A graduate degree in book publishing is rare in the United States. Far more common in the United Kingdom and Australia, the academic field of publishing studies is nascent and growing. Currently, there are eight places around the nation where one can get a Master’s degree with an emphasis in publishing. Notably, the graduate program in Book Publishing at Portland State University is the only such program in the western half of the United States.
Among the places one can get a Master’s degree with an emphasis in publishing, the graduate program in Book Publishing at Portland State University is the only one with a publishing house staffed by graduate students that produces real books by real authors for real readers. This hands-on experience, when combined with the program’s focus on providing its students with a comprehensive view of the industry through its required foundational courses, results in a particularly versatile graduate. Alumni of the program obtain jobs in the industry, start their own companies, establish successful freelance careers, parlay their skills into related fields. In short, our graduates define their own futures.
The extensive coverage of the program in publishing industry media (such as this article, this article, and this article, all from Publishers Weekly) is a testament to the high regard in which it is held by industry professionals.
Employers regularly report that one of the most attractive features of our graduates is the thorough understanding of the publishing industry students develop in the program.
The other graduate programs are as follows:
- Drexel University M.A. in Publishing
- Emerson College M.A. in Publishing and Writing
- New York University M.S. in Publishing
- Pace University M.S. in Publishing
- Rosemont College M.A. in Publishing
- The George Washington University M.P.S. in Publishing
- University of Houston – Victoria M.S. in Publishing
New programs are being established with increasing frequency, however, as publishers abandon the apprenticeship model for hiring decisions.
There are also short-term summer programs on the subject of publishing, such as the Denver Publishing Institute, the Columbia Publishing Course, and the New York University Summer Publishing Institute. These programs provide networking opportunities for aspiring publishing professionals, but they do not provide the same depth of understanding of the publishing industry that a graduate program can provide.