University of Regina journalism school to suspend admissions for a year starting in 2023

The University of Regina school of journalism will suspend admissions for one year so faculty can update the program to meet the needs of the digital age.

The university's faculty of arts council has passed a motion to suspend admissions to the journalism school starting in 2023, because, by July, there will only be two "active, in-scope" faculty members left and no funding to hire more, according to a frequently asked questions (FAQ) note about the suspension, a copy of which was obtained by CBC News.

"We are in a process with the university governance to get permission to give the whole … [journalism] school kind of a sabbatical," said Shannon Dea, dean of the university's faculty of arts, which includes the school of journalism.

"We want to pause admissions for one year so the faculty members in the j-school can take all of next year to rebuild the J-school and update it and modernize it."

The FAQ specifies that the bachelor of arts in journalism — a four-year undergraduate program — and the bachelor of journalism — a two-year program for students who already have an undergraduate degree — will be affected.

However, Dea told CBC News that the one-year master of journalism program would also be affected.

Current journalism students will not be left behind, she said, adding that fourth-year students will continue their courses and internships.

'Handful of students' affected

The university will work with any part-time students, or U of R students trying to gain admission into the journalism school, to ensure their degree progress isn't delayed by the suspension, the FAQ says.

"We're really looking at just a handful of students," Dea said.

"We're reaching out to them and we'll make sure that we support them along the way, because we don't want them wasting their time or spending extra tuition money."

A review of the journalism school in the 2018-19 academic year showed that it needed to update its curriculum to keep pace with the digital age of journalism.

The review also highlighted weaknesses, including faculty members who did not have a good balance between teaching and their own research, and that the school did not have a focus on communications despite a significant portion of its graduates winding up in that field.

A business plan, dated Sept. 8, 2020, laid out five strategic goals to accomplish within three years:

• Increase enrolment.
• Improve the curriculum.
• Expand into communications.
• Implement a core Indigenous curriculum.
• Stabilize staffing.

The university also wants to change how students enrol in the journalism school, Dea said. 

Previously, students registered as pre-journalism students and took two years to gather their other university credits before focusing intensely on journalism, she said. Now, the university is looking to admit students into journalism right away, spreading that training over four years.

Other Canadian journalism programs, such as the bachelor of journalism (honours) at the University of King's College in Halifax, operate the same way.

"I'm pretty shocked to see a post-secondary academic institution shutting down … to do some self-reflection," said Brent Jolly, president of the Canadian Association of Journalists, the national advocate for the industry.

These sorts of processes are normal in academia, but Jolly noted they're normally implemented while operations continue as normal.

"Stopping seems quite unique," he said.

Prospective journalism students will bear the brunt of the suspension, Jolly said. The U of R's journalism school is the only one in Saskatchewan, so they will have to look elsewhere for their education.

The journalism school is renowned for its internship program, Jolly said, adding he worries this could affect students getting placements from some companies — broadcasters, in particular.

Ensuring students receive quality educational programs is a priority for Saskatchewan's advanced education ministry, a spokesperson with the provincial department told CBC News. But the U of R has the autonomy to make decisions related to academic matters.

Winter courses cancelled

The journalism school also had to cancel two courses in the upcoming winter term, after it could not find "suitable applicants" to teach them, according to an email sent to affected students earlier this week.

The email, a copy of which was obtained by CBC News, instructs recipients to drop out of the advanced broadcasting courses as soon as possible so they don't have to pay for them.

The university's students' union is disappointed by the news, a spokesperson told CBC News.

The union works to ensure students have access to courses that suit their needs and interests, the spokesperson said, and it will work with the university to address concerns raised by students.