Student Projects

Learn by Doing

Upper-division students can participate in capstone reporting programs that offer real-world experience, build portfolios and teach valuable professional skills. These projects produce top-notch coverage in online, print, video, audio and photo. They win Emmy awards, Society of Professional Journalists’ Mark of Excellence honors, Hearst Collegiate Journalism Awards, and many more. 

Graduate Student Projects

Woman stands on street in Korea with camera.

Montana Journalism Abroad

This program is is a crucial part of our hands-on education curriculum. Students have traveled to India to cover environmental issues, Berlin to report on the Syrian refugee crisis and Japan to report on the aftermath of a trio of disasters in Fukushima. In 2018, Professor Joe Eaton led a group of students on an international reporting trip covering stories for CityLab, the urban-focused site of The Atlantic. See their work here

Cover of 2021 Montana Native News: Vital Relief

The Native News Honors Project

Teams of honors students have traveled across Montana to cover a single issue – such as politics or health care – in depth on Montana’s seven Indian reservations. They publish their work in an annual print and digital publication that reaches about 60,000 readers. See the most recent edition here

Screenshot of Byline Magazine: Bold Storytelling for the West

Byline Magazine

Byline Magazine is reported, written, photographed, designed and produced each year entirely by University of Montana School of Journalism students and distributed across Montana and the country. 

Students cover big stories in depth on topics from the pandemic to the prison system to the #metoo movement. 

See their most recent work on the Byline Magazine website.




The Student Documentary Unit

The student doc team conceives, researches, reports, photographs and edits a one-hour television documentary for MontanaPBS and other statewide outlets. Past projects have won multiple awards. One recent doc project, "Aging Out: Autism in Montana" explores the issue of how care changes after adolescence for people diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. That doc was one of five finalists (out of 4,000 Mark of Excellence entries) in the Society of Professional Journalists MOEy Awards. In 2018, the documentary team dug into the issue of overcrowding in Montana jails. "Montana Jails, Slammed for Solutions" aired on Montana PBS.

UntreatedLogo.png

Investigative Reporting

Students in investigative reporting go beyond the news cycle to research and report important stories that might otherwise go untold. In one of the projects, the team partnered with the Missoulian newspaper on a series of in-depth stories that look at pregnancy and addiction in Montana. The series, "Addicted and expecting: How Montana's lack of resources impacts mothers and their children" was published in Lee Newspapers across the state. 

LegNewsLogo.jpg

The Legislative News Service

This class sends three students to the state Capitol to cover the biennial Montana Legislature for more than 200 broadcast, print and online news publications across the state. Students provide crucial daily coverage from the statehouse and gain valuable experience reporting on complex policy.

Cover of a 2021 issue of the Montana Kaimn. Woman with dark hair looks at camera

The Montana Kaimin

The Montana Kaimin is an independent weekly news-magazine of the University of Montana. The Kaimin publishes once weekly and daily online during regular academic semesters.

Woman smiles in front of mic in KBGA studios

KBGA College Radio

At KBGA college radio, students get the chance to do everything from manage the station to DJ to direct the news to report and produce the news. It's a vibrant place for journalism students to get to know audio storytelling and the power of local radio.

Screenshot of a portion of Business Made in Montana on Montana PBS's website.

Business: Made in Montana

Business: Made in Montana is a Montana PBS program that profiles companies that create products in Big Sky Country and do business around the state, the nation and the world. The program is produced by students at the University of Montana School of Journalism. See Business: Made in Montana on Montana PBS.