The College of Communication, located at the Loop Campus, offers a variety of courses leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media and Cinema Studies. The BA in Media and Cinema Studies strategically combines faculty expertise, cutting-edge facilities, and a variety of course offerings within Communication, the School of Cinema and Interactive Media (CIM) (e.g., Digital Cinema), and other University units to provide students with the critical frameworks, creative opportunities, and technological expertise to become socially responsible leaders in the growing and converging areas of media studies. The major combines a rich course selection in four areas of study: film, radio, TV, and new media. Coursework combines theory and critical analysis with production courses taught at both the Lincoln Park (e.g., radio) and Loop campuses (e.g., television/video and cinema studies).
Program Requirements | Quarter Hours |
---|---|
College Core Requirements | 16 |
Liberal Studies Requirements | 84 |
Major Requirements | 52 |
Open Electives | 40 |
Total hours required | 192 |
Learning Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- Explain and/or demonstrate an understanding of the complexities of human communication.
- Examine media representations across registers of nation, citizenship, class, ability, religion, labor, gender, diasporas, race, migration, and/or ethnicity.
- Explain the potential relationships between and/or ethical issues regarding media, social movements, and local, national, and/or global cultures.
- Interpret media cultures within the contexts of technology, economics, and/or industry.
College Core Requirements
Modern Language Requirement
Modern Language Option
All majors in the College of Communication consist of a four-course common core plus an additional combination of program requirements and electives.
College Core Requirements
Four core courses are required of all College of Communication students:
Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
---|---|---|
CMN 101 | INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN COMMUNICATION | 4 |
CMN 102 | INTRODUCTION TO MASS COMMUNICATION | 4 |
CMN 103 | INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION | 4 |
CMN 104 | PUBLIC SPEAKING | 4 |
Students are encouraged to complete all four prior to taking additional coursework in the major.
Modern Language Requirement
Students who intend to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Communication will be required to demonstrate a measure of competence in a modern language, as defined by the college. Such competence may be demonstrated in one of several ways:
- completing the last course in a second year high school course work in a modern language or Latin
- completing the last course in the first-year college sequence of any language
- completing a college course beyond the first-year level in any language
- achieving a satisfactory score on any of the Modern Language placement examinations administered at DePaul
- achieving a satisfactory rating in a proficiency examination accepted by DePaul
- achieving a score of 3 or higher on the Advance Placement (AP) test for any language (must be completed during high school)
- achieving a score of 5 or higher in the Language B assessment from a Standard or Higher Level International Baccalaureate (IB) program
- achieving a satisfactory score on the CLEP examination.
Modern Languages courses with an E-designation are taught in English and may not be applied to the Modern Language Requirement. Students with some modern language training should consult with the Modern Language Department about the course with which they should begin. Students with little or no previous work in the language will be required to complete the entire three-course introductory sequence.
Modern Language Option
The Modern Language Option is available to all BA students who wish to study a modern language beyond the level necessary to meet the College’s modern language requirement. Students selecting the option may substitute a three-course language sequence for three learning domain courses, or two upper-level courses in the same language for two learning domain requirements. Modern language option waivers cannot be applied to courses in the Math and Computing Domain or courses in the Scientific Inquiry domain. Modern Languages courses with an E-designation are taught in English and may not be applied to the Modern Language Option.
Any substitutions must be consistent with the principle that students complete at least one course in each learning domain.
Liberal Studies Requirements
Honors program requirements can be found in the individual Colleges & Schools section of the University Catalog. Select the appropriate college or school, followed by Undergraduate Academics and scroll down.
First Year Program | Hours | |
---|---|---|
Chicago Quarter | ||
LSP 110 or LSP 111 | DISCOVER CHICAGO or EXPLORE CHICAGO | 4 |
Focal Point | ||
LSP 112 | FOCAL POINT SEMINAR | 4 |
Writing | ||
WRD 103 | COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC I 1 | 4 |
WRD 104 | COMPOSITION AND RHETORIC II 1 | 4 |
Quantitative Reasoning | ||
MAT 120 | QUANTITATIVE REASONING 2 | 4 |
Sophomore Year | ||
Race, Power, and Resistance | ||
LSP 200 | SEMINAR ON RACE, POWER, AND RESISTANCE | 4 |
Junior Year | ||
Experiential Learning | ||
Required | 4 | |
Senior Year | ||
Capstone | ||
CMN 396 | CAPSTONE IN COMMUNICATION 1 | 4 |
- 1
Students must earn a C- or better in this course.
- 2
Readiness for MAT 120 is determined by the math placement test taken online after admission. Students may need to take developmental coursework prior to MAT 120. The MAT 120 requirement may be waived by credit already earned for advanced math coursework or by passing a dedicated proficiency exam. Students who complete MAT 120 and both a Computational Reasoning course and a Statistical Reasoning course in the Math and Computing Domain take one less Learning Domain course. Students may not apply the course reduction to any Domain where only one course is required, and cannot be applied to the SI Domain.
Learning Domains
Arts and Literature (AL)
- 2 Courses Required
Historical Inquiry (HI)
- 2 Courses Required
Math and Computing (MC)
-
2 Courses Required
[1 CR Course and 1 SR Course]
Philosophical Inquiry (PI)
- 2 Courses Required
Religious Dimensions (RD)
- 2 Courses Required
Scientific Inquiry (SI)
- 2 Courses Required
[1 Lab Course and 1 SWK Course]
Social, Cultural, and Behavioral Inquiry (SCBI)
- 2 Courses Required
Note
Courses offered in the student's primary major cannot be taken to fulfill LSP Domain requirements. If students double major, LSP Domain courses may double count for both LSP credit and the second major. Students who choose to take an experiential learning course offered by the major may count it either as a general elective or the Experiential Learning requirement.
In meeting learning domain requirements, no more than one course that is outside the student’s major and is cross-listed with a course within the student’s major, can be applied to count for LSP domain credit. This policy does not apply to those who are pursuing a double major or earning BFA or BM degrees.
Major Requirements
Course Requirements
Course | Title | Quarter Hours |
---|---|---|
Required Courses: | 16 | |
MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES | ||
STORYTELLING & STYLE IN CINEMA | ||
HISTORY OF TELEVISION & RADIO | ||
MEDIA ETHICS | ||
Select one of the following: | 4 | |
HISTORY OF CINEMA I, 1890-1945 | ||
HISTORY OF CINEMA II, 1945-1975 | ||
HISTORY OF CINEMA III, 1975-PRESENT | ||
Select four History/Criticism courses from the following: | 16 | |
MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR COMMUNICATION INTERNSHIP | ||
COMMUNICATION INTERNSHIP SPECIAL TOPICS | ||
RESEARCH PRACTICUM 3 | ||
STUDY ABROAD | ||
INDEPENDENT STUDY 3 | ||
INTERNATIONAL/GLOBAL COMMUNICATION | ||
ASIAN-AMERICAN MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS | ||
HISTORY OF CINEMA I, 1890-1945 | ||
HISTORY OF CINEMA II, 1945-1975 | ||
HISTORY OF CINEMA III, 1975-PRESENT | ||
INTRODUCTION TO DOCUMENTARY STUDIES | ||
TELEVISION STYLE AND NARRATIVE STRUCTURE | ||
SPACES OF CINEMA IN ROME | ||
CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN CULTURE THROUGH FILM | ||
IMAGINING ITALY: CINEMA AS A COLLECTIVE NARRATIVE OF THE ITALIAN PEOPLE | ||
MEXICAN CINEMA | ||
TRANSMEDIA STORYTELLING: BUILDING A NARRATIVE WORLD | ||
INTRODUCTION TO FAN STUDIES | ||
FAITH,REDEMPTN,& TRANSCENDENCE IN INTERNATIONAL CINEMA | ||
DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION IN CINEMA AND TELEVISION | ||
COMICS STUDIES | ||
BAH HUMBUG! CHRISTMAS MOVIES/TV AND MEDIA METHODS | ||
MEDIA & CINEMA STUDIES WORKSHOP (VARIABLE TOPICS) (2.0 quarter hours) 4 | ||
SOUND AND VISION | ||
TOPICS IN DOCUMENTARY STUDIES | ||
TOPICS IN RADIO STUDIES | ||
THE SEXUAL REVOLUTION: HOLLYWOOD IN THE 1960s | ||
TOPICS IN FILM GENRE | ||
TOPICS IN FILM STUDIES | ||
TOPICS IN GLOBAL CINEMA | ||
TOPICS IN TELEVISION STUDIES | ||
TOPICS IN NEW MEDIA | ||
TOPICS IN MEDIA STUDIES | ||
TOPICS IN MEDIA AND MATERIAL CULTURE | ||
SEX IN THE BOX: U.S. TELEVISION, SEX, AND SEXUALITY | ||
TOPICS IN COMICS STUDIES | ||
TOPICS IN CULT STUDIES | ||
B-MOVIES | ||
FANDOM & PARTICIPATORY CULTURE | ||
BLACKNESS IN AMERICAN TV | ||
TOPICS IN FAN STUDIES | ||
MONSTERS IN POPULAR CULTURE | ||
HORROR FILMS | ||
COMMUNICATION, TECHNOLOGY AND SOCIETY | ||
SPORTS FANDOM | ||
MUSIC INDUSTRIES AND CULTURE | ||
TIME TRAVEL ON TELEVISION | ||
ADAPTATION: MOVIES/TV/NOVELS/COMICS/TOYS/VIDEO GAMES | ||
WRITING TELEVISION CRITICISM | ||
DIGITAL CULTURE AND NEW MEDIA | ||
LATINO/A TELEVISION AND MEDIA | ||
LATIN AMERICAN CINEMA | ||
BOARD GAMES AS MEDIA | ||
TALKING ABOUT FILM: THEORY & CRITICISM | ||
SEMIOTICS, STORYTELLING, & FILM FORM | ||
TOPICS IN ADVANCED MEDIA ETHICS | ||
Select one Production course from the following: | 4 | |
ADOBE CREATIVE CLOUD WORKSHOP (2.0 quarter hours) 1, 4 | ||
RADIO PRACTICUM (1.0 quarter hour) | ||
MEDIA & CINEMA STUDIES WORKSHOP (VARIABLE TOPICS) (2.0 quarter hours) 1, 4 | ||
RADIO BROADCASTING | ||
AUDIO DOCUMENTARY | ||
AUDIO PRODUCTION FOR RADIO AND THE WEB | ||
TOPICS IN MEDIA PRODUCTION | ||
DOCUMENTARY PRODUCTION II | ||
DIGITAL CINEMA PRODUCTION I | ||
CINEMA PRODUCTION II | ||
MEDIA LITERACIES | ||
CINEMATOGRAPHY I | ||
EDITING I | ||
SOUND DESIGN I | ||
INTRODUCTION TO SCREENWRITING | ||
INTRODUCTION TO TELEVISION WRITING | ||
WRITING THE FEATURE SCREENPLAY | ||
PHOTOJOURNALISM | ||
ANIMATION FOR NON-MAJORS | ||
MOTION GRAPHICS FOUNDATIONS | ||
DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY | ||
Select three additional electives 2 | 12 |
- 1
Must be taken 2x w/ different creative topics to count for Production elective.
- 2
Select from any College of Communication course or from the Digital Cinema offerings listed above, provided that the DC classes in question have not already been taken under a MCS course number.
- 3
Students may take up to 4 hours of credit in this course toward graduation requirements.
- 4
A maximum of 8 credits from two credit College of Communication courses can be applied to major requirements.
Internships
Students in the major may take CMN 394 and/or CMN 395 (when work relates to the major). In order to take CMN 394 or CMN 395, students must have completed two of the four communication core classes (CMN 101, CMN 102, CMN 103, CMN 104), two courses in the chosen major and have fulfilled internship program eligibility requirements.
Open Electives
Open elective credit also is required to meet the minimum graduation requirement of 192 hours.