University of South Wales is scrapping its Journalism course after more than 20 years

The University of South Wales (USW) will no longer offer its BA Journalism course from the next academic year.

News of the course being dropped was announced on February 6th, following revelations that the university’s Newport campus has seen a 75 per cent drop in student numbers since 2010.

USW will, however, continue to run other similar, more specific courses such as Sports Journalism and Visual Journalism.

A USW spokesperson said: “The decision to close BA Journalism was not taken lightly. Unfortunately, we have not seen sufficient growth in student numbers to provide the rich student experience and culture we strive to achieve.”

The spokesperson added: “The course will remain live for current undergraduate students for the duration of their course and their studies will not be affected.”

The withdrawal of BA Journalism from the USW syllabus marks the demise of Cardiff’s only practical and BJTC accredited journalism undergraduate course. Russell Group’s Cardiff University has received nationwide praise and several acclamations for its BA Journalism course, but this is a predominantly theory-based degree; it is their postgraduate Journalism courses that focus on developing practical skills in the industry.

USW’s decision comes not long after plans were published by the Welsh Government to cut postgraduate funding.

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