Communication, M.A.
Learning Outcomes:
Students who successfully complete all requirements for a master’s degree in the Department of Communication Studies should be able to:
- Demonstrate skilled analysis of communication theory and praxis within the dimensions (ethical, social, legal, technological, relational, and/or cultural) most key to the student’s chosen primary program focus.
- Demonstrate appropriate and effective professional writing.
- Demonstrate skilled independent decision-making relative to communication research and analysis, including abilities to conduct, interpret, and evaluate the quality of research and analytic designs.
- Demonstrate understanding of ethical values central to the communication discipline.
The M.A. program requires a minimum of 36 credit hours of communication courses, including nine credit hours in core courses and six hours in each of two areas of emphasis. A thesis (with related oral defense) is optional. Students must complete core course requirements with a minimum B average.
Communication M.A. Requirements — 36 credit hours
Required Courses — 9 credit hours
Communication Electives — 27 credit hours
In consultation with the graduate program director, students select 12 credit hours (6 credit hours each) in two areas (rhetorical studies, journalism, organizational communication) to emphasize.
Students also select 15 additional credit hours of elective courses in any area of communication.
Program electives include the following:
| CST 502 | Critical Studies of Social Media and Protest | 3 |
| CST 503 | Communication Law | 3 |
| CST 511 | Communication Across Barriers | 3 |
| CST 516 | Communication, Conflict, and Peace | 3 |
| CST 525 | Radical Relationships: Love, Care, Grief | 3 |
| CST 531 | Intercultural Communication and Identity | 3 |
| CST 532 | The Global Commons: Gendered Storytelling, Feminist Futures, and Liberation | 3 |
| CST 535 | Visual Culture | 3 |
| CST 545 | The Rhetoric of Film | 3 |
| CST 552 | Public Affairs Reporting | 3 |
| CST 553/CST 453 | Multimedia Journalism | 3 |
| CST 593 | Advanced Research | Variable |
| CST 599 | Graduate Thesis Project | 3 |
One time course offerings, designated
CST 591, may fulfill the elective requirements. Please confirm eligible yearly course offerings with the program director.
Thesis Option
If a student chooses to write a thesis, 3-6 credit hours of CST electives may be used for the thesis,
CST 599.
Total Credit Hours: 36