Agricultural Journalism Undergraduate Program

If you're looking for a degree that involves communicating about any aspect of agriculture, the life sciences, the environment, food, natural resources, and medical and agricultural biotechnology, then the MU Agricultural Journalism Program is for you.

This degree prepares you to succeed in a wide variety of careers in agricultural and life sciences journalism, advertising and public relations.

Options in Agricultural Journalism

When you major in agricultural journalism, you gain access to the strengths of two nationally renowned programs: the MU School of Journalism (J School) and the MU College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR).

The Ag J Program allows you to pick one of the six areas of emphasis within CAFNR:

Meanwhile, you can focus on one of the following sequences in the J School, or pick courses from any combination of them you wish:

News-Editorial
Broadcast
Magazine
Strategic Communications (Advertising and Public Relations)
Photojournalism
Convergence (a combination of media skills and knowledge)

Communicate about Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources

Within the Ag J Program, students can still explore an interest in production agriculture – and prepare for a career communicating about it.

However, our program also prepares students for the needs of employers who have become increasingly concerned with communication about:

the complex array of the frontier life sciences (plant science, animal science, biochemistry, molecular biology, genomics, etc.).
research on and management of natural resources, conservation and the environment.
the food system writ large (from farmer’s field to consumer’s plate and everything in between).
a broad array of other issues affecting rural areas (such as rural health care, immigration and schools).

The Program, like the College, is concerned with the scientific, social, economic and political aspects of each of the fields listed above.