Mizzou named best journalism school in the country
Mizzou has topped another list of the best j-schools in the country, this one by College Magazine.
Why’s Mizzou number one? CM explains:
Missouri’s excellence runs far deeper than its awards, which include first place in broadcast news and second place overall in the 2014 Hearst Awards. The journalism program features 30 subdivisions and cool foci like Convergence Journalism, which interweaves multiple journalism disciplines into one specialization. One of the school’s major initiatives, the “Missouri method,” gives students hands-on experience in professional media. In fact, students’ first core course takes place in one of the on-campus newsrooms. Another attraction is the “Missouri mafia,” the school’s extensive alumni network. Many job opportunities target only Missouri graduates, and the school’s alums network creatively. “When grads leave Mizzou, they tend to post on Facebook or email when they have job opportunities,” junior convergence journalism major Sarah Darby said. It never hurts to have the mafia on your side.
Jim Romenesko asked the magazine about its methodology, which is “rooted in qualitative and quantitative research including student interviews.”
Rounding out the top 10:
10) Arizona State
9) Maryland
8) Georgia
7) Syracuse
6) Indiana
5) Northwestern
4) Western Kentucky
3) North Carolina
2) Penn State
At least KU, which ranked 7 on CM’s 2012 list, still rules on the hardwood.
But these rankings, as The Star documented in a recent muckread on UMKC, are kind of b.s. In another recent j-school list, Mizzou didn’t even crack the top 10.
MediaKC 
“Another attraction is the ‘Missouri mafia,’ the school’s extensive alumni network. Many job opportunities target only Missouri graduates, and the school’s alums network creatively.”
I’ve been hearing about the Missouri mafia for decades, and I’ve never seen it in action. My first job interview out of grad school was with a Missouri alumna, and she hired me because of my clips and my knowledge of the industry that her magazine covered. MU never came up. Later, a MU alumnus recruited me, and MU never was a factor there, either. Instead, it was my clips and my knowledge of the industry. When I was hiring, résumés from MU grads never went to the top of the pile.
I’m not saying that this mafia doesn’t exist. But I’m skeptical that it plays such a major role in who gets the gig.