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ALBERTUS MAGNUS COLLEGE
Department of Communications The program of study in Communications affords students the opportunity to prepare for careers in, what may be, the most rapidly expanding field in modern education and socety-at-large. Blending traditional liberal arts with specific career-oriented coursework, students are given the foundations, skills, and ethical perspectives to be successful in their mass media careers, and to be productive members of society. The combination of scholarly search for knowledge, development of essential skills, and the application of these in society guide the major in keeping with the Mission of the College. Courses span broadcasting, film and video production, digital media, advertising, public relations, sports media, film studies, organizational communications, writing and photojournalism. All courses are offered as part of either a specific content sequence or as a general topics course. A unique feature of Albertus’ Communications Program is the potential for students to “individualize” programs of study in order to best prepare each student to exercise his or her best mix of talents and passions. One of our primary goals is to insure that Communications majors are well prepared to enter their selected career paths. Through required internships, students acquire important hands-on experience that builds on their coursework, and prepares them for success. Internships are on-the-job placements where students earn college credit while acquiring applied professional skills. The breadth of the Internships completed through the Department of Communications is clearly a significant benefit of the program. In order to demonstrate a student’s total accumulation of experience, skill, and integrative abilities in the major, each Communications student must submit a final portfolio of print and/or non-print materials; or research and write a final thesis. Thus, graduates of Albertus’ Communications Program are in the position to present potential employers with an actual portfolio or thesis paper that demonstrates their experiential base of knowledge and skills that will set them apart. The emphasis in Albertus’ Program in Communications is upon preparing students for positions in mass media and their related fields that are “above the line.” Above the line” positions are executive-oriented,gatekeeping positions. These decision-makers and gatekeepers are professionals, who actually create and influence media, who have both technical and broad integrative skills in the field, and who can work with and manage many different types of people. Communications is a rapidly evolving field in society. Thus, the Department of Communications is constantly adapting to the changes that this exciting field presents. Students who complete the Communications Major enjoy many graduate school options that include broadcasting, media, journalism, digital and social media, business, and law.
Communications Major Requirements Major Requirements: Total of 45 credits, including 36 credits in core courses, sequence courses, practical applications, capstone seminar and portfolio or thesis. The final 9 credits are taken in required correlatives.