News Writing, Certificate of Proficiency
Department website: https://www.atu.edu/cj
The certificate of proficiency in digital news provides students with the opportunity to earn within the first four semesters of study, a certificate acknowledging their instruction in digital news. This stackable education sequence enhances a student's employment opportunity and augments any degree program with which it is paired.

HANDS-ON LEARNING opportunities
- News Reporting class, where students have weekly assignments intended for publication in The Arka Tech, the university's student newspaper.
- Staff positions on the newspaper, outside of their course work.
- Students in the print practicum courses also help provide content for the newspaper.
SKILLS YOU WILL LEARN
- Interviewing and research skills
- Multi-platform writing
- Time management and meeting deadlines
- Working as a member of a team
YOU COULD WORK AS A
- Copywriter
- Graphic designer
- News editor
- News reporter
- Photographer
ALUMNI OF OUR PROGRAM WORK AT
- ArcBest
- Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
- Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce
- The Courier (Russellville)
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| JOUR 3143 | News Reporting | 3 |
| JOUR 3153 | Feature Writing | 3 |
| JOUR 3714 | Copy Editing | 4 |
| JOUR 4143 | Advanced Reporting | 3 |
| Total Hours | 13 | |
- Students will employ news principles while developing a solid sense of news judgement.
- Students will demonstrate an ability to gather and write news, particularly through research and interviews, displaying critical thinking in selection and organization of information for the audience.
- Students will demonstrate an ability to write across multiple platforms multi-source news and feature (human interest) stories that are well-organized, accurate, objective and concise.
For program assessment visit: https://www.atu.edu/assessment/program_assessment.php
