Department of Media and Communication Studies
| Ordinary Professor |
Alexander T. Russo |
| Associate Professors |
Niki Akhavan, Chair; Glenn Østen Anderson, Director of Undergraduate Studies |
Television, cinema, radio, newspapers, and the Internet all profoundly influence our lives. The Department of Media and Communication Studies provides students with tools to analyze and create media texts. An interdisciplinary field, Media and Communication Studies at Catholic University is rooted in traditions of rhetorical and historical criticism across the humanities.
Core courses promote understanding of film, television, and related media in their varied aesthetic, social, historical, and cultural contexts. After completing the core, majors may choose to emphasize advanced work in either critical studies (beginning their electives with a course in critical approaches to media) or media production (beginning their electives with a course in video filmmaking). Students emphasizing their elective courses in either area may still take electives in both. Majors in the program also have opportunities to gain professional experience through internships. With its humanities orientation and liberal arts commitment, the department emphasizes writing and critical thinking skills. By requiring rigorous study of the intersections of media theory, history, technology, and cultures while providing access to state-of-the-art digital production tools, the program engages students as both critics and creators. Students learn how to read cultural texts critically, partly by gaining firsthand knowledge of how such texts are produced. Media and Communication Studies majors develop a relationship to media that is both critically aware and socially responsible, one that prepares them for a wide variety of careers in fields as diverse as film and video, broadcasting, journalism, public relations, advertising, law, or teaching and scholarship in the humanities.
Majors take six core courses: MDIA 201 Introduction to Media and Communication Studies, MDIA 202 Media and History, MDIA 301 Critical Methods in Media and Communication Studies, MDIA 302 Introduction to Video Production: Media Rhetoric and Aesthetics, MDIA 399 Junior Seminar, and MDIA 499 Senior Seminar. Students then take seven advanced electives, generally focusing on either critical studies or production. Up to two approved courses from other departments (e.g., ART 309, Introduction to Photography) may count as in-major electives, and up to three approved internships may receive academic credit. The full list of approved interdisciplinary electives is available on the Cardinal Station Advising Report.
Important Requirements
Students may declare the major as incoming freshmen. Students who wish to transfer into the major after the beginning of freshman year should complete at least one introductory course (MDIA 201, MDIA 202 or MDIA 301) first before being considered for acceptance.
All majors must earn a 2.5 GPA average in MDIA 201 and MDIA 202. All students failing to achieve this level of academic performance will be dismissed from the major; they may re-take either course within two semesters, meet the 2.5 requirement, and then reapply for acceptance to the major.
No course in the major may be re-taken more than once. Additionally, all students must maintain a 2.3 (C+) GPA average in the major. Students dropping below this level will be given one semester to restore their in-major GPA, or face dismissal from the major.
MDIA 201 is a prerequisite for many advanced electives; MDIA 399 (Junior Seminar) is a prerequisite for MDIA 499 (Senior Seminar, both production and critical studies sections); MDIA 312 is a prerequisite for the production-centered section of MDIA 499 (Senior Seminar).
Bachelor of Arts in Media & Communication Studies
The requirements for the major can be found at Media and Communication Studies - Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
Minor in Media Studies
The requirements for the minor can be found at Media Studies - Minor
Certificate in Video Production and Digital Storytelling
The requirements for the certificate can be found at Video Production and Digital Storytelling - Certificate
This certificate offers any undergraduate student at Catholic University the ability to complement his or her major area of study with comprehensive training in video production and audio-visual storytelling. By combining course offerings in three main departments — Media and Communication Studies, Art, and Drama — students develop technical skills in lighting, videography, motion graphics, digital audio, and video editing. In addition to building technical proficiencies, this certificate guides students toward developing a creative voice through digital storytelling.