Undergraduate Degree Requirements and Curriculum

As a unit of the College of Arts & Sciences, the Department provides its students with a strong liberal arts education that emphasizes critical thinking, analysis, problem solving, persuasive communication, and research writing. Please feel free to contact an Undergraduate Advisor at any time for questions regarding CMCL degree requirements.

* Although every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of this page, the final authority on courses and CMCL degree requirements rests with the current COAS Bulletin. Check the current Schedule of Classes for updated courses offerings.

Our curriculum offers students a strong liberal arts education that emphasizes the critique and engagement of public discourse, whether in the form of television, film, political speech, or public performance. Our curriculum is interdisciplinary, drawing together the diverse backgrounds and fields of expertise represented by our faculty. Students in the Department learn to use this variety of perspectives to study specific issues and instances of contemporary communication.

We require only two introductory-level courses. CMCL-C190, "Introduction to Media," is designed to introduce you to the basic vocabularies of media and visual literacy. The course will hone your skills at critically analyzing media texts, institutions, apparatuses, and audiences. CMCL-C205, "Introduction to Communication and Culture," is designed to present you with a broad overview of theories and perspectives that characterize scholarship in communication. This course will challenge much of what you may previously have taken for granted about the study of communication and prepare you for more advanced courses in the Department.

Your major in Communication and Culture can be highly individualized, allowing you to assemble a curriculum well-suited to your interests and goals. It is possible, for example, to limit your studies primarily to courses that focus on film, political communication, or issues of race and gender. Conversely, it is also possible to sample broadly from the wide variety of courses offered each semester within the Department, drawing your own connections and following up on themes and topics of particular interest.

Please see our courses page to read detailed descriptions of specific offerings.

The Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Culture requires a minimum of 30 credit hours in the Department, including:

• C190: Introduction to Media
• C205: Introduction to Communication and Culture
• No more than 6 hours may be at the 100 level.
• At least 15 credit hours of upper-division (300/400 level) courses in the Department, of which at least 6 credit hours must be at the 400 level.
• Additionally, students must complete the degree requirements for the College of Arts & Sciences (see the COAS Bulletin).

The Minor in Communication and Culture requires a total of 15 credit hours in the Department, including:

• C190 or C205
• 9 credit hours of upper-division (300/400 level) courses in the Department, of which at least 3 credit hours must be at the 400 level.