Overview
Communications and journalism are consistently popular as undergraduate majors, attracting about 6 percent of students, according to a report from the Center on Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University.A communications degree program prepares students for a variety of career options – think advertising, media, public relations and marketing – so it’s not hard to understand its popularity.
In an online communication bachelor’s degree program, students can hone their writing, speaking, critical thinking, technology and people skills. They may also be able to concentrate their course work in a particular subfield of interest, such as emerging media or business communication
ourse Work
| Example courses | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction to communications | |||||||||
| Applied interpersonal communication | |||||||||
| Research methods in communication studies | |||||||||
| Conflict management | |||||||||
| Persuasion and social influence | |||||||||
| Media and society | |||||||||
| Tools for the digital age | |||||||||
Core courses in an online bachelor’s degree in communication program cover topics including:
• Public speaking
• Media writing
• Persuasion
• Intercultural communication
• Organizational communication
But course work goes beyond the written and spoken word. Students can also take courses in digital media, research methods, theory and ethics, and media law.
Specializations
Core course work within most online communication bachelor’s degree programs is fairly broad, so many programs allow students to focus their studies in a variety of subfields. Concentration areas include:
• Public relations
• Emerging media
• Journalism
• Marketing
• Business and organizational communication
In an emerging media concentration, for example, students can learn about the newest technologies being used to communicate. Course work may include classes in Web design, multimedia development, electronic publishing and computer graphics.
In a public relations concentration, students will learn how organizations communicate effectively with their audiences. Classes may include strategic communication, campaign planning, crisis communication and social media strategies.
Internship experience
Internships allow students to explore careers and gain work experience, but they are generally not required to obtain an online degree.
