Longhorn-Created, Apple-Approved

By Jordan Schraeder in 40 Acres, July | August 2013 on June 25, 2013 at 4:50 pm | 1 Comment

These days, students graduating into the journalism field need to be able to do it all: reporting, writing, photography, video, and … creating apps?

UT journalism senior lecturer Robert Quigley thinks so, and his new Mobile News App Design course is helping future journalists do just that.

Debuted in January, the College of Communication course is a joint effort between UT’s journalism and computer science programs. Students in both majors collaborate on the creation of an iPhone or iPad app, from pitching the initial idea to designing, coding, and eventually marketing the finished product.

UT’s School of Journalism introduced a new curriculum with a heavy emphasis on multimedia in fall 2012. This class, Quigley says, is just a small piece of the puzzle.

“We’re in a new era of media where it’s important to teach students fundamentals, but also how to create the next set of tools,” Quigley says. “Things are changing so fast, and this skill set will give them a huge leg up in the job market.”

Quigley’s student teams debuted their creations, some of which have already hit the Apple Store, at a demo day in April. Here’s a look at what they came up with.

Glos Guide

Voted Best Overall App

A reference guide and study tool for students and professional journalists. Includes some Associated Press style tips and advice written by professional journalists.

Nerv

Voted Class Favorite

A location-based app that connects the user to news, culture, and nightlife on Twitter. Currently only in Austin, Boston, San Francisco, and Portland.

PicBook