High cost of journalism degrees as salaries and job positions fall.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/journalism-schools-leave-graduates-with-hefty-student-loans-11631275201
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News reporting has lost thousands of jobs over the past decade, with a further slide predicted. Yet, journalism schools continue to churn out heavily indebted master’s degree graduates hoping to find a footing in the cratering industry.
Many students leave even the most prestigious private graduate programs, such as those at Northwestern University, Columbia University and the University of Southern California, with earnings too low to let them make progress paying off their loans, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of Education Department figures released this year.
Higher degrees are even worse
At Northwestern, students who recently earned a master’s degree in journalism and took out federal loans borrowed a median $54,900—more than three times as much as their undergraduate counterparts did. That is the biggest gap of any university with available data. Worse still, the master’s degree holders make less money. Early-career earnings for those with master’s degrees in journalism from Northwestern are about $1,500 lower than for its undergraduate students, data show.
Median annual earnings for the remaining jobs, across all experience levels, are currently $49,300. Meanwhile, prices for some of the most prestigious private graduate programs in the field have climbed. Including fees and living expenses, total costs for each [masters] program top $100,000.
Hard to justify $100k in student debt just for a $50k salary for that journalism masters. Even if you assumed you need the masters to a get the job in the first place, otherwise why pay for the expensive degree for a lower salary? Well, unless Biden’s got you the taxpayer footing the bill. They’re not hiring math majors for journalism, that’s for sure.
While undergraduate loans are capped, graduate students can borrow up to the full cost of attendance through the federal Grad Plus program. A Wall Street Journal investigation found that pricey law schools, master’s programs in the arts and others have come to rely on the easy-to-access funds as a core element of students’ financing. Schools receive the money upfront, and taxpayers are on the hook for any loans that aren’t repaid.
Ms. Dzwierzynski, 32 years old, said she understood that she would be going into significant debt for the degree but didn’t know how little she would likely earn.
I’ll spare you the picture of this guy, but there’s a good chance you’ll end up financing his career choices.
Adam Rhodes borrowed $75,000 to attend Medill’s journalism program, aiming to shift from a reporting job covering private equity for a legal publication to writing about social justice and LGBT issues.
Mr. Rhodes, who uses they as a pronoun, graduated in 2020 and got a fellowship at the Chicago Reader, an alternative weekly, making $38,000. They got a $2,000 raise when they went full-time earlier this month.
Mr. Rhodes took a 40% pay cut from their New York job, but said they are more fulfilled in their new role. Still, the loans loom large. The federal government paused payments during the pandemic, but when that lifts early next year, the 28-year-old intends to enroll in a repayment plan limiting monthly payments to a set share of their income. After 20 or 25 years, the remaining debt could be erased, and taxed as income.
Mr. Rhodes, who also has $33,000 in loans for their bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Florida, is holding out hope for President Biden to forgive at least some student debt.
“I am admittedly stressed about finances,” Mr. Rhodes said. “But if there’s any time to take on this kind of debt, it might be when it is potentially going to be erased.”
Well he got that part right.
Maybe I shouldn’t be quite so harsh on “their” personal lifestyle choices. For all I know, as an apparently white [edit Cuban] guy, maybe you need some crazy pronouns if you want a shot at a job in journalism at NYT or something these days.
