Why Communication Studies?

A degree in Communication Studies can help students achieve both short and long-term goals.

Courses in Communication Studies profile the diverse contexts in which people interact with messages, including interpersonal, group, corporate and intercultural communication, as well as the public influence that results from persuasion and argumentation. This diversity of viewpoints enables students to enter a competitive job market with a wide array of interpretive and practical skill-sets. This might explain why Communication Studies is the only humanities discipline with a continued increase in bachelor completion rate in recent years (NCA, 2017).

The lessons of Communication Studies pay off. As Cecilia Gaposchkin noted in her essay for "The Chronicle of Higher Education," employers often seek individuals with “basic but difficult-to-acquire skills,” including “writing, researching, quantitative, and analytical skills,” concluding that “almost all white-collar jobs will require writing, communication, assessment, numeracy and above all the creative application of knowledge” (Caposchkin, 2015). The skill-sets of Communication Studies apply to careers in event planning, law, advocacy, education, management, human resources, public relations, consulting, non-profits, mediation, social media and many more.

Beyond work skills and social capital, Communication Studies also encourages long-term habits and values that help students fulfill their potential as global citizens. Our coursework and extracurricular opportunities help students develop ethical viewpoints and methods for relating to one another that apply beyond the spaces between classroom and boardroom. Students learn to think critically, make decisions ethically and imagine a diversity of options in a world of shifting and emerging possibilities.

Communication Studies—your degree for life.

For more on the benefits of Communication Studies and Liberal Arts education, see:

George Anders, "The Unexpected Value of the Liberal Arts,” "The Atlantic," Aug. 1, 2017

Cecilia Gaposchkin, “If Students are Smart, They’ll Major in What They Love,” "The Chronicle of Higher Education," May 21, 2015

The National Communication Association, “Communication is the Only Humanities Discipline to Experience Bachelor’s Degree Completion Growth,” "Spectra," Sept. 2017, 4

Jeffrey J. Seligno, “Six Myths About Choosing a College Major,” "New York Times," Nov. 3, 2017