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Director: Ted Stanton

The School of Communication strives to produce graduates who are broadly educated, ethical, technologically proficient, literate in the media of communication and able to assume leadership roles in the information age. By stressing the study and the practice of communication in an urban environment, the school prepares students for lifetime careers in which they will shape, analyze, respond to, and work in the fields of communication. Students will acquire verbal, literate, numerate, visual, and social communication competencies through a combination of academic and professional experiences in an area of concentration selected by each student.

Professional internships are a key element in the broad education students may receive through the school. Students may qualify in their senior year by meeting grade-point requirements and completing relevant course work.

The School of Communication offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication with concentrations in journalism, public relations/advertising, media production, media studies, corporate communication and interpersonal communication. It also offers teacher certification in journalism and speech communication.

Students must choose at least one concentration to complete a major; they may choose two as a double major, or may major and minor in two concentrations.

The School of Communication also offers the Master of Arts degree in communication with emphases in public relations, mass communication studies and speech communication.

For more information about admission to the graduate programs, requirements for the degrees and course listings, consult the school's Director of Graduate Studies and refer to the Graduate and Professional Studiescatalog.

General Requirements for the School of Communication

Students in good academic standing may declare communication as their major and select a concentration at any time. Students interested in the school but uncertain about a concentration may declare themselves Communication Unspecified (COMM-UN) up to completion of 72 hours. Then they must choose a concentration.

All undergraduate majors in the School of Communication must complete, with a GPA of at least 2.00, 12 semester hours as follows:

1. COMM: 1301, 1302, 2300, and 4303.

2. To take School of Communication courses at the 3000 and 4000 level, students must complete the three lower-level courses required of all Communication majors, COMM 1301, 1302 and 2300. Majors should complete them in their first 60 hours; transfer students should do so in their first two semesters at the university.

   Students who register for advanced courses without completing the non-advanced requirements may be dropped by the instructor or the school. Neither the school nor the instructor will be responsible for tuition refunds.

3. To graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in communication, students must achieve:
   1. A 2.00 GPA for COMM 1301, 1302, 2300, and 4303, the four courses required of all majors in the school.

   2. A 2.00 in all other courses that count toward the major with at least a C- in each one.

4. Students who double major within the school may count one course toward both majors, along with the school's required courses; those completing a major and a minor in communication cannot count any courses toward both except for COMM 1301 and 1302.

Minor in Film Studies

Students seeking a minor in film studies must meet the following requirements:

1. A minimum of 18 semester hours of which at least 12 are advanced. Included in the requirement is COMM 1301 and a sequence of two courses, COMM 3370 and COMM 4370. Students also must complete nine semester hours of electives to be selected from the following courses: ART 1300, 1370; 3378; 3379; COMM 2370, 3321, 3371, 3379, 3381, 4328, 4375, 4376, 4392; ENGL 4373; FREN 3318 or 3319; GERM 3380, 3395; HIST 4314; ITAL 3305 or 3306; MAS 3341; PHIL 3361; THEA 2342; other appropriate selected topics or interdisciplinary courses in the College of Humanities, Fine Arts, and Communication approved by the School of Communication.

2. A minimum of nine semester hours in residence, of which at least six are advanced.

3. A minimum 2.00 cumulative grade point average for all courses attempted in the minor at the University of Houston with at least a C- in each course.

Minor in School of Communication Concentrations

Students may minor in any of the school's concentrations. For each concentration minor, students must complete COMM 1301 and 1302, plus 12 COMM hours in the concentration, of which nine must be advanced and nine must be in residence. Students must have a 2.00 GPA for all courses attempted in the minor at the University of Houston, with at least a C- in each course.

Students who declared minors in journalism, radio-television or speech communication prior to June, 1998, may continue to pursue those minors through the end of the summer of 2002, provided they are otherwise eligible to do so under the provisions of an earlier UH Undergraduate Studies catalog. The requirements for those minors are in the UH Undergraduate Studies catalog for 1997-1999. Since June, 1998, minors in journalism, radio-television, and speech communication have not been available. They have been replaced by the minor in communication described above.

Concentration in Journalism

Students in the print and broadcast will develop an understanding of the political, economic, social, and cultural contexts in which news is gathered and disseminated. They will acquire the skills needed to investigate effectively the world of news and to report these findings accurately, clearly, completely, and in the public interest. They will graduate with the knowledge of the critical, analytical, and ethical perspectives necessary to succeed in entry-level jobs and in lifelong careers.

Print Media Sequence

1. COMM 2310, 3310, and 3311
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2310 before proceeding to advanced communication courses).

2. Select three hours from COMM 3312, 4313, or 3326.

3. Select three hours from COMM 3323, 3324, or 3326.

4. In addition to the required courses, students must take 12 advanced hours (four courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Broadcast Sequence

1. COMM 2310, 3311, and 3316.
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2310 before proceeding to advanced communication courses.)

2. Select three hours from COMM 3320, 3322, 3323, or 3380.

3. In addition to the required courses, students must take 12 advanced hours (four courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Concentration in Public Relations/Advertising

The concentration provides basic knowledge, skills and ethical considerations to prepare students for entry into public relations and advertising careers. Students will learn the communication requirements to represent organizations, products, services, operations and policies effectively. Study areas include theory, principles, analytical and critical skills, ethical requirements, public policy development, campaign design and execution requirements, research methodologies, data analysis techniques and communication skills especially appropriate for an urban setting.

Public Relations Sequence

1. COMM 2310, 3311, 3368, 3369, and 4368.
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2310 before proceeding to advanced communication courses.)

2. Select 3 hours from: COMM 4364 or 4367.

3. In addition to the required courses, students must take nine advanced hours (three courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Advertising Sequence

1. Take COMM 2310, 3311, 3360, 3361, 4360, and 4361.
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2310 before proceeding to advanced communication courses.)

2. In addition to the required courses, students must take nine advanced hours (three courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Concentration in Media Production

Students will acquire the ability to create communications using audio, video, motion picture, photography and computer graphics techniques. An appreciation and ethical concern for the professional values and effects on an audience of utilizing such techniques will accompany both practical and theoretical instruction. Skills needed to perform the research and writing functions that precede actual production of media programs as well as performance studies are included. This concentration provides the preparation for internships and entry-level positions available in a wide variety of careers that require media production knowledge and skills, and the foundation for advancement in those fields.

1. COMM 2320, 2350, 3328.
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2320 before proceeding to advanced production courses.)

2. Select 3 hours from: COMM 3320, 3321, 3322, or 3323.

3. In addition to the required courses, students must take fifteen advanced hours (five courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Students will deal critically with media issues that create and affect public policy and will explore media management policy. Course materials also will cover content, technology, training, programming, marketing, and audiences in national and international contexts.

1. COMM 2350 and 4378.

2. Select 6 hours from: COMM 3350, 3376 or 4372.

3. In addition to the required courses, students must take fifteen advanced hours (five courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Students will learn theories and principles of mediated and nonmediated communication relevant to the management of corporate, nonprofit and governmental organizations. Students will develop analytical and critical skills needed to develop and implement effective communication goals and strategies. This concentration serves students interested in:

1. Developing internal communication plans, training others to develop effective communication skills including improving team development, managing supervisory and customer service relations, and making presentations ranging from brief speeches to sophisticated multi-media programs.

2. Developing communication designs using digital media technologies, and creating effective communication packages for regional, national and international organizations.

This concentration will prepare students for communication positions in a wide variety of organizations and with consulting firms. It will also provide a strong foundation for graduate work in communication studies and other fields of human behavior. 

1. COMM 2320, 3356, and 4355.
   (Must earn a C in COMM 2320 before proceeding to advanced communication courses.)

2. Select 6 hours from COMM 1333, 3352, 4339, 4356, 4357.

3. Select 6 hours from COMM 3323, 3326, 3327, 3328, 3350, 3353.

4. In addition to the required courses, students must take six advanced hours (two courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.

Concentration in Interpersonal Communication

Students will gain knowledge of the interplay between communication and relationships on both micro and societal levels. At the micro level, students will develop analytic and communication skills needed to understand the process of relationship development, maintenance and deterioration. At the societal level, students will acquire critical reasoning skills needed to interpret images and messages about families and other small groups. Students will be prepared for entry-level communication positions in organizations such as those allied with health care and human development or for advanced work in communication studies and other fields focusing on the analysis of human behavior.

1. COMM 1333, 3330, and 4331.

2. In addition to the required courses, students must take 18 advanced hours (six courses) in communication selected from an approved list available from the School of Communication.