Overview

The Sports Media major at EIU prepares students for an industry generating over $600 billion annually and hungry for skilled, versatile media professionals. Whether your goal is to report from the sideline, anchor a sports broadcast, manage media relations for an athletic organization, or tell the stories that define athletes and teams, you'll develop the writing, reporting, producing, and multimedia skills that employers across the sports media landscape value most. Through hands-on coursework, campus media, live event coverage, and direct access to NCAA Division I athletics, you'll build a professional portfolio of bylines, broadcast reels, and production experiences while you're still in school. The School of Communication, Journalism & Theatre takes a personalized approach, and through small classes, dedicated faculty mentors, and meaningful opportunities to cover, create, and publish your work, you'll graduate with the experience and confidence necessary to compete for the jobs that matter to you.

The strengths of our accredited Sports Media program are a combination of:

• Skills-based courses in sports media writing, visual storytelling, video journalism, multiplatform editing, and feature writing
• Hands-on access to real athletic events from day one: students cover sports beats for The Daily Eastern News, and report and anchor for our Emmy Award-winning News Watch newscast on WEIU-TV
• Professional broadcast experience alongside ESPN+ production crews when they come to campus to broadcast EIU athletic events
• One of the only accredited sports media programs in the state of Illinois, ensuring our curriculum meets the highest professional standards
• Award-winning faculty with professional media experience who mentor students through reporting, production, and the business side of sports journalism

Our majors are also active in organizations that add to the journalism conversation by honoring excellence and achievement and by celebrating professionalism in our field.

• Society for Collegiate Journalists
• Kappa Tau Alpha
• National Association of Black Journalists

At 48 credits, the sports media major provides students the flexibility to minor in multiple areas or easily double-major, especially within the School of Communication, Journalism & Theatre, where a second major can take as little as 27 additional credits. We encourage students to strategically pair majors and minors they are passionate about, creating educational experiences and career pathways that are uniquely their own.

Degree: BA

Completion time: 48 semester hours required for the major

Accreditation: Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication

Resources

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- Program Sheet
- 4-year Course Sequence
- Curriculum Sheet

Computer Requirements:

Sports Media majors can check out any video or photo equipment they need directly from the School of Communication, Journalism & Theatre. Majors also have access to our computer labs during open lab hours throughout the week. 

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