Financial Assistance
Graduate Assistantships
Graduate assistantship opportunities in mass communications are few and highly competitive.
Graduate teaching positions are awarded to applicants who have significant mass
media experience (for example, in journalism writing, broadcast technology, public
relations writing, advertising copywriting and graphic design). Graduate research
positions are awarded to students who have high academic potential and proven research
skills. To hold a graduate assistantship, students must be fully admitted to the
mass communications master’s degree program, and must be full-time (nine credits
per semester) to qualify for the tuition waiver that accompanies the assistantship
stipend. International applicants for teaching positions must achieve a minimum
score of 50 on the Test of Spoken English (TSE) to qualify for consideration.
Assistantships are generally awarded for both fall and spring semesters. Students
who wish to continue on for a second academic year need to re-apply. Applicants
should submit the following information to the School of Mass Communications director
of graduate studies by March 1 for assistantships in the subsequent Fall and Spring
semesters.
- A resume detailing the applicant’s education and professional work experience.
- A cover letter describing the types of undergraduate classes the applicant is able
to teach, and/or the specific research skills the applicant has mastered.
Special Opportunities
Two special graduate assistantships are available for the 2007-2008 and 2008-2009
academic years.
- Strategic Communication Management Track Assistantship
$40,000 plus tuition and travel funds: 2007-2008 and 2008-2009
Description: The recipient will work under the guidance of Derina Holtzhausen as
part of an interdisciplinary research team consisting of one master’s student from
the School of Mass Communications, two Ph.D. students from the College of Engineering
and one Ph.D. student from the College of Health, to fulfill the following grant
requirement: Towards Sustainable Healthy Communities: Communicating Science and
Risk of Emerging Micropolutants in Reclaimed Water.
The objective of the grant is to integrate scientific research and technology development
with risk and strategic communication.
The research will take place in four stages. A first scholarship will involve stages
1 and 2, after which a new scholarship will be awarded to complete stages three
and four:
Stage 1: Qualitative and quantitative research to gauge community knowledge
of and attitudes to issues of recycled water.
Stage 2: The development of a 28-minute documentary and other communication
materials on the science and risks of micropolutants in reclaimed water.
Stage 3: Testing of communication materials through experimental research.
Stage 4: Communicating the findings to scholarly audiences through conference presentations
and journal publication.
Benefits: Stipend of $20,000 per year plus tuition and fees for two years
$1,000 travel money for conference attendance per year for two years
Application requirements:
- An undergraduate degree in public relations, advertising or strategic communication
- A workable knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research methodology
- A GRE of 1250
- A GPA of 3.5
- Three letters of reference, minimum two from professors
- Resume
- 1,000 word essay on your specific attributes that will qualify you for this scholarship
Application deadline: April 1, 2007
- University Graduate Fellowship
$20,000 plus tuition: 2007-2008 and 2008-2009
Description: The University Graduate Fellowship will be awarded to an incoming master’s
student in any one of the following tracks: media studies, multimedia journalism,
or strategic communication management.
Benefits: Stipend of $20,000 plus tuition and fees for two years:
Application requirements:
- An undergraduate degree in mass communications or journalism
- A GRE of 1250
- A GPA of 3.0
- Three letters of reference, minimum two from professors
- 1,000 word essay on your specific attributes that will qualify you for this fellowship.
- Resume
Application deadline: March 15, 2007
General Financial Aid
For information about financial aid, call 813-974-4700 or
visit http://usfweb2.usf.edu/finaid/grad.htm
You also should determine if your employer offers tuition reimbursement