Department of Communication

Students learn oral and written communication skills much desired by employers in a wide variety of business contexts. By focusing on skills in one-on-one, small group, public and media environments, students are prepared to develop effective relationships necessary to succeed in today’s workforce. Our instruction also addresses the ever-increasing impact of new technologies and cultural diversity that shapes our interaction. This concentration's focus on organizational, interpersonal and intercultural communication uniquely prepares students for graduate study and careers in: Human Resources (personnel manager, training specialist, technical writing specialist), Education (guidance counselor, teacher, special programs planner, team leader), Event Planning (meeting manager, conference planner, special events coordinator, marketing associate), Government (communication specialist, speech writer, lobbyist, facilities coordinator), and health care (training specialist, wellness manager, community relations).

This track meshes the theoretical with the practical and helps prepare students for a wide range of careers in the electronic media industry or for graduate study. Upon completion, students are ready to enter the industry as content creators in both traditional media outlets and Internet-based organizations. Graduates of the Media Production Concentration are now: producers and writers for prime time television shows (Criminal Minds), producers and writers for national networks (National Geographic Channel, ESPN, Comcast SportsNet), on-air meteorologists, news photographers, multimedia engineers, movie critics, entrepreneurs, college professors, and owners of production companies.

This concentration’s focus on mass communication helps prepare students for a wide range of careers and graduate study through diverse courses in media management, analysis and creative writing. Students who pursue the Media Studies Concentration could go on to careers in: Broadcasting/Cable/Corporate Video (producer, script writer, station manager, broadcast journalism), New Media (Internet writing, blog design, social marketing), Advertising/Marketing (media buyer, publicity director, copy writer), Business/Industry (research analyst, sales representative, information specialist), Education (education writer, teacher, media specialist) and the Government (lobbyist, telecommunications specialist).

This concentration prepares students for integrated media in such areas as video production, print, social media and the internet. The concentration also addresses professional writing and behaviors in the field. Students in this track are prepared for graduate study and careers in newspapers and online publications. Students go on to become reporters, copy editors, editorial writers, photographers, researchers, bloggers, television/online news executives and media experts.

Students learn the principles of organizational communication and public relations, including the traditions, issues and theories underlying both fields. The concentration equips students to meet the demand for public relations professionals with the knowledge and skills necessary to write and design messages; develop materials employing a range of print, visual and digital media; and execute campaigns that meet the strategic goals of clients and successfully reach a range of audiences. Students in this concentration are prepared for graduate study and careers in corporate communication, media relations, corporate and agency public relations, public affairs in the government sector (lobbyist, public information officer) and in Business/Industry (account writer, corporate communication, speech writer, grant writer, researcher, community relations professional, event and meeting management, publishing, copywriter, internal publications editor) as well as Social Media (blogging, online social networks management).

Students with a degree in Communication and any track may continue on to graduate and professional study in areas such as communication, law or business. To help you as you prepare for your next steps, visit SU’s Career Services and check out these helpful links:

• Journalism Jobs
• TV Jobs Bulletin Board

Have you thought about a career in the nonprofit sector? If so, you should know that you can become a Certified Nonprofit Professional (CNP) while completing your COMM major at SU. Combining COMM with this nonprofit certification can be the right professional move for your future! For more information, visit Nonprofit Leadership Alliance at SU.

The department sponsors many student groups for you to practice the skills and concepts you learn in settings outside the classroom.

The Communication Living Learning Community (LLC) can give you an opportunity to live and learn with other Communication majors. Staying in the same dorm, taking classes together and sharing one-of-a-kind experiences makes the Communication LLC your best housing choice. Here’s why:

Connect!: Start your college career among friends who are interested in the same things and working toward the same goals. Having a ready-made group to study and socialize with makes the huge adjustment to college life easier. You also work closely with SU faculty and staff who want to help you get on the right track and stay there.

Learn!: Your Communication LLC group will take three classes together during your first year. These classes are half the size of the regular sections and usually taught right in your own dorm. These classes include special field trips and other activities that help you take what you learn in class out into the real world.

Enjoy!: Interactive activities like rope courses, escape room adventures, serving a meal at a homeless shelter, meeting alumni to learn how they got their career started, trips to places like D.C. and New York, and many more exclusive Communication LLC perks

For more information on the Communication LLC contact us at communicationdept@salisbury.edu.

Current Communication Students: Login to Our Exclusive Internship Website

Many students seeking a degree in communication can apply to earn credit for an internship (CMAT 495) in a variety of communication fields. Students who meet eligibility requirements can submit application materials directly to our department's internship director for approval. Depending upon a student's individual program, internship credit can be applied to their major or to their upper-level general electives. Although students are encouraged to identify internship opportunities, we do have a variety of local and regional organizations who regularly hire our students as interns.

Here are just a few places where students have interned:

CMAT 249 is a two-credit core course requirement for all students who declare the Public Relations and Strategic Communication (PRSC) track in Communication. Practicum is a "mini-internship" which gives students the opportunity to gain professional experience in an area of interest in the journalism and/or public relations field. Students will learn the day-to-day operations in a specific professional context and have the opportunity to grow as professionals and to further nurture the skills necessary to succeed in a career in that area.

In order to apply for Practicum, students must declare Communication as their major and PRSC as their track (it must be indicated in GullNet). Students must also have earned a grade of C or better (a grade must be recorded in GullNet) for CMAT 248 (Introduction to Public Relations) in order to apply. After meeting these prerequisites, students complete a Practicum Application with their academic advisors during a program planning meeting (these meetings are required each October and March). The application gives students a chance to share their career aspirations, the semester in which they desire a Practicum, and their projected graduation date.

The Practicum Director reviews all applications, and based on student aspirations/needs and the availability of relevant Practicum sites, identifies the best place (on-campus, or if the student has transportation, in the community) for the student to engage in Practicum. There are approximately 35-40 Practicum students placed each semester at over 25 pre-approved and supervised Practicum locations.

Once the Practicum Director matches students with relevant Practicum sites, students are contacted via campus e-mail with their placement information (including information about the site and the supervisor). Students then contact their prospective Practicum Supervisor and complete a face-to-face interview. Following successful completion of the interview, they negotiate a working contract together. After the Practicum Director reviews and approves the contract, students are given registration directions. Once students officially register (via Gullnet), they are invited to orientation class sessions for the semester in which they are placed for their Practicum.

In addition to being mentored at the Practicum site, the "class" of Practicum students each semester meets periodically with the Practicum Director for instruction and guidance. Practicum students complete a substantive graded written mid-term and final project, and Site Supervisors submit written evaluations of the students to the Practicum Director which are assessed as part of the final course grade.

Students must complete one Practicum (for two credits), earning a grade of C or better, as part of their graduation requirements. The two-credit experience must reflect at least 90 hours of work.

Students are not expected to have expertise in a particular area, but are expected to have interest and enthusiasm about gaining practical experience outside of a traditional classroom environment.

For PRSC students who are interested in earning credit for an Internship (CMAT 495), earning a C or better in CMAT 249 is one of the prerequisites. A Practicum and Internship cannot take place at the same site.

You may download the application here

CMAT 492 Independent Study and CMAT 497 Independent Research are designed to give you the opportunity to work one‐on‐one with a communication faculty member on a subject you choose in consultation with the professor.

The Communication Department and the Fulton School of Liberal Arts strongly encourages all of its majors and minors to become global learners in order to better prepare themselves for life, work and citizenship in the global 21st century. Here are two ways to do that:

• Area Studies Minors. Each of these programs focuses on a region of the world—Africa, East Asia, Europe, Latin America or South Asia – via course work from multiple disciplines and perspectives. They also feature a study abroad requirement that may be fulfilled, in most cases, via a Salisbury Abroad Semester Program (highly recommended; see below) or an appropriate SU winter or summer study abroad program (non-SU study abroad programs may be used to fulfill this requirement as well, with prior approval). They also have a modest – 102-level – foreign language requirement. For detailed information on these exciting minors and related study abroad opportunities, please visit the Area Studies Minors website.
• Salisbury Abroad Semester Programs. These programs allow SU students to spend a semester of study abroad at one of the University's many foreign partner institutions (in, for example, China, Ecuador, England, Estonia, Ghana, Scotland and Spain) for about the same cost as studying on campus at SU. The course work taken on these programs may apply to one's major, an Area Studies Minor, or both. To search for Salisbury Abroad programs around the world that will enhance your SU experience, as well as your life and work thereafter, please visit SU’s Education Abroad Office website.

Here are some recent Communication programs:

The Global Experiences Internship: In partnership with Global Experiences, an international internship placement service in Annapolis, students have a semester-long experience interning 40 hours per week a professional environment in cities such as Barcelona, Dublin, Florence, London, Milan, Paris, Shanghai, Stockholm and Sydney.

India: Bollywood and Beyond: This course explores India and interpret its culture and communication. Largely, by analysis of the films and related media, we study how it relates to the culture of India, how it communicates with the masses and how it weaves itself into all cultural aspects of India. We also learn and explore the rich history of India through on-site visits to places of cultural and historical significance. Students can explore these facets in general or by choosing their focus of study through specifics of their chosen interest such as Media Studies, Journalism, Public Relations, Media Production, Advertising, Film studies, Marketing, International Relations, History, etc. For example, a Media or Film studies Studies student can look at India through analysis of their films, a Journalism student can study the culture of India by examining the how newspapers communicate with the masses or PR/Advertising students can study the effects of advertising, a Business or International Relations student can observe the international dimension and how they communicate and weave into the cultural aspects of India, a History student can look at the culture in a historical context, whereas, a TV student may opt to produce a documentary on the media, communication or the cultural aspect.

Scotland - Communication, Culture and Identity: The program is based at Edinburgh Central on Leith Walk in the city of Edinburgh. Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland, a city steeped in more than 900 years of battle for autonomy that has made it one of Europe's most diverse ethnic populations and vibrant cultural scenes. Edinburgh is the winner of 10 major Best City awards in the past six years, offering a rich history, modern lifestyle and backdrop for the largest cultural event on the planet – the Edinburgh International Festival. Edinburgh has been aptly described as a 21st century city of contrasts: ancient castles, cobbled streets and church spires complemented by its contemporary image as a thriving, influential center for finance, business and education. At the city’s highest point, you can explore a 12th-century castle while sipping Starbucks just a few blocks away. For more information about the course go the website.

For more information on how you may incorporate one or more of the international opportunities mentioned above into your Fulton major, please talk to your advisor or department chair or contact the Center for International Education.