Registration for this course is full.
Email us to add yourself to the waiting list in case someone cancels.
Tuesdays, 7pm–9:30pm ET
Feb. 15 – Mar. 29, 2022
Department
Journalism
Instructor
Omar Mouallem
Capacity
16 seats (0 remaining)
As the media landscape rapidly transforms with shrinking mastheads, transnational storytelling, and articles becoming TV and podcast “I.P.”, an independent journalism career has never looked more appealing or necessary. No longer a career stepping stone, freelancing is now the desired destination for many journalists. But how do you support and sustain yourself as a self-employed writer?
Award-winning journalist Omar Mouallem will teach you how to pitch the right story to the right market at the right time. Having freelanced for countless outlets around the world — from Canadian Geographic to NewYorker.com to the South China Morning Post — students will learn how to generate new ideas, organize them, and sell them a few different ways. Designed with freelancer rights in mind, the course also covers sensitive issues around copyright, payment, and common disputes.
Students will leave with three completed pitches, plus researching, feature-writing, and (tactful) self-promotion skills.
Recommended Prerequisite: This course was designed for writers with a minimum basic understanding of journalism principles and techniques. Not sure it’s for you? Feel free to reach out and ask the instructor directly: info@pandemicuniversity.com.
COURSE SCHEDULE:
Feb. 15 – Mar. 29, 2022
Tuesdays, 7pm–9:30pm ET
- Class 1 (Feb. 15): Introduction to freelance journalism / creative story frameworks
- Class 2 (Feb. 22): Mastering the pitch / generating original ideas
- Class 3 (Mar. 1): Workshopping front-of-book (short) pitches
- Class 4 (Mar. 8): Researching and pitching feature stories / Multimedia “I.P.”
- Class 5 (Mar. 15): Contracts and copyright / conflict resolution
- Class 6 (Mar. 22): Getting the most out of your online presence
- Class 7 (Mar. 29): Workshopping your feature pitches
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Omar Mouallem is an author, journalist, filmmaker, magazine editor, and educator. He’s freelanced for over 100 outlets, including The Guardian, WIRED, and NewYorker.com; appeared on Al Jazeera, WNYC, and other networks; and received three National Magazine Awards and other honours. Several of his articles have been adapted into books and movies, including Praying to the West: How Muslims Shaped the Americas, which was named one of the Globe and Mail’s 100 best books of 2021. He also wrote, directed and produced The Last Baron, a first-person food documentary for CBC Gem. Omar is also the “fake dean” of Pandemic University, a virtual school he founded in support of writers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
ACCESSIBILITY
Pandemic University is committed to offering a fulfilling and inclusive education. Classes are held via Zoom with Closed Captioning features enabled through auto-transcription technology. The course includes workshops and class discussions, thus students are required to participate through audio; accommodations can be made for people with speaking or other disabilities if they inform us ahead of schedule. Video is encouraged of all students in order to optimize everyone’s virtual classroom experience.
ELIGIBILITY AND PREREQUISITE
This course was designed for intermediate writers with a minimum basic understanding of journalism principles and techniques.
Please be on time. If you’re going to be late, email your instructor and T.A. as soon as possible. The course is intended for live participation, however, if you can’t be present for a class, or must leave early, a recording will be provided in the student folder the morning after.
You’re expected to be present and intellectually curious during class time. In addition to attending each class, you are expected to be available across all dates to complete your writing assignments. If your work is more than 48 hours late, however, you may or may not get feedback.
REGISTRATION
After checkout, you’ll receive a receipt with a link to download your syllabus, which will include Zoom passcodes, pre-class homework, and additional course information. You will also receive an emailed reminder a few days before your first class.
REFUNDS
Space is limited to 16 students. Anyone wishing to cancel their registration have until Feb. 7, 2022 to receive a guaranteed refund. If you cancel between Feb. 8 and Feb. 14, 2022 we will only offer a refund if and after the vacated spot is filled. No refunds whatsoever will be offered after the course begins on Feb. 15, 2022. Violations of the Code of Conduct may also result in your removal from the course without compensation.
CODE OF CONDUCT
Although PanU is technically a fake university, we’re committed to high standards of artistic integrity, quality education, and maintaining a safe virtual environment for students. Abusive behaviour toward classmates or instructors will not be tolerated at any point during the course, including in private messages, and will result in expulsion without refund.
Other violations that could have you expelled from this course include: refusing to participate in group workshops; plagiarism and misrepresentation of others’ ideas as your own; racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia either in your notes (written or spoken) or in your work; sharing recordings of classes; sharing classmates’ work without their consent.
The final say on whether or not you continue in class belongs to the instructor alone. If you have any questions, email info@pandemicuniversity.com.