Master of Arts in Communication
The Master of Arts in Communication (MACOMM) is a 36-credit program with three certificate options in Corporate Communications and Public Relations (CCPR), Digital Multimedia Journalism (DMJ), and Digital Multimedia Production (DMP). The required courses in theories, methods, and ethics will lay the conceptual and technical foundation for the applied learning sequence of multimedia production courses. These courses, in turn, prepare the student for internships and the capstone mentorship experience, which culminates in the creation of a digital portfolio (“digifolio”) of the student’s work. By the completion of the degree, students will have compiled a portfolio of materials that demonstrates advanced skill sets for their respective job sectors. MACOMM students’ productions are also consistently distributed, broadcast, and/or published through various media outlets while they are completing their multimedia production, internship, and mentorship coursework. MACOMM students acquire the social, artistic, and technical skills necessary to create substantive and professional multimedia communication projects, presentations, and artifacts. Students gain the necessary skills to succeed in a professional context, including effective communication; time management, teamwork, and problem-solving; and planning, organizing, and leading in a professional context. The MACOMM students learn with industry-standard digital technologies and software used to produce and distribute multimedia content. In addition, students developed a theoretical, historical, and practical understanding of the relationship of media to democracy and society, and the profound ethical and social responsibilities that come with being a professional communicator.
Goals and Objectives
Corporate Communication and PR students will learn how to plan, create, and distribute multimedia productions within organizations and to the public or consumers. CCPR gives students interested in working in a corporate or non-profit environment the professional multimedia skills that are increasingly attractive to a wide range of employers in a competitive job market and in the twenty-first century workplace. The focus of the Digital Media Journalism concentration will be on updating the skill sets of practicing journalists while also training aspiring journalists to be a one-person crew and “all-platform” news producers in the post-print digital era. The post-print journalism era provides new opportunities for news producers and new media journalists trained in the latest technologies and multimedia techniques. The Digital Multimedia Production option will allow students to gain advanced production skills by completing a broader range of projects than the CCPR and DMJ counterparts. DMP students retain a more general focus, or in close consultation with their faculty advisor, can tailor their production work to concentrate on sport/athletic communication, advertising and promotional multimedia production, or digital filmmaking.
Admission Requirements
A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and official transcripts from all undergraduate institutions attended are required. A one-page personal statement describing career goals and reasons for interest in the program, along with two letters of recommendation and a professional résumé are also required.
No previous media production experience or communications coursework is required to complete the MACOMM Program. Accepted students will take an online preassessment survey, and the appropriate MACOMM training workshops will be offered to ensure that all students have the necessary technical skills to begin the program.
Degree Requirements
There are foundational courses in theories, methods, and ethics; a sequence of multimedia production courses; required internships; and a capstone portfolio project completed in close consultation with a faculty mentor or a MACOMM-partnered professional mentor from the student’s field of interest.
MACOMM Required Courses (21 Credits)
| CM 501 | Media, Culture, & Communication | 3 |
| CM 502 | Professional Communication in the Digital Age | 3 |
| CM 503 | Media Ethics in a Professional Context | 3 |
| CM 517 | Multimedia Production I | 3 |
| CM 518 | Multimedia Production II | 3 |
| CM 617 | Advanced Multimedia Production | 3 |
| CM 627 | Capstone in Communication | 3 |
| One Elective | |
MACOMM Concentrations (12 Credits)
Corporate Communications and Public Relations (CCPR)
Digital/Multimedia Journalism (DMJ)
Digital/Multimedia Production (DMP)