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BA Journalism
Reporting, verification and storytelling across text, audio and video, taught in newsroom conditions.
Overview
Arizona State University was founded in 1885 and is one of the largest public universities in the United States by enrolment. It operates several campuses across the Phoenix metropolitan area, with the main campus in Tempe, and a substantial online provision alongside them.
The programme range is unusually wide, covering engineering, computing, business, sustainability, journalism, design, education and the health sciences. Its sustainability and engineering schools are large, and its journalism school is well established.
The scale is the defining characteristic: class sizes, the number of majors available and the breadth of student services all reflect a very large institution, which suits students who want choice and structure rather than a small cohort.
Courses and subjects
Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)
A broad undergraduate business degree covering finance, marketing, operations and management, usually with a specialisation in the final years.
BSc Accounting and Finance
An undergraduate degree combining financial reporting and analysis, often carrying exemptions from professional accountancy examinations.
BSc Computer Science
The foundational degree of the software industry: algorithms, systems and mathematics, with specialisation options from AI to security.
BSc Hospitality and Tourism Management
A business degree applied to hotels, events, food service and travel, with industry placement built into the programme.
BSc Psychology
The scientific study of mind and behaviour — a research-methods degree as much as a subject, and the first step toward professional practice.
Certificate in Pre-sessional Academic English
University-run English preparation that bridges a conditional offer, teaching the academic reading, writing and seminar skills degrees assume.
Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)
A practical teaching credential for English language instruction, and one of the most portable qualifications a graduate can hold.
MA Education
Graduate study of how learning works and how education systems can be led, improved and made fairer.
MA Media and Communication Studies
The research-led study of media systems, audiences and platforms — how communication actually shapes societies and markets.
Master of Business Administration (MBA)
A general management degree for professionals with work experience who want to move into leadership, switch industries or build a business.
MSc Cybersecurity
The technical study of securing systems and the people who use them — cryptography, network defence, forensics and security management.
MSc Data Science
Statistics, machine learning and data engineering combined into the degree behind one of the decade's fastest-growing professions.
Admission requirements
Admission is by programme, with published criteria that are more transparent than at highly selective private universities.
- A completed secondary qualification meeting the published standard, with subject competencies in mathematics, science, English and social studies.
- A stated minimum grade average or an alternative qualifying route, published openly by the university.
- English proficiency through TOEFL, IELTS, PTE or Duolingo at the published minimum.
- Portfolio or audition requirements for design, art and music programmes.
- For graduate admission: a relevant bachelor's degree, statement of purpose, references and departmental requirements that vary by school.
Tuition fees
A very large public university with multiple campuses and an extensive online provision, so the cost depends heavily on how and where you study.
- In-state, out-of-state and international rates differ, as at any US public institution.
- Programme and college variation, with engineering and business above general studies.
- Campus matters — Tempe, Downtown Phoenix, Polytechnic and West are priced and serviced differently.
- Cost of attendance published annually, including housing, food, books and fees.
- Merit awards for international undergraduates are common here and are decided from the admission application, which materially changes the effective cost.
- Mandatory health insurance unless equivalent cover is shown.
US costs are quoted as a "cost of attendance" — tuition plus housing, food, insurance, books and fees — and that total, not the tuition line, is what a visa application and your budget need. Work from ASU's tuition estimator for your campus, programme and residency for your specific programme and year of entry — it is the only figure that will be correct for you, and it is republished every year. We will confirm the current cost and what it includes before you commit to an application.
Scholarships
Arizona State runs a substantial merit award programme for international undergraduates, generally decided from the admission application and renewable against results. Graduate funding is departmental and concentrated in research programmes.
- International merit awards — decided from the admission application and renewable on maintaining a grade average.
- Departmental graduate funding — assistantships in research programmes.
- Programme awards — attached to particular degrees.
Renewable awards depend on a grade average being maintained. Check what that threshold is before budgeting on the award lasting the full programme.
Campus life
One of the largest universities in the United States, spread over several Phoenix-area campuses, with a scale and a climate that both take adjusting to.
- Four main campuses — Tempe is the largest and most traditional; Downtown Phoenix, Polytechnic and West are smaller and more specialised.
- Very large scale, which brings an enormous range of programmes, clubs and facilities, and means finding your community takes deliberate effort.
- Major athletics and an active campus culture, particularly at Tempe.
- Extensive international student support, reflecting a large international cohort.
- On-campus housing for first-year students, with plentiful and relatively affordable off-campus options afterwards.
- A desert climate — very hot summers, mild winters, and a mostly outdoor campus life outside the peak months.
The heat is a genuine factor from late spring to early autumn, and the scale means the university will not find you — joining a college, a club or a research group early is how students settle in.