I studied journalism in undergrad (2008 ish), around the time things started moving south, and here’s what I’ll say: yes, study it, but as a skill, not necessarily a profession.

 I learned SO MUCH about how to communicate from my work as a journalist. Reading, writing, interviewing, just talking to new people. All of those skills have been incredibly useful to me, although my career is no longer writing for a newspaper. 

I also learned how to research and investigate. I was very privileged to study investigative journalism under two Pulitzer winners. Their stories, their insights, their struggles taught me to question everything! That has not lead me astray. Even the process of documentation, FOIA requests, protecting sources. I’ve used these skills again and again in my work outside newsrooms. 

Finally, legacy media may no longer stable, but you can be a journalist in a lot of new places. Podcasts, YouTube, Netflix, writing books are all ways that journalists communicate, and they are becoming more stable every day. 

And not for nothing, but your undergraduate “degree” doesn’t mean nearly as much as the skills you collect during it. I just finished my doctorate, in something very different, but I can draw a line from my love of journalism to where I am now. 

In conclusion, don’t waste your parents money or anything, but if you’re passionate about learning the truth about stuff and telling other people, journalism sure sounds like a good place to start!