Communication Major

General Information

Students in the Communication major are exposed to the fundamental tenets of several aspects of the field, including interpersonal communication, oral communication, verbal and nonverbal communication, organizational communication, health communication, intercultural communication, and electronically mediated communication. They also learn about different approaches to research and practice within each field.

Students also choose one of three concentrations which will allow them to focus their studies in an area best reflecting their personal interests and professional needs:

Media and Journalism, which emphasizes the production, reception, and interpretation of messages via electronic media; the role of media institutions in society; and the development of journalistic ethics and reporting skills;
Public Relations, which emphasizes the construction of messages for public consumption across media and the development of skills to enhance the efficacy of conveying a message clearly and accurately via mass media institutions; or
Health Communication, which emphasizes the collection and dissemination of information about health issues on public, institutional, and interpersonal scales.

Students may only major in one concentration; double majoring in two different concentration is prohibited.

Career Opportunities

The benefits of a Communication major are manifold. Some graduates of the Communication major continue their education in graduate school or law school. Others work for television or radio broadcast stations, newspapers, public service organizations, hospitals, insurance companies, public relations firms, political campaigns, and other businesses. WNE's unique partnership with WAMC Northeast Public Radio enables WNE's best students to write, produce, and broadcast news reports at a national level—an excellent springboard for careers in journalism and broadcasting. Students also have an opportunity to produce professional promotional videos for nonprofit organizations through the University’s Institute for Media and Nonprofit Communication. Regardless of the concentration they choose, our graduates tell us that the communication curriculum has helped them not only to develop their writing and speaking skills, but also to handle specialized assignments such as creating questionnaires and conducting interviews that provide useful data for their organizations. In short, they know how to obtain, process, and disseminate information.

Program Objectives

Intellectual Range

To enlarge and deepen students’ understanding of human nature as reflected in and affected by various forms of communication.
To enlarge and deepen students’ understanding and appreciation of the role of communication in human society and individual life.
To deepen students’ understanding of the various forms and media of communication.
To enhance students’ understanding of the conditions for both success and failure in communication, as well as abuses of power through communication.
To encourage critical reflection on the information and values conveyed by electronic media, as well as their role in society.
To encourage critical reflection on the ethical issues that arise in the field of communication.

Important Communication Skills

The ability to convey information and to persuade others effectively and efficiently—whether in written, oral, or electronically mediated communication—is of great value in personal, family, professional, and political life. The communication curriculum is designed to achieve the following:

To improve students’ ability to read, comprehend, and analyze written communication.
To improve students’ ability to listen to, comprehend, and analyze oral communication.
To develop students’ ability to design research strategies and to conduct research effectively.
To improve students’ ability to write clear, grammatically correct, and rhetorically powerful prose.
To improve students’ ability to communicate nonverbally and to understand the nonverbal communication of others in a variety of situations.
To enhance students’ abilities to consume, use, and create electronic media technology and products.

Theoretical and Practical Communication Content

To increase students’ knowledge of various theories of communication.
To heighten students’ awareness of the power of communication.
To develop students’ capacities as powerful communicators in global society.
To enable students to be engaged citizens in an increasingly mediated culture.

The Communication Major requires 39 credit hours in communication and/or journalism courses.

Degree Requirements

All communication majors are required to take the following courses (25 credit hours), in addition to the courses required by their respective concentrations:

COMM 100	Principles of Communication	3 cr.
COMM 102	Introduction to Public Speaking	3 cr.
COMM 205	Mass Communication	3 cr.
COMM 206	Introduction to Communication Research	3 cr.
COMM 245	Video Editing and Production	4 cr.
COMM 300	Communication Theory	3 cr.
MATH 120	Intro Statistics for the Arts & Sciences	3 cr.
	and
COMM 348	Intercultural Communication	3 cr.
	or
COMM 356	Global Communication	3 cr.

Subtotal: 25

In addition to these requirements, all students must complete all General University and College Requirements. Students must choose their concentration in order to complete their degree requirements for graduation:

Communication majors concentrating in media and journalism are also required to take the following courses (24 credit hours):

Plus one COMM or JRNL course at the 3xx/4xx level

COMM 251	Video Communication	3 cr.
COMM 352	Multimedia Communication	3 cr.
COMM 371/JRNL 370	Advanced Radio Reporting	3 cr.
JRNL 100	Journalism: Practices and Principles	3 cr.
JRNL 303	Contemporary Journalism	3 cr.
COMM 490	Seminar in Media and Journalism	3 cr.
	and
COMM 324	Media Industries, Government, and Society	3 cr.
	or
COMM 326	Race, Gender, and Ethnicity in the Media	3 cr.

Subtotal: 24

Communication majors concentrating in public relations are also required to take the following courses (24 credit hours):

Plus one COMM course at the 3xx/4xx level

COMM 280	Organizational Communication	3 cr.
COMM 285	Introduction to Public Relations	3 cr.
COMM 320	Small Group Communication	3 cr.
COMM 328	Health Communication Campaigns	3 cr.
COMM 340	Business Communication	3 cr.
COMM 344	Event Planning	3 cr.
COMM 491	Seminar in PR and Health Communication	3 cr.

Subtotal: 24

Communication majors concentrating in health communication are also required to take the following courses (24 credit hours):

Plus one COMM course at the 3xx/4xx level

COMM 283	Health Communication	3 cr.
COMM 285	Introduction to Public Relations	3 cr.
COMM 320	Small Group Communication	3 cr.
COMM 321	Interpersonal Communication	3 cr.
COMM 328	Health Communication Campaigns	3 cr.
COMM 344	Event Planning	3 cr.
COMM 491	Seminar in PR and Health Communication	3 cr.

Subtotal: 24

COMM.BA - BA in Communication

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