by our College Data Analytics TeamFor its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 164 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for communication & journalism students pursuing a master's degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 12,991 master's degrees in communication & journalism during the <nil> academic year.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
The communication & journalism master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. Important measures of a quality communication & journalism program can vary widely even among the top schools. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a good education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we consider a school's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a collection of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for communication & journalism students working on their master's degree.
The communication & journalism school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we've developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of the Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a master's degree in communication & journalism. Only those schools that rank in the top 20% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Every student who is interested in a master's degree in communication & journalism has to look into Northwestern University. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Northwestern University
University of Southern California is a great option for individuals pursuing a master's degree in communication & journalism. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Southern California
George Washington University is one of the best schools in the country for getting a master's degree in communication & journalism. Located in the city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from George Washington University
Boston University is a great option for students interested in a master's degree in communication & journalism. Located in the city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Boston University
Located in the city of West Lafayette, Purdue is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Purdue University - Main Campus
Villanova is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Villanova.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Villanova University
Located in the medium-sized city of Syracuse, Syracuse is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Syracuse University UMN Twin Cities is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Minneapolis.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Minnesota - Twin Cities UF is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Gainesville.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Florida Temple is a fairly large public university located in the city of Philadelphia.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Temple University7
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type304
Annual Graduates8
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type28
Annual Graduates9
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type355
Annual Graduates10
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type92
Annual Graduates
DU is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Denver.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Denver
Located in the city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from American University NYU is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of New York.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from New York University University of Oklahoma is a very large public university located in the suburb of Norman.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Oklahoma Norman Campus UW Seattle is a very large public university located in the large city of Seattle.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Washington - Seattle Campus12
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type142
Annual Graduates13
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type425
Annual Graduates14
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type82
Annual Graduates15
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type118
Annual Graduates
Located in the city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Located in the small city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public university with a fairly large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Iowa UW - Madison is a very large public university located in the large city of Madison.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Wisconsin - Madison Located in the medium-sized city of Savannah, SCAD is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Savannah College of Art and Design Located in the city of Lincoln, UNL is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Nebraska - Lincoln17
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type25
Annual Graduates18
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type18
Annual Graduates19
Master's Degree
Highest Degree Type126
Annual Graduates20
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type44
Annual Graduates
Located in the medium-sized city of Waco, Baylor is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Baylor University
UGA is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Athens.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Georgia UT Austin is a very large public university located in the large city of Austin.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from The University of Texas at Austin UCONN is a fairly large public university located in the fringe town of Storrs.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from University of Connecticut Michigan State is a very large public university located in the city of East Lansing.More information about a master’s in communication & journalism from Michigan State University22
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type115
Annual Graduates23
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type101
Annual Graduates24
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type20
Annual Graduates25
Doctor's Degree
Highest Degree Type89
Annual Graduates
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools award.Rank College Location 33 University of Kentucky Lexington, KY 34 Texas Christian University Fort Worth, TX 35 Auburn University Auburn, AL 36 Marquette University Milwaukee, WI 37 The University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL 38 Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Baton Rouge, LA 39 University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO 40 Texas Tech University Lubbock, TX 41 University of Delaware Newark, DE 42 Ohio University - Athens Campus Athens, OH 43 Gonzaga University Spokane, WA 44 Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH 45 University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA 46 Florida International University Miami, FL 47 Butler University Indianapolis, IN 48 Rider University Lawrenceville, NJ 49 Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT 50 Chapman University Orange, CA 51 Washington State University Pullman, WA 52 University of California - Berkeley Berkeley, CA 53 The New School New York, NY 54 Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY
View the Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Communication & Media Studies | 4,685 |
| Public Relations & Advertising | 3,129 |
| Radio, Television & Digital Communication | 2,951 |
| Journalism | 1,525 |
| Communication & Journalism (Other) | 488 |
| Publishing | 213 |
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Social Sciences | 19,295 |
| Theology & Religious Vocations | 13,310 |
| English Language & Literature | 8,374 |
| History | 3,626 |
| Family, Consumer & Human Sciences | 3,059 |
| Foreign Languages & Linguistics | 2,957 |
| Philosophy & Religious Studies | 2,425 |
| Area, Ethnic, Culture, & Gender Studies | 1,931 |
| Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities | 1,693 |
