A COMM major must earn a C- or better to receive credit for a communication course. If a major has less than a C- in any of the Communication Interest courses, Public
Speaking, or the required courses in their concentration (COMM341 in
Interpersonal Communication, COMM345 and COMM370 in Media Communication,) then
they must re-take the course before they graduate. If a major has less
than a C- in any of the 6 credits of required COMM elective courses, they must either re-take a course or make up the credit in another Communication course.
In their junior year, IP concentrators should take COMM341. This course
prepares IP students for 400-level courses. IP COMM majors should concurrently complete their COMM elective courses in their junior year.
In their senior year, IP majors are required to take three courses from the following list:
COMM417, COMM421, COMM440, COMM442, COMM452, COMM453, COMM456, and COMM485.
In the fall semester of their junior year, Media COMM majors should take COMM370. This course prepares
Media COMM students for 400-level courses. Students should concurrently complete their COMM elective courses in their junior year.
In their 2nd semester as a junior, Media COMM majors should take
COMM 345 and continue to complete their COMM elective courses.
In their senior year, Media COMM majors are required to take two courses from the following list: COMM418, COMM423, COMM424,
COMM425, COMM450, COMM452, COMM453, COMM454, and COMM458.
There are two ways to accomplish
this:
The first is through an interdepartmental major that consists of a set of courses, some in Communication and the others in one
other major within the College of Arts and Sciences which the student agrees to take. This agreement is in the form of
a written contract, and once signed, the student can only make revisions to the
agreed-upon set of courses with the approval of the Departments involved. A student electing an interdepartmental major will, as part of the agreed-upon
set, take at least some of the Communication Interest courses, and their grades
in those courses will determine whether they rank in the Top 125 and qualify
as a Communication major. If the student does not qualify, then the
interdepartmental major is not possible and the student is advised to major in
the other department involved in the agreement. Students interested in pursuing
an interdepartmental major should schedule an appointment with the Department Chairperson.
The second way to accomplish this goal is relevant if a student's interest
would suggest courses in three or more majors. If this is the case, the student can then begin
the process of creating a proposal that would lead to a B.A. in Liberal Studies (B.A.L.S). The process requires the student and a set of three advisors from relevant majors to create a program that includes
courses from those three majors and any others deemed relevant. As with
the interdepartmental major, this program, if approved, serves as a contractual
agreement which cannot be revised without permission from the College of Arts
and Sciences. The process of becoming a B.A.L.S. student is rigorous and
time-consuming, and proposals are often rejected, so this option is only for
the unusual case. Students interested in the B.A.L.S. program should schedule
an appointment with the College of Arts and Sciences undergraduate advisement office.
The Communication major has quite a few courses that fit this category (COMM200, COMM305,
COMM318, COMM319, COMM343, COMM418, COMM425, COMM440, COMM442). Each of these courses can be taken as many as three
times as long as the offered topic varies, with the exception of COMM425
(twice) and COMM305 (once).
A
minimum of 33 with a grade of C- or better in every course. All COMM
majors must complete the Communication Interest courses, Public Speaking
(COMM350), and their concentration; this totals 27 credits. To complete the
major, all COMM students must take a minimum of six additional
credits. These can come from any other course in the department (including additional
courses in the student’s concentration, courses in the other concentration, elective
COMM courses, internships, independent studies, and undergraduate research)
with two exceptions. First, COMM212 is specifically
designed for non-Communication majors and therefore NOT open to Communication
majors; COMM350 performs the same function for majors. Second, there are occasions in which a
section of COMM200 is also specifically designed for non-majors, although this
is rare. It is important that COMM majors
do not enroll in COMM212 or that occasional COMM200, because they will not
receive COMM credit for it.
The
Communication major confers a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree on its graduating
students, and there is an iron-clad rule that the all University majors have an
“official” maximum of 45 credits. The intent behind this is that the Bachelor
of Arts degree by its very nature is conferred to students who have a
well-rounded education. Students may choose
to take additional credits in any major leading to a B.A, but these additional
credits do not count for graduation. For example, if a Communication student
were to take 16 three-credit Communication courses, then the student has a
total of 48 Communication credits. Three of those credits cannot count for
graduation. Therefore, given that the B.A. in the College of Arts and Sciences
is 124 credits, this student must take 127 credits to graduate.
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