With each cohort, the offerings in the program can change based on student interests as observed by the arts and culture reporting program director. Students can now take an LGBTQ class or a class focused specifically on representation in their third semester, all based on their responses to polling in their second semester. Of course, not every interest by every student can become a class, and students can choose to write about any relevant subjects in the context of arts and culture. Former students have focused on how the film industry deals with the LGBTQ community, the changing image of motherhood on television, and the theater’s attempts to broaden opportunities for Asian-American actors.

Students are required to focus on one subject during the second semester when they’re in the Cultural Issues course so that they can learn the skills useful for developing a subject beat. However, they can choose to do one of the three major story assignments for that course on an arts-related subject outside their beat. They can also change their beat entirely at the beginning of the third semester and as different courses get introduced, instructors teaching electives have the discretion to offer students the opportunity to work across different beats.

Yes. In fact, students are required to do multimedia sidebars for at least one of the assignments in both the Cultural Issues and Entertainment Reporting classes. In most classes, instructors are encouraged to have students complete at least one assignment in an audio, video, infographic, or interactive format, but each class varies in the requirement.

Yes. Students who want to deepen their knowledge in a particular field can stay on for a fourth semester to take elective courses at another CUNY campus. For example, those interested in film, fashion, or music could take film history, fashion business, or music theory, respectively.

Pitching is an integral part of the program. Students must pitch each story to their professors, and they’re encouraged to propose their stories to outside publications.

Recent subjects have ranged from a critical essay on “Why There’s No Conservative Jon Stewart,” which was later published in The Atlantic, to a reported piece on “The Legacy of Tupac Shakur,” a version of which aired on the San Francisco public radio station KQED shortly after the student graduated.

No. Students can choose to do capstones on non-arts-related subjects in other classes such as Narrative Journalism, Photojournalism, Video Documentary, or Video Storytelling.

Students may choose to do internships that focus on subjects other than arts and entertainment, and they’re permitted to work outside of New York.

Yes. Newspapers may be pulling back on their coverage, but there has been an explosion of sites online, from broad-based publications like Indiewire and BuzzFeed to specialized outfits like Pitchfork. Even established news organizations such as The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and NPR have developed blogs and podcasts that are seeking work from smart and well-trained arts and entertainment journalists. Arts and culture students also tend to be entrepreneurial and have the opportunities to pursue new storytelling endeavors such as creating individual newsletters.