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2023 Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools

322 Colleges
$47,415 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 120,571 people earned a degree or certificate in communication and journalism, making the major the #11 most popular in the United States.

There are so many programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 322 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for communication and journalism majors pursuing a master's degree.

Top 25 Top Schools for a Master's in Communication & Journalism

#1

Georgetown University

Washington, DC

Our analysis found Georgetown University to be the best school for communication and journalism students who want to pursue a master’s degree in the United States. Located in the large city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at Georgetown University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Atlanta, Georgia Tech is a public school with a very large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus

#3

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. UPenn is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Philadelphia.

Full Communication & Journalism at University of Pennsylvania Report

#4

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, MD

The excellent master’s degree programs at Johns Hopkins University helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best communication and journalism schools in the United States. Located in the city of Baltimore, Johns Hopkins is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at Johns Hopkins University

#5

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY

The excellent master’s degree programs at Cornell University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best communication and journalism schools in the United States. Cornell is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Ithaca.

Read More…

#6

Northwestern University

Evanston, IL

With a ranking of #6, Northwestern University did quite well on this year’s best schools for communication and journalism students working on their master’s degree. Northwestern is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Evanston.

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#7

University of Iowa

Iowa City, IA

With a ranking of #7, University of Iowa did quite well on this year’s best schools for communication and journalism students working on their master’s degree. Located in the small city of Iowa City, Iowa is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Iowa

#8

Drake University

Des Moines, IA

With a ranking of #8, Drake University did quite well on this year’s best schools for communication and journalism students working on their master’s degree. Located in the midsize city of Des Moines, Drake is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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University of Wisconsin - Madison came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools ranking. UW - Madison is a fairly large public school located in the city of Madison.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Wisconsin - Madison

University of Washington - Seattle Campus ranked #10 on this year’s Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Communication & Journalism at University of Washington - Seattle Campus Report

University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #11 on the list. Located in the large city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Communication & Journalism at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities Report

#12

Purdue University - Main Campus

West Lafayette, IN

Purdue University - Main Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #12 on the list. Purdue is a fairly large public school located in the small city of West Lafayette.

Read More…

#13

Villanova University

Villanova, PA

Villanova University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #13 on the list. Villanova is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Villanova.

Full Communication & Journalism at Villanova University Report

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ranked #14 on this year’s Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. UIUC is a very large public school located in the city of Champaign.

Full Communication & Journalism at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Report

#15

Gonzaga University

Spokane, WA

Gonzaga University ranked #15 on this year’s Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Spokane, Gonzaga is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Communication & Journalism at Gonzaga University Report

#16

George Washington University

Washington, DC

George Washington University landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree communication and journalism programs. Located in the city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at George Washington University

#17

Fairfield University

Fairfield, CT

Fairfield University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #17 on the list. Fairfield U is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Fairfield.

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University of Maryland - College Park landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree communication and journalism programs. Located in the large suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Maryland - College Park

#19

Stanford University

Stanford, CA

Stanford University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Full Communication & Journalism at Stanford University Report

#20

University of Delaware

Newark, DE

University of Delaware landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree communication and journalism programs. UD is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Newark.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Delaware

Southern Methodist University came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools ranking. SMU is a large private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Dallas.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at Southern Methodist University

#22

University of Dayton

Dayton, OH

University of Dayton came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools ranking. UDayton is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Dayton.

Read More…

University of Missouri - Columbia ranked #23 on this year’s Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools list. Mizzou is a very large public school located in the city of Columbia.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Missouri - Columbia

University of Southern California came in at #24 in this year’s edition of the Best Communication & Journalism Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Communication & Journalism at University of Southern California

#25

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

James Madison University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for communication and journalism students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #25 on the list. JMU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Harrisonburg.

Read More…

Rest of the Top Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools

#26

St. Bonaventure University

Saint Bonaventure, NY
#28

Texas Christian University

Fort Worth, TX
#29

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA
#32

University of San Francisco

San Francisco, CA
#34

Wake Forest University

Winston-Salem, NC
#35

Temple University

Philadelphia, PA
#38

University of Kansas

Lawrence, KS
#41

Chapman University

Orange, CA
#44

Westminster College Utah

Salt Lake City, UT
#45

School of Visual Arts

New York, NY
#47

Saint Louis University

Saint Louis, MO
#48

American University

Washington, DC

Honorable Mentions

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
49 Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah, GA
50 Loyola University Maryland Baltimore, MD
51 John Carroll University University Heights, OH
52 Bryant University Smithfield, RI
53 Brigham Young University - Provo Provo, UT
54 Rutgers University - New Brunswick New Brunswick, NJ
55 University of Florida Gainesville, FL
56 Quinnipiac University Hamden, CT
57 Ohio State University - Main Campus Columbus, OH
58 Syracuse University Syracuse, NY
59 New York University New York, NY
60 Marist College Poughkeepsie, NY
61 University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA
62 University of Denver Denver, CO
63 University of Nevada - Reno Reno, NV
64 University of Oklahoma Norman Campus Norman, OK

Communication & Journalism by Region

View the Best Communication & Journalism Master's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

Communication & Journalism Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies 66,787
Public Relations & Advertising 21,099
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 17,669
Journalism 13,552
Communication & Journalism (Other) 1,128
Publishing 336

Majors Similar to Communication & Journalism

Related Major Annual Graduates
Education 327,871
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Josh Hallett.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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