Undergraduate students in the School of Journalism pursue their degrees in one of six Emphasis Areas approved by the University Board of Curators and the Missouri Coordinating Board of Higher Education. These are Convergence Journalism, Magazine Journalism, Photojournalism, Print and Digital News, Radio-Television Journalism, and Strategic Communication. Degrees are awarded only in one of those six areas.

Each Emphasis Area, however, has separate tracks that permit students to prepare for employment in more specialized fields. These are called Interest Areas, and students select from more than 30 choices among these. Interest Areas do not appear on transcripts or diplomas, although the transcript coursework should provide evidence of competency in the appropriate area.

This interdisciplinary interest area gives students the opportunity to expand their understanding of the arts as they develop critical thinking skills about society, culture and the media. Students are encouraged to see culture as a central part of the journalistic enterprise as they learn about art, music, theater, film, popular culture and critical reviewing. This is intended to lay the groundwork not only for careers in traditional and emerging forms of journalism but also for careers in arts organizations, museums, nonprofit agencies, cultural institutions and government programs.

This interest area teaches students to tell stories using the tools of visual journalism. Critical thinking skills and application methods are studied and practiced in courses that cover design skills, management issues and theoretical frameworks. Through hands-on work in the Columbia Missourian and Vox Magazine newsrooms, students gain real-world experience that prepares them to organize information and be clear visual communicators. This interest area prepares students to be designers/art directors for publications in print, on the Web, and/or on other digital platforms.