Registration information for Fall, 2009
For classes taught in Williams Hall, students can add their names to force add/wait lists posted in room 120 WIH from April 20 through May 1 between 7:00am and 4:00 pm.
For classes taught in Bachelor Hall, waiting lists will be posted April 27 and will remain posted until the first day of classes in August.
Pre-communication Majors who have been closed out of COM 135 should see Janet Lowitz or Larry Nadler as soon as possible.
The Academic Discipline
of Communication
The
roots of the communication
discipline can
be traced back
for thousands
of years to the
study of oratory
and later
included discourse, speaking, persuasion,
meanings, and
rhetoric. Contemporary
students
of communication
draw on theories and practices originating
with the Classical
writers and extending
to paradigms
that are also
common in
other social
sciences and humanities.
Communication
as a discipline
now includes many
emphasis
areas including,
for example:
interpersonal,
group, organizational,
intercultural
and
international,
public, mass,
and mediated
communication.
Today the field
considers
how people communicate as individuals,
in society,
and in various
cultures.
The Centrality
of Communication
Communication
is the process
in which individuals
shape society and
culture by interacting
with, and through
symbols to create
meaning. The study
of communication
is relevant and
central to both
liberal arts education
and a wide variety
of professional
training. Faculty
in the discipline
are focusing their
research and their
teaching efforts
on the challenges
of communicating
in a diverse and
often technology-mediated
society. They also
are emphasizing
the role of communication
and citizenship
in a democratic
society.
Understanding
human communication
and the exchange
of messages to
create meaning
is an area of academic
investigation that
is fundamental
to other approaches
to intellectual
inquiry. Knowledge,
appreciation, and
mastery of communication
processes are necessary
to effectively
disseminate and
share our intellectual
observations or
disciplinary discoveries
with others. Finally,
because communication
impacts every aspect
of the human condition,
the study of communication
is often described
as the uniquely "pragmatic
discipline."
The Study of Communication
at Miami University
The
curriculum prepares
students to create,
transmit and critically
evaluate the nature
and effects of
mediated and non-mediated
messages. The options
in our major are
designed to entice
students to find
intellectual passion
in new areas of
inquiry (knowledge
acquisition), discovery
(knowledge generation),
and practice (knowledge
application) while
also learning new
modes of creative
thought and expression.
The liberal arts
based curriculum
combines wide-ranging
intellectual exploration
in Miami Plan courses
with mastery of
the communication
discipline by advanced
study in the major
that stretches
students' minds
and talents. Students
will be taught
to evaluate information
critically, work
collaboratively,
apply creativity
to problems, and
communicate clearly
and effectively.
Specifically, students
will learn about
communication theories
and contexts, research
and reasoning,
and individual
and social responsibility.
The curriculum
is designed to
prepare students
to go on to professional
or graduate school,
or to seek employment
and become contributing
members to society.
The National Communication Association's website includes information on careers in communication.
About Us
The
Department of
Communication
is
composed of
Speech Communication
and
Mass Communication.
Each area has
its
own baccalaureate
degrees. In
addition,
both
areas collaborate
to
offer an undergraduate
department
major
in strategic
communication.
Admission to
each of the
undergraduate
major programs
in communication
is limited (see
Pre-Major
link for details).
The department
has about 600
undergraduate
majors.
The Department
of
Communication
is
one of the
largest departments
in
the College
of
Arts and Sciences.
Areas collaborate
and share resources,
providing students
with a broad exposure
to the discipline
of communication.
The faculty are
committed to both
scholarship and
teaching, so in
addition to being
active scholars,
several are also
award winning teachers.
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