Graduate Degree - Introduction
The Master of Arts program in Communication Studies provides advanced study of human communication in its various and diverse forms, contexts, and processes. The program prepares students to pursue academic and professional career paths such as a Ph.D. in the field, Community College instruction, or a career in the communication industry. The Master of Arts program in Communication Studies includes coursework in the following areas:
- Performance, Language, and Cultural Studies (including seminars in Performance Studies, Textual Studies, Communication and Language, Feminist Perspectives on Communication, and Intercultural Communication)
- Rhetorical Studies (including seminars in Classical Rhetoric, Contemporary Rhetoric, and Postmodern Rhetoric)
- Communication Theory (including seminars in Communication Theory, Interpersonal Communication, Group Communication, Organizational Communication Research, and Communication and Technology)
The department’s graduate program is governed by the principle that the student should have the opportunity to study and to conduct original research in areas of the student¹s primary interests. Thus, the department seeks to balance two concerns: (a) to permit each student to tailor the Program of Study to individual interests and abilities; and (b) to insure that all students acquire a coherent perspective within the field of communication. The ultimate objective is to prepare students to assume socially responsible and productive roles within their chosen professions.
The program comprises thirty-three units of coursework in Communication Studies selected in consultation with advisors. For the culminating experience, students will choose from directed comprehensive studies, a thesis, or an applied scholarly project.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students receiving a Master's degree from the Communication Studies Department will be able to:
- Critically examine how communication affects the social construction of reality.
- Define and discuss some basic tenets or theories of human communication from the perspective of one or more specific areas of the field (Rhetoric, Communication Theory, and Performance, Language and Cultural Studies).
- Critically assess and analyze scholarly writing in the field.
- Analyze and critically interpret/evaluate communication practices and research.
- Analyze and critically evaluate the relationship between communication and culture.