Columbia College Chicago to Partner With NBCU Academy

Campus Communications Staff / Jan 26, 2023

Logo for NBCU Academy and Columbia
Columbia students in media arts to benefit from scholarships, training, and enhanced course content as part of a dynamic new partnership.

Columbia College Chicago has received funding and student resources through a dynamic new partnership with NBCU Academy, an innovative, multiplatform student journalism development program. As an NBCU academic partner, Columbia will receive a grant from NBCU Academy, by and through its corporate parent Comcast Corporation to be used for direct support for students pursuing degrees in journalism, film, television, and related media and media technology fields, and the remaining amount will be used to support educational offerings, according to Eric Freedman, dean of the School of Media Arts.

“The partnership gives us access to significant NBCU resources including recruiting events, internships, employment opportunities, and academic workshops and will help keep our programs current and relevant as we continue to strengthen our students' career outcomes, help them thrive within our collective media industries, and add critical diversity to our fields of practice,” Freedman says.

Columbia and 14 other new schools join the 30 colleges and universities that have been part of the award-winning program. Since its inception in 2021, NBCU Academy partners have received funding, resources, training, and development — in addition to access to the News Group’s world-class journalists.

This partnership reflects a shared commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, with NBCU Academy elevating the next generation of journalists and providing students from underrepresented communities a pipeline into newsrooms across media and technology. NBCU Academy’s pioneering Embed Program creates roles for recent graduates from partner schools and institutions with diverse student populations. In two years, NBCU Academy has assigned 11 Embeds full-time, two-year job assignments across the News Group’s on-air and Digital platforms, Marketing, Global Talent Development & Inclusion, Data Sciences, and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. 

Columbia College Chicago is proud to be part of the NBCU Academy community and looks forward to sharing the Academy’s wealth of resources with Columbia students.

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