Media Production & Journalism Curriculum, BA

The Media Production & Journalism major is designed for students interested in the fields of journalism and/or television, film, audio, video, multimedia, online media and content creation. The department offers two tracks within the Media Production & Journalism major: Media Production track and Journalism track. The Journalism track offers courses that deal with evaluating news, reporting and writing stories, newsroom organization, interviewing, feature writing, improving and trimming stories, headline writing, layout, graphics, social media, search engine optimization, content creation and related informative communication. The Media Production track educates students in the theoretical background and practical application of audio, video, television and film production inside and outside the studio, enabling them to pursue specialized projects in producing and directing programs in a variety of audio, video and multimedia formats.

For more information on the Communication and Media department, visit its website.

Department Core Courses

A student wishing to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media Production and Journalism must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 42 credits from the department’s course offerings. Included among these 42 credits are five core courses required for all Department of Communication and Media majors:

Media Production and Journalism Requirements

Although the media are interrelated, students should develop an in-depth knowledge of at least one specific field. To that end, students majoring in Media Production & Journalism must select a track, or area of study, within the department. Although the department expects students to enroll in multiple courses within their chosen track, both tracks share four required courses.

All Media Production and Journalism majors, regardless of chosen track, are required to take the following courses:

Media Production Track

To the department core courses and to the Media Production and Journalism required (shared) courses, the additional requirements for majors choosing the Media Production track are below:

Track Required Course

COMM 221 - Radio Production

Elective Courses: In consultation with an advisor, students in the Media Production track choose an additional four (4) COMM courses from the list below for a total of twelve (12) credits.

Choose 4:

Journalism Track

To the department core courses and to the Media Production and Journalism required (shared) courses, the additional requirements for majors choosing the Journalism track are below:

Track Required Course

COMM 320 - Reporting

Elective Courses: In consultation with an advisor, students in the Journalism track choose an additional four (4) COMM courses from the list below for a total of twelve (12) credits.

Media Production Track Curriculum

	Department and Number - Descriptive Course Title	*Fall Cr.*	*Spr. Cr.*
First Year
MAJOR - MAJOR GE EP LEVEL I	COMM 101 - Communication and Society — COMM 112 - (FYOC, FYDT) Foundations of Public Speaking	3	3
GE EP Level I - MAJOR/G EP LEVEL II	COMM 108 - (FYW) Essential Writing Skills ¹ — COMM 205 - (EPW) Writing for Communication	3	3
GE HUMN ELECT	(CH, CL, CA, CF, CI) HUMN ELECT - Humanities Electives	3	3
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives	3	3
GE PHIL - T/RS	PHIL 120 - Introduction to Philosophy — T/RS 121 - (P) Theology I: Introduction to the Bible	3	3
GE EP LEVEL I	First Year Seminar²
		15	15
Second Year
MAJOR - MAJOR/GE EP LEVEL II	COMM 215 - Introduction to Communication Theory — COMM 210 - (EPW) Logical and Rhetorical Analysis	3	3
MAJOR/GE EP LEVEL II - MAJOR	COMM 224 - (EPW) Media Writing — COMM 222 - Television Production	3	3
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives	3	3
GE PHIL - T/RS	PHIL 210 - Ethics — T/RS 122 - (P) Theology II: Introduction to Christian Theology	3	3
GE QUAN - S/BH	QUAN ELECT - Quantitative Elective — S/BH ELECT - Social/Behavioral Elective	3	3
		15	15
Third Year
MAJOR	COMM 260 - Media Criticism — COMM 221 - Radio Production	3	3
MAJOR ELECT	Production Track Elective Courses³	6	6
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Elective	3
GE PHIL - T/RS ELECT	PHIL ELECT - Philosophy Elective or T/RS ELECT - Theology Elective		3
GE NSCI ELECT	NSCI ELECT - Natural Science Electives	3	3
		15	15
Fourth Year
MAJOR	COMM 480 - Production Practicum	3
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives³	6	12
GE HUMN ELECT - S/BH ELECT	(CH, CL, CA, CF, CI) HUMN ELECT - Humanities Electives — S/BH ELECT - Social Behavioral Elective	6	3
		15	15
	Total: 120 Credits

¹The Department of Communication & Media prefers students fulfill (FYW) requirements by completing COMM 108 . However, WRTG 107 , or WRTG 105 and WRTG 106 may be substituted.

²The selection of a First Year Seminar is likely to fulfill requirements both for the First Year Seminar and a General Education Requirement. Talk with your advisor if you have any questions.

³Three credits of COMM 481 - Internship may count toward the major. An additional three credits may count toward Free Electives.

Journalism Track Curriculum

	Department and Number - Descriptive Course Title	Fall Cr.	Spr. Cr.
First Year
MAJOR-MAJOR GE EP LEVEL I	COMM 101 - Communication and Society — COMM 112 - (FYOC, FYDT) Foundations of Public Speaking	3	3
GE EP LEVEL I - MAJOR GE EP LEVEL II	COMM 108 - (FYW) Essential Writing Skills ¹— COMM 205 - (EPW) Writing for Communication	3	3
GE HUMN ELECT	(CH, CL, CA, CF, CI) HUMN ELECT - Humanities Electives	3	3
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives	3	3
GE PHIL - T/RS	PHIL 120 - Introduction to Philosophy — T/RS 121 - (P) Theology I: Introduction to the Bible	3	3
GE EP LEVEL I	First Year Seminar ²
		15	15
Second Year
MAJOR - MAJOR/GE EP LEVEL II	COMM 215 - Introduction to Communication Theory — COMM 210 - (EPW) Logical and Rhetorical Analysis	3	3
MAJOR/GE EP LEVEL II - MAJOR	COMM 224 - (EPW) Media Writing — COMM 222 - Television Production	3	3
GE FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives	3	3
GE PHIL - T/RS	PHIL 210 - Ethics — T/RS 122 - (P) Theology II: Introduction to Christian Theology	3	3
GE QUAN - S/BH	QUAN ELECT- Quantitative Elective — S/BH ELECT - Social/Behavioral Elective	3	3
		15	15
Third Year
MAJOR	COMM 260 - Media Criticism — COMM 320 - Reporting	3	3
MAJOR ELECT	MAJOR ELECT - Journalism Track Electives³	6	6
FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives	3
GE PHIL - T/RS	PHIL ELECT - Philosophy Elective or T/RS ELECT - Theology Elective		3
GE NSCI	NSCI ELECT - Natural Science Electives	3	3
		15	15
Fourth Year
MAJOR	COMM 480 - Production Practicum	3
FREE ELECT	FREE ELECT - Free Electives³	6	12
GE HUMN - S/BH	(CH, CL, CA, CF, CI) HUMN ELECT - Humanities Electives — S/BH ELECT - Social/Behavioral Elective	6	3
		15	15
Total: 120 Credits

¹The Department of Communication & Media prefers students fulfill (FYW) requirements by completing COMM 108 . However, WRTG 107 or WRTG 105 and WRTG 106 may be substituted.

²The selection of a First Year Seminar is likely to fulfill requirements both for the First Year Seminar and a General Education Requirement. Thus, the First Year Seminar will not add to the total credits for the semester. Talk with your advisor if you have any questions.