Communication Degrees Online

The Bachelor of Science in Graphic Design Communication prepares designers to work in the rapidly changing and increasingly global profession of graphic design. By combining a strong design core and a vigorous College Studies program with a business awareness segment, this program addresses the issues of visual communications, cultural understanding and today’s market-driven economy.

First-year design courses stress the visual language and conceptual exploration common to all art and design fields as the essential foundation for more advanced work in graphic design. The next three semesters continue this exploration by using the computer as a design and production tool combined with more traditional methods. Students develop a visual vocabulary of typography, symbols and cultural imagery while studying the ethical, historical and business side of this exciting profession.

The final three semesters require students to concentrate on utilizing their skills in research, design development and execution in solving “real-life” assignments in preparation for the culmination project in Graphic Design Communication. The final capstone course prepares students to enter the professional world.

By the beginning of the third year, students choose a concentration allowing them to strengthen their design studies with studio electives or to enhance them with business/marketing electives to prepare them to work closely with professionals in that area.

Design concentration electives can be used to broaden one’s general design experience or to specialize in a particular area of graphic design such as in the architecture, interior design, fashion or textile fields. Students should plan their concentrations with the assistance of their academic advisors.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
A dynamic interdisciplinary course sequence explores the intersections of writing, business and new media.

A strong emphasis on emerging technologies ensures that students graduate with competitive skills.

Client-based projects and a solid foundation in human, consumer and organizational behavior allow students to explore how business, design and marketing connect to communication practices.

Internship opportunities and multiple elective courses allow students to gain professional experience before graduation and to customize their major according to career objectives.

The Professional Communication curriculum promotes innovation, an understanding of rhetorical strategies and ethical practice.

Professional Communication is a growing field that involves a wide range of workplace activities including writing, editing and presenting. Students in the Professional Communication program develop expertise in emerging technologies and new media as they prepare for careers as specialists in all forms of modern communication.

Professional Communication students engage their creativity through the integration of words, images, and sounds—and they do so while acquiring practical skills in a career-oriented educational setting. In our Professional Communication Media Lab, students will engage in team projects to produce corporate brochures, murals, non-profit identity kits, media campaigns for charities, public service announcements and other types of presentations, working with subject-matter experts from across the University and beyond.

Graduates of the program, depending on their areas of focus, will work in a wide variety of organizations as writers, public relations specialists, web site content developers, corporate communication representatives, bloggers, journalists and editors. Typical workplace challenges for our graduates include writing and editing for print and digital publications, using new media to create effective presentations, and serving on interdisciplinary teams dedicated to client-based projects.

The Communication and Journalism curriculum is designed to prepare students for careers in the communication industry or for graduate studies in communication. The program focuses on the basic principles and theories of communication, as well as the histories of the mass media, organizational communication, and public relations. Students will acquire practical work experience, along with a general understanding of important concepts of communication and the significant uses of media around the world.

Students may select a major from three sequences: Journalism, Organizational Communication, and Public Relations. Those choosing Journalism learn to report the news in a responsible and ethical manner. Combining classroom work with writing for publication, students learn both the mechanics and the craft of reporting. Those choosing Organizational Communication will gain knowledge in human resources and professional training. Students learn mediation, assessment, implementation, and human relations skills. Those choosing Public Relations will learn both the creative and business sides of promotional communication. Students will learn to write advertising copy and gain insight into the concept of integrated marketing.

The department fosters the development of oral and written communication skills essential in the constantly changing job market while also developing the broad knowledge base characterizing the liberally educated graduate. In the vein, all communication studies majors will take a slate of core courses that form a foundation of study in all three sequences. Successful graduates of Pfeiffer’s Communication Studies curriculum will possess skills in speaking, writing, computing, analysis, research, and critical thinking.

Accreditation Information :
Pre Requisite Courses :
Qualifying Exams :

Tution Fees :
Financial Aid / Scholarship Offered :
Courses :

Kerjasama yang sudah dilakukan antara lain dengan Institute of Media and Communication Studies, Technische Universitat Ilmenau, Jerman untuk pertukaran staf pengajar dan mahasiswa untuk melakukan riset dan kegiatan ilmiah bersama. Kerjasama penerbitan dengan Media Watch dalam pengawasan media (media studies). Beberapa kegiatan yang dilakukan melibatkan para ahli dari perguruan tinggi seperti Rutgers University, New Jersey- USA untuk kurikulum Corporate Communication dan Ilmenau University of Technology, Jerman untuk kurikulum Mass Communication/ Journalism.

Core courses
These 4 courses are required in all Master’s in Communication programs:

COM 610 – Proseminar and Communication Theory (4)
This course is an introduction to the discipline of communication, the nature of graduate studies, communication theory development, critique and uses, the creation of scholarly and scientific knowledge, and the relationship between scholarly and social-scientific research and theories of human communication. Designed for first-semester graduate students, it is the first course in the graduate program.

COM 620 – Quantitative Communication Research Methods (4)
An advanced study of the nature, assumptions, forms, procedure, and strategies for conducting research utilizing social/scientific approaches. Experimental and non-experimental designs are studied. Data gathering procedures involve the use of questionnaires and physiological and behavioral measures. Prerequisite: a course in statistics or instructor approval.

COM 630 – Qualitative Communicaiton Research Methods (4)
An advanced study of qualitative research methods, including participant observation, in-depth interviews, focus groups, life histories, and textual methods such as textual analysis, discourse analysis, and narrative analysis. Provides perspective in these diverse methods and examines the philosophical and theoretical assumptions underlying them. Examines research issues such as the self as a research instrument, research design, and sampling methods.

COM 640 – Communication Ethics and Values (4)
An examination of current issues in communication ethics and values. Philosophical and theoretical approaches to understanding and analyzing such issues are examined.

The Master’s Degree in Communication is a minimum 31 unit and maximum 41 unit degree. The number of required units varies in accordance with the selected matriculation track. The degree program consists of 4 mandatory graduate core courses (16 units) and the fulfillment of one of the following two matriculation tracks:

1) the Master of Arts in Communication requires the completion of one concentration (3 courses), beyond the graduate core, and the successful defense of a research thesis (6 units).

2) the Master of Science in Communication requires the completion of two concentrations (6 courses) beyond the graduate core, and the successful completion of written and oral comprehensive examinations.

Careers in Communication
What Can One Do With A Career In Advertising?
With a degree in Advertising, one can work in many capacities at major corporations, advertising agencies, motion picture studios, TV studios, radio stations, newspapers, magazines, Internet companies, non-profit organizations. Some of the specific jobs are, as follows:
Marketing management
Brand management
Promotions
Special event planning
Advertising account executive
Art direction
Graphic design
Creative
Traffic
Copywriting
Media Planner
Media buyer
Researcher
Consumer products/Licensing and Merchandising

What Can One Do With A Career In Intercultural Communication?
Graduates with an intercultural degree often seek degrees in law and mediation. Many go on to pursue resolutions in disputes between individuals, organizations, political associations, etc. An intercultural degree can also be very valuable in international relations, negotiations and international business.
What Can One Do With A Career In Interpersonal Communication?

The Interpersonal Communication sequence provides students with the knowledge and skill to be effective and ethical communicators in a variety of personal and professional settings, as well as preparing them for advanced study. Students with an academic focus in Interpersonal Communication are prepared for careers in a variety of fields, ranging from human resources to sales and development, from counseling and social work to conflict negotiation and arbitration, from college recruiting and admissions to political advocacy–in short, any kind of profession that requires the ability to work effectively with other people.

What Can One Do With A Career In Journalism?
Report, write, edit, photograph or design news, features, sports and specialized content for newspapers, magazines, newsletters or Web services. The major also lays some groundwork for professional graduate work in media related law, policy or business.
Work as an editor, writer or designer for a newspaper, magazine or newsletter.
Become a columnist, or a critic of movies, plays, books and other cultural products.
Write for, or design, internet related communication.
Become a freelance writer or editor; write nonfiction books or documentaries.
Work in the public relations field as a manager, writer or designer.
Go to Law School and become a lawyer.
Teach English or journalism at the high school level.
Go on to graduate school in journalism, communication, religion, or related fields.
Market and advertise a small business you start.
Become a missionary in a variety of settings and with a variety of responsibilities.
Write grant proposals, manuals, or other written communication in a variety of corporate settings.
Report, write, edit, photograph or design news, features, sports and specialized content for newspapers, magazines, newsletters or Web services. The major also lays some groundwork for professional graduate work in media related law, policy or business.

What Can One Do With A Career In Multimedia?
Website Design
Media Production
Publication (magazine/editorial) production
Multimedia Animation

What Can One Do With A Career In Organizational Communication?
Communication is central to effectiveness in organizations, whether businesses, multinational corporations, service agencies, churches, industries, schools, or other social institutions. An Organizational Communication degree can provide a student with not only the understanding of the complexities of communicating and organizing, but it also provides them with the tools to for diagnosing and changing communication in organizations.

What Can One Do With A Career In Public Relations?
The field of public relations continues to grow and expand into nearly all facets of the business world and service-based organizations.

Pepperdine PR graduates find themselves working in the fields of healthcare, education, entertainment, sports and leisure pursuits, fine arts, travel and hospitality, food service, real estate development, and finance.

Others use their public relations skills to support the work of non-profit organizations working with the homeless, youth, the elderly, the environment, and a host of church and para-church ministries.

Still others work in the public sector for municipalities, county and state governmental agencies, elected officials and issues-based public interest groups.

Pepperdine’s PR alumni can be found in nearly every major public relations counseling firm, in key communications positions within the corporate world, and making a difference in hundreds of non-profit organizations around the world.

They point to Pepperdine’s core curriculum in communication, the practical “hands-on” PR major coursework which stresses real-world application of theory and skills, and a wealth of internship opportunities and special projects as key factors in their smooth transition to the world of work.

What Can One Do With A Career In Rhetoric and Leadership?
Because it emphasizes the crucial skills that potential employers look for in college graduates, such as written and oral communication, leadership ability, and critical thinking, the Rhetoric and Leadership sequence prepares students for careers in a variety of fields in the public and private sectors, as well as for law school, business school, and graduate school. Students develop practical skills related to professional communication, argumentation, and advocacy, while also developing the theoretical foundations they need to be effective communicators and critical consumers of public discourse and media messages. Classes also focus on the ways that rhetorical processes shape such issues as race and ethnicity, gender, religion, and politics.

What Can One Do With A Career In Speech Communication?
The Speech major can open the door to a number of career possibilities (some of these may require additional education)
Public Address (Announcer or spokesperson)
Ministry
Law (Speech is an excellent pre-law major)
Consulting (Management, legal, etc)
Education
Government (speechwriter, lobbyist, campaign director, fundraiser, etc)
Industrial/Labor Relations
Negotiating/Dispute Resolution

What Can One Do With A Career In Telecommunications?
Telecommunications at Seaver College refers primarily to electronic media, especially television, video production and radio.

What can I do with a major in telecommunications broadcast news?
Serve as a video photographer, editor, reporter, anchor, writer, producer or assignment editor of radio or television news, sports or other video non-fiction content including video news releases. The major emphasizes news writing for electronic media. The major also lays some groundwork for professional graduate work in media law, policy or business.

What can I do with a major in telecommunications production?
Serve as a photographer, editor, writer or producer of studio television or field video content. The major also lays some groundwork for professional graduate work in film, media law, policy or business.

All the media majors also prepare students for broader tasks of telling stories in a compelling fashion with words, pictures and often sound, writing succinctly with clarity, understanding the unique qualities of mediated communication, evaluating research and ethically communicating.

Course Requirements
The journalism major is designed to give all students a broad interdisciplinary introduction to the media and their place in a free society. In addition, each student completes a sequence of courses intended to develop practical skills related to a potential career area. The program offers students laboratory production experience appropriate to their interest area in the campus Student Publications Office, as well as opportunities to gain initial training in a professional environment.

Communication Core Requirements – 12 Units

Course ID Course Name Units
COM 200 Communication Theory 3
COM 300 Introduction to Communication Research 3
COM 301 Message Creation and Effects 3
COM 400 Communication Ethics 3

Bachelor of Arts in Journalism – 28 Units

Course ID Course Name Units
JOUR 241 Introduction to Journalism 4
JOUR 325 Publication Editing and Design 4
JOUR 345 Reporting and Editing 4
JOUR 463 Feature Article Writing 4
JOUR 469 Critical and Editorial Writing 4
JOUR 561 Public Affairs Reporting 4
JOUR 595 Journalism Internship 1
MSCO 570 Mass Communication Law 4