91传媒 adds online communication and media studies bachelor鈥檚 degree
Contact: Sarah Nicholas
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擜 new online degree program at Mississippi State is giving new options for students interested in earning a communication bachelor鈥檚 degree with an emphasis in communication and media studies.
Offered through Mississippi State鈥檚 Center for Distance Education and directed by the Department of Communication, the degree equips students to 鈥渟pecialize in the theory, critique and practice of communication, equipping students to communicate effectively and ethically in diverse contexts,鈥 according to the curriculum description.
Graduates in communication and media studies are prepared to pursue jobs in community outreach and engagement including advocacy work, community organizing, diplomacy, grant writing, non-profit work, politics and public affairs.听The concentration also equips students for professional careers in event planning and fundraising, human resources, philanthropy, publishing, sales, and speech and technical writing.
鈥淐oordinator Dr. Melanie Loehwing, and now Interim Coordinator Dr. Pete Smith, along with innovative faculty, have led this charge,鈥 said Terry Likes, professor and head of the communication department. 鈥淭his evolution brought about a name change to 鈥榗ommunication and media studies鈥 to better reflect the nature of the concentration and its future.鈥 The earlier name was communication studies.
Likes added that the concentration has more than tripled from 21 students enrolled in 2011 to 71 in 2021. 鈥淲ith this growth came a need to offer courses across different modalities鈥攆ace-to-face and online鈥攖o meet the needs of a changing student demographic.鈥
Smith, an associate professor of communication and program advisor, said the department was among the first on聽campus to offer courses via distance education.
鈥淭his degree is an extension of that mission鈥攖o provide an education to those who seek it but who may not have the resources, time or the聽convenience to travel to聽campus,鈥 Smith said. 鈥淎s with any online degree, students will get the same opportunities聽that our face-to-face students have鈥攁 quality education through first-rate instruction.鈥
The new degree program, approved by the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning board, requires a 2.0 minimum GPA for entry. For more information or to apply, visit: .
Part of 91传媒鈥檚 College of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Communication is online at .
91传媒 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at聽.听