Mar 28, 2024  
2022-2023 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2022-2023 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Communication, B.A.


Communication, B.A. Degree Map  

The undergraduate major in Communication leads to the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree and is designed to prepare students for careers in corporate or mass communication. Communication majors are instructed in both written and visual communication. The major exposes students to a broad range of communication skills to reflect today’s era of integrated media and includes credit-based internships to provide students with work experience in their desired fields.

A minimum of 120 semester hours of applicable college credits is required for the Bachelor’s Degree in Communication; of these, a minimum of 48 credit hours must be at the upper level. Because degree plans are subject to change, all students should meet with their faculty advisers during their first semester at UHCL to create a Candidate Plan of Study in order to secure the degree plan in place at the time of their enrollment. Students majoring in Communication are strongly encouraged to complete WRIT 1302 in partial fulfillment of the “Communications” component area of UHCL’s core curriculum.

Entrance and Exit Requirements

Students in the Communication plan must take the Grammar-Spelling-Punctuation (GSP) test and score 70 or better before they may enroll in COMM 4061  or COMM 4379 . Some courses in the Communication major require successful completion of the GSP test as a prerequisite. Students may take the GSP test up to five times, after which they will be ineligible to enroll in those courses and thus ineligible to complete the major. Students are also required to build a professional portfolio using a collection of their best written and graphic work as an exit requirement for the major.

For additional information about the GSP tutorial/test dates as well as advice regarding course recommendations and lower-level transfer requirements, please visit the Communication program’s website. In addition, the student organization Communication and Digital Media Association (CDMA) serves as a great networking opportunity for communication students.

University Core Requirements (42 hours)


Communication (6 hours)


WRIT 1301   is required for all students. Students should then choose WRIT 1302   or WRIT 2311   to complete this requirement.

Language, Philosophy and Culture (3 hours)


Choose ONE of the following courses.

Creative Arts (3 hours)


Choose ONE of the following courses.

U.S. History (6 hours)


Government/Political Science (6 hours)


Social Behavioral Sciences (3 hours)


Choose ONE of the following courses.

Public Speaking (3 hours)


Component Area Options (3 hours)


Two 1-hour Life and Physical Science Labs are required co-requisites for the chosen science courses.

College Core Requirements (3 hours)


To earn a degree in communication, students must graduate with a GPA of 2.500 or better. A few courses require a grade of C or better, as noted below; a C- is not acceptable for these courses. All prerequisites are strictly enforced.

Core Requirements


Advanced Writing must be passed with a grade of C or better. Choose ONE of the following courses.

Major Requirements (33 hours)


Courses


Choose ONE course from any 3300/4300 level ANTH, PHIL, PSYC, SOCI. Media Writing must be passed with a grade of C or better.

Capstone Requirement (senior year; GSP must first be passed)


In addition to the two capstone courses below students must take an additional 4300-level COMM course.

Additional Information


Students will have the opportunity to integrate and demonstrate their mastery of communication skills as well as achieve key learning objectives by taking 6 hours of capstone credit. Passing the GSP test is a prerequisite to all capstone courses.

Communication Electives (18 hours)


Choose SIX courses from a designated list (3300/4300 level)

Electives (24 hours)


Students may take any course as an elective, including communication courses not taken to meet major requirements.