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Department of

Communication Studies

The Communication Studies Major & Minor

The Program

The communication studies program offers four areas of concentration within the major: Foundations and contexts, communication and contemporary practice, images and influence, and media arts and culture. These concentrations are intended to provide students with the knowledge, background, and skills necessary to work in a communication-related profession, or to pursue advanced study in the field of communication or a related field.


Students who complete the major will have knowledge of foundational theories of communication; prevailing communication research paradigms; media industry structure and practices; prevailing criticism of media practice and performance; media influence on individuals and groups; the interplay of media systems in a global context; roles and functions of communication in interpersonal, group, organizational, and public contexts; conventions of public address and advocacy; and the impact and ethics of persuasion. Students will also have the ability to think critically; develop and present an argument; conduct and evaluate social scientific, interpretive, and critical research; communicate effectively in interpersonal, group, organizational, and public contexts; and invent, arrange, and deliver effective and ethical messages via oral, print, and electronic modes.

Information for newly declared Comunication Studies majors: CommStudiesBrochure