Communication Major

Communication students develop competencies in interpersonal communication, organizational communication, public speaking, critical thinking and argumentation, theory and research, and public relations and media. The major is designed to offer students the opportunity to tailor their program to focus on interpersonal communication, organizational communication, journalism and mass media, or public speaking. Students are taught to evaluate communication from a Christian perspective and incorporate tenets of faith in their communication.

The Bachelor of Arts in Communication prepares students for a variety of careers in for-profit and non-profit organizations, communication consulting, sales, marketing, event planning, ministry, law, education, journalism and media, as well as graduate work.

While an emphasis is not required for the communication major, it is an opportunity for students to participate in specialized coursework geared towards Interpersonal Communication, Organizational Communication, Journalism & Mass Media or Public Speaking. There can be no overlap of credit between emphases.

The Bachelor of Arts in Communication requires completion of the following 120 credits:
General Education Core (57 credit hours)
Communication Core (33 credit hours)
Electives (30 credit hours)

General Education Requirements (57 credit hours)

Biblical Studies (12 credit hours)

Take the following four courses (some courses are cross-listed and only one prefix needs to be taken):

BIB 111 - Old Testament (3) OR
HIS 111 - Old Testament (3)
BIB 114 - New Testament (3) OR
HUM 114 - New Testament (3)
PHL 315 - Worldviews: Philosophical and Religious Perspectives (3)
THE 201 - Introduction to Theology (3)

Communication (12 credit hours)

Take each of the following four courses:

COM 103 - Public Speaking (3)
COM 212 - Persuasion (3)
ENG 102 - English Composition (3)
ENG 104 - Research Writing (3)
ENG 105 - Advanced English Composition (3) May be taken by invitation of the English faculty to fulfill requirements for both ENG 102 and ENG 104.

Arts and Humanities (9 credit hours)

Take one course from each of the following three academic disciplines:

Fine Arts (3 credit hours)

Choose one course from the following:

Literature (3 credit hours)

Choose one course from the following:

Philosophy (3 credit hours)

PHL 202 - Philosophical Inquiry (3)

Social Sciences (15 credit hours)

Take each of the following five courses:

Mathematics (3 credit hours)

PSY 237 - Statistics for the Natural and Social Sciences (3)

Science (3 credit hours)

SCI 230 - Integrated Physical Science with Lab (3)

Integrative Studies (3 credit hours)

Please see the First- Year Integration (FYI) page for specific information about this required course.

INT 101 - First-Year Integration (3)

Communication Major (33 credit hours)

Communication Core (21 credit hours)

Communication Electives (12 credit hours)

For students not completing one of the Communication Emphases below, choose 12 credit hours from the following courses with a minimum of 9 credit hours of 300 or 400 level classes.

Optional Communication Emphases

The Communication Electives requirement can be satisfied by completing one of the Communication Emphases listed below. None of these emphases are required for the major.

Interpersonal Communication Emphasis (12 credit hours)

Organizational Communication Emphasis (12 credit hours)

Journalism & Mass Media Emphasis (14 credit hours)

COM 160 - University Publications: Newspaper (1-2) (complete 2 credit hours)
COM 206 - Introduction to Digital Media Production (3) OR
COM 207 - Media Design, Production and Presentation (3)
COM 247 - New Media Journalism I (3)
COM 315 - Introduction to Public Relations (3)
COM 460 - Advanced Persuasion (3)

Public Speaking Emphasis (12 credit hours)

Choose 12 credits from the following:

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