The Foundation Year Program – mandatory for all first-year students is largely a journey through the past, but its goal is to help you understand our contemporary world more deeply. This interdisciplinary program is an ‘odyssey’—a journey that takes you and your fellow travellers to thought-provoking, unfamiliar places, but one that ultimately brings you home. This journey happens through a chronological study of great books and ideas, from the ancient to the contemporary world. You’ll get a broad understanding of important intellectual developments—in philosophy, history, literature, drama, and the natural and social sciences.
Journalism
The world needs storytellers dedicated to pursuing and sharing truth in trustworthy and meaningful ways. King’s invites you to join the vanguard of the journalism revolution. Graduate with the skills to join a traditional newsroom, documentary house, or to take on a range of roles in new media. King’s offers undergraduate, advanced and graduate programs specializing in journalism.”
Undergraduate
Bachelor of Journalism (Honours).
Establish an outstanding base for a range of careers — including law, public service, education, advocacy, arts and journalism. Learn to think and write quickly and clearly. Become an adept storyteller in digital and traditional formats. Cultivate your curiosity about the contemporary world. You learn to ask ethical and probing questions, research deeply and write with flair and precision. You become a clearer thinker who can discern fact from opinion, ambiguity or falsehood. You tell stories with words, audio, and video, reaching audiences on multiple platforms. You also gain experience and build your professional network through a journalism internship.
Strengthen your writing and research skills – and understand the role of journalism in society
Advanced and Graduate
One-year Bachelor of Journalism.
Leverage your undergraduate degree with our post-baccalaureate degree. Graduate with the skills to join a traditional newsroom, documentary house, or to take on a range of roles in new media.
Want to tell important stories founded in data and public records research? Gain valuable research and storytelling skills, and begin building your portfolio of published stories soon after you start. Dive into public records and data, and learn to ask good questions. Tell the stories that inspire change in innovative ways.
Note: King’s College is associated with Dalhousie University. Both universities are in Halifax.
The Journalism Program’s Commitment to Truth and Reconciliation
In the Fall of 2022, King’s announced the Mi’kmaw Journalism Initiative; a key step toward answering the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action. The University of King’s College will cover tuition costs for up to three Mi’kmaw students per year in the Bachelor of Journalism (Honours) program and encourage L’nu’k from Mi’kma’ki with lived experience to apply.
Indigenous Community at King’s
In 2015 the Truth and Reconciliation Commission published 94 Calls to Action [PDF] that included the call for post-secondary institutions to engage in decolonization and increase equitable access to education for Indigenous students. As a university with journalism programs, King’s is also committed to advancing the Calls to Action related to Media and Reconciliation.”
Call to Action # 86
We call upon Canadian journalism programs and media schools to require education for all students on the history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Treaties and Aboriginal rights, Indigenous law, and Aboriginal–Crown relations.
Mandatory Course: Yes. JOUR2704 Indigenous Peoples and Media
Mandatory for all second-year students pursuing a single honours degree in journalism, it will expand to become a requirement for a combined honours in journalism from fall of 2024.
This course introduces students to key aspects of Indigenous cultures, legal frameworks, and the historical relationship between Indigenous nations and the state required for responsible reporting in Canada. From the Indian Act to treaty rights to the legacy of residential schools, students will gain a deeper understanding of Indigenous perspectives, Canadian history, key issues in reporting, and impacts of colonialism.
The essential principles of responsible journalism in this course will be applicable to reporting on any marginalized community.
Since the University of King’s College sits on the unceded and ancestral territory called Mi’kma’ki, special focus will be given to Mi’kmaw history and contemporary society.
Students will gain an understanding of the important role of journalism in holding Canada accountable, in shaping the narrative of Indigenous Peoples, and educating the public. Students will be able to articulate best practices in reporting on Indigenous communities and apply a critical analysis to current coverage of Indigenous stories.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:
- Identify key historical events impacting Indigenous nations.
- Identify key laws, policies relating to First Nations, Inuit, and Métis in Canada.
- Understand the role of journalism in shaping narrative and public understanding.
- Articulate best practices for Indigenous reporting.
- Think critically about ongoing impacts of colonization.
- Apply a critical analysis to current coverage of Indigenous stories.
PREREQUISITES: JOUR 1003.03 or JOUR 1001.06 or permission of the instructor
The course builds on existing initiatives in the university to address CTA 86 and decolonize the journalism programs. Several lectures relating to Indigenous Peoples are also part of the first-year Foundations of Journalism course.
Optional Course
Reporting in Mi’kma’ki (launched in 2019)
Learn how to report responsibly on Indigenous issues – on the ground, in a Mi’kmaw community. From treaty rights to language to entrepreneurship, this immersive course delves into select topics in Mi’kma’ki, the unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq. There is some classroom time at King’s, but most teaching and journalism gathering activities are done off campus.
Journalism Program Commitment to Call to Action # 86: 5 out of 5 = 100%
| 1 | The history of Aboriginal peoples, including the history and legacy of residential schools |
| Yes. Covered by JOUR2704 | |
| 2 | The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples |
| Yes. Covered by JOUR2704 | |
| 3 | Treaties and Aboriginal rights |
| Yes. Covered by JOUR2704 | |
| 4 | Indigenous law |
| Yes. Covered by JOUR2704 | |
| 5 | Aboriginal–Crown Relations |
| Yes. Covered by JOUR2704 | |
Land Acknowledgement
Located on Journalism Home Page and On King’s College Home Page
“King’s and Halifax (Kjipuktuk) sit on unceded Mi’kmaw land in Mi’kma’ki.
A more extensive Land Acknowledgement is located on Reconciliation Home Page
“King’s and Halifax, also called Kjipuktuk, sit on unceded Mi’kmaw territory, subject to the Peace and Friendship Treaties that are the basis for peaceful coexistence and good relations among all who live in Mi’kma’ki.”(link)
| NOTE: All content has been submitted to the respective faculty for validation to ensure accuracy and currency as of the time of posting. University of King’s College – Journalism Program reviewed and approved the document. Managing Editor: Douglas Sinclair: Publisher, Indigenous Watchdog Lead Researcher: Timothy Maton: Ph.D |