Computers and journalism — some would say the two go together. Columbia University is hip to that 21st-century concept, and so the school announced today the launch of a dual-degree Master’s program in computer science and journalism.

The program will accept applications in fall 2010, so we all have plenty of time to take our standardized tests and beg long-forgotten professors for recommendations.

“This program is designed to turn out graduates with both the highest caliber of journalism training as well as technical skills ranging from data mining to computational imaging,” said Columbia j-school academic dean Bill Grueskin in a statement. We have no idea what data mining or digital imaging are — maybe we should sign up.

Curious about Columbia’s J-school offerings? Check out our chat with program dean Sree Sreenivasan.