes and for the dissemination of lies.

All these developments threaten the integrity of the journalist profession. There is however also a different story. AI can help us understand the breadth of cultural differences. Chatbots can support journalists in getting access to and processing complex information. And AI can enable journalist speaking truth to power.

The aim of the first year is to give students the analytical skills needed to identify and analyse cultural, political, and technological challenges to and opportunities for journalism across the globe. Moreover, the courses in Aarhus are designed to prepare you for your specialisation and thesis work in the second year. In order to realise that aim, the courses in Aarhus are structured to teach students to combine theoretical, methodological and practical perspectives.

Below, you'll discover an overview of the first-year courses. Keep in mind that alterations to the course emphasis and content may be necessary due to the fast-paced evolution of journalism and media studies.

Introduction to Journalism Studies: Theories and Approaches

The overall aim of this course is to introduce students to different theoretical and epistemological approaches to understand modern-day news media institutions and journalism practices across the world. Through multidisciplinary perspectives, the course looks at the interrelationship between the news media, journalism, and broader societal processes such as politics, culture, the economy, and technology. In so doing, it introduces students to some of the foundational and emerging theoretical perspectives to understand and interpret contemporary sets of practices, production and reception contexts within which journalism occurs today.

Overall, the training throughout this course orients students towards a cross-cultural, critical examination of the legacies and current debates in journalism studies. Throughout the course, students will be trained to apply the different theoretical perspectives in analyses of real-life cases across the world.

Methods of Researching Journalism

This course introduces students to the basics of research in the social sciences and humanities with a focus on a range of methodological approaches used in empirical research in journalism studies. Throughout the course, students will be trained to use different methods in analyses of original or secondary data on relevant themes of interest in journalism studies. Of particular importance will be introducing students to basic digital tools for empirical data collection, processing, and analysis.

In addition to critically discussing methodologies and methods in class, students will be expected to formulate, develop, and carry out small-scale research projects addressing developments in the media landscape, in journalism and within processes of globalization. Given that it builds on and further develops the theoretical perspectives introduced in the first course, the expectation is that students leave the methods course with the ability to usefully and critically combine theories, methodologies and methods in the empirical study of journalism.

Journallistic Storytelling: Creating Stories with Engagement

This course focuses on enhancing the students’ practical knowledge, skills and competences. Building on the students’ journalistic experience (which may vary from 3 months to several years), the purpose of the course is to introduce journalistic approaches centering on engagement.

The course introduces the theories, methods and ethical considerations relevant in the production of engagement journalism, enabling students to work independently with in-depth journalism in longer and research-intensive formats..

Quantitative Journalism

The purpose of this course is to enable students to (A) develop and implement quantitative research designs to test theoretical questions of interest, and (B) report these results truthfully and ethically in relevant journalistic formats.

Hence, students will learn how to conduct theoretically-driven quantitative research, including developing a theoretical framework, identifying, collecting, and operationalizing data, analysing and presenting data using statistical software(s), and responsibly interpreting results. Furthermore, students will learn how to tell relevant stories rooted in data by utilising a range of narrative techniques and modalities. Taken together, students will walk away with a deeper understanding of quantitative data analysis, an enhanced ability to carry out small-scale quantitative research and new skills to visualize such data in relevant academic and journalistic formats.

Elective module or Mundus Journalism Internship (Project Placement)

The elective module towards the end of the second semester (running in May and June) offers two tracks: A Research Track and a Practice Track. The number of electives within the Research Track, and the available number of places in each elective, will vary annually in accordance with the number of students admitted to the programme. The final assessment for both tracks is an oral exam based on a synopsis. The exams take place in the last week of June. By default, these exams are conducted onsite in Aarhus.

Research track: Key Issues Facing Contemporary Journalism: Challenges and Opportunities
Key Issues-electives are designed to enable students to focus on a topic, relevant for the overall aim of the programme. The topic(s) will fall within three areas, each constituting a focal point for the challenges and opportunities facing journalism today: Society, Technology, and the Market. The topic(s) can have a theoretical or a practical focus or seek to combine the two. The specific topics offered will be introduced to the students within the first semester. 

In the spring semester of 2025, three seminars will be offered:

a) Globalisation & World Order. Lecturers: Tonny Brems Knudsen & Jakob Tolstrup

b) Digital Political Communication. Lecturer: Tobias Widmann

c) Social Media as a Public Sphere. Lecturer: Esther Chemnitz

Practice Track: Mundus Journalism Internship (Project Placement)
Instead of enrolling in a Key Issues-course, students can also apply for a short-term (10 ECTS) internship running in May and June. The purpose of the Internship is to offer students a chance to apply the knowledge, skills and competences acquired in the compulsory modules in a real-world setting within a company, institution, or organisation. Thus, by arranging this hands-on experience, students can bridge theory with practice to enhance their professional competences and expanding their labor-market network.

As the Mundus Journalism Internship is credited as part of a Master’s Level programme, a number of conditions are attached to it. These are listed below. Students wishing to increase their working experience in more flexible ways, have often pursued a different route, and arranged non-credited internships during the break between the first and the second year. Although these cannot replace courses or be added to the Master Degree Certificate, arranging such a Summer break internship may give more freedom in terms of work content, paid bonuses and choice of host institution. And while they are not endorsed by the University, the Mundus Journalism Service Center shares information we receive about such openings and we are happy to write a letter of recommendation to support relevant such summer internships.

Conditions tied to the credited Mundus Journalism Internship:

• Mundus Journalism Internships are conducted during May and June and cannot be scheduled at any other time. Details on the number of internship slots (20 in 2024-25) and the application process will be provided after course start. It is not possible to start the application process before the 1^st of November.
• The application involves three steps: (1) Students express interest, allowing them access to coaching sessions with the Internship Coordinator at the Danish School of Media and Journalism; (2) Students submit an application explaining the internship's relevance; (3) Approved applicants submit a signed contract with the host organisation, themselves, and the Internship Coordinator.
• All Mundus Journalism Internships must meet the Study Regulation's requirements and receive endorsement and quality assurance from the Aarhus University programme coordinator. To support this, students are offered coaching before submitting their application (step 2).
• In step 3, only standard Project Placement contracts from Aarhus University are valid. These contracts specify the total hours (273 for a 10 ECTS internship) to include both time spent with the host organisation and for exam preparation.
• The exam is an oral exam with a synopsis. Students receive coaching sessions to prepare. While the default format is onsite, students conducting Mundus Journalism Internships abroad may apply to take the exam online.
• Students cannot receive a salary for Internships in Denmark but may receive a gratuity of up to DKK 3,000 per month from the host organisation, if offered. For placements outside Denmark, students may be eligible for a salary if required by local laws.
• Students are given the flexibility to choose between two distinctive internship paths: either within their own startup at Aarhus University's Entrepreneurial Hub, affectionately known as 'The Kitchen' or by independently arranging an internship elsewhere. For those who opt for self-arranged internships, the possibilities are truly global, though for instance visa requirements may impact these options.

Second semester alternative - study at one of the prestigious credit awarding universities across the globe

Selected students have the unique opportunity to replace their second-semester courses (30 ECTS) in Aarhus with courses at one of the prestigious credit awarding universities around the world. After starting the programme in Aarhus, students interested in an exchange semester abroad can apply to immerse themselves in a new academic environment while still fulfilling the academic requirements of the Mundus Journalism programme. For the 2025-2027 intake, we anticipate having educational exchange agreements with nine partner universities globally. However, the available destinations for spring 2026 will only be confirmed by mid-September 2025. Please note that there is typically only one spot available per university.

The selection will be based on a motivated application of a maximum of 1 page. In this, you should outline your interest in the specific Study Abroad university and explain why you would be a strong candidate and a good ambassador for the Mundus Journalism programme. For this reason, you may only apply to one university. The content of the motivation is open, so you may present your argument in whichever way you believe is most effective. In cases where two or more applicants for the same Study Abroad university are assessed as equally strong, we will take your initial application for the Mundus Journalism programme into consideration.