About
The Department emphasizes two areas of study, Interpersonal Communication and Public Communication. The program promotes the growth of and knowledge about communication and its uses to achieve individual, group, and societal goals. Students explore the functions, processes, channels, and influences of communication. They work to acquire proficiency in critical analysis, social scientific and humanistic research methods, argumentation, and oral written presentation.
Accreditation
For information regarding accreditation at UNLV, please head over to Academic Program Accreditations.
Learning Outcomes
All courses offered in the Department will focus on helping students attain the following learning outcomes, knowledge, skills and competencies. After attaining a B.A. in Communication Studies at UNLV, students will be able to:
- Describe the Communication discipline and its central questions.
- Engage in Communication inquiry, research, analysis, and evaluation.
- Utilize ethical Communication skills and principles to define, evaluate, and influence public discourse and real-world problems.
- Apply research-based arguments and advocacy skills to influence public discourse.
- Prepare and deliver messages that are appropriate to the audience, purpose, and context, in order to accomplish communicative goals such as sharing information, completing tasks, and solving problems.
- Use communication to embrace difference and diversity and to function effectively in diverse groups.
Career Possibilities
Communication Studies originated with the study of rhetoric in classical education. Based on a traditional liberal arts approach to preparing future citizens and leaders, the educational emphasis is not pre-professional. Instead, students are prepared to follow a wide range of career paths. Careers include, but are not limited to:
Advertising
Positions include advertising or marketing specialist, copy writer, account executive, sales manager, media planner, media buyer, creative director, media sales representative, and public opinion researcher.
Communication Education
Specific employment opportunities include language arts coordinator, forensic/debate coach, high school speech teacher, college or university instructor.
Health Communication
Undergraduate degree recipients nationally are employed as health educators, school health care administrators, medical grants writers, hospital directors of communication, clinic public relations directors, health communication and research analysts, communication managers for federal health care agencies, health personnel educators, medical center publications editors, hospice managers, health care counselors, marketing directors, and health facilities fundraisers.
Marketing
Positions include business and marketing specialist, public relations and advertising manager, sales and marketing manager, media manager, and public opinion researcher.
Organizational Communication
Graduates may work in human resources, training and development, internal communication, meeting management, organizational development, corporate consulting, labor-management negotiation, technical writing, community affairs, or government and public affairs.
Political Communication
Positions include press secretary, speech writer, campaign, consultant, elected official, political reporter, diplomat, lobbyist, lawyer, legislative assistant, or communication director.
Public Relations
Graduates have worked in public relations offices of nonprofit organizations, corporations and businesses, and communication agencies. They have served in media planning and analysis, corporate communication, publicity offices, marketing departments, fundraising, membership departments, sales, community relations, internal communication, and public opinion research.
Risk and Crisis Communication
Positions include corporate trainer, corporate spokesperson, public relations officer, communication consultant, or spokesperson for federal government agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or Food and Drug Administration.
*The careers identified here derive from the experience of the department’s graduates and from the national publication, “Pathways to Communication Careers in the Twenty-First Century,” Washington, DC: National Communication Association, 2011.
Requirements
Documents/Downloads
Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies
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Plans of Study
- 2023-24, 4 Year Plan198.07 KB
- 2022-23, 4 Year Plan165.96 KB
- 2021-22, 4 Year Plan169.53 KB
Syllabi
Degree Worksheets
Careers
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Graduate Handbooks
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Additional Downloads
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Related Links
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Contacts
Department of Communication Studies
The Department of Communication Studies offers programs focused on relational and public communication. We teach and deploy communication skills in interpersonal, small group, organizational, and political settings, which in turn helps others to develop critical thinking, writing, and speaking skills. Our goal is to best serve communication needs by training citizens to engage, motivate, and impact communities.
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Greenspun College of Urban Affairs
The Greenspun College of Urban Affairs is committed to creating contemporary solutions for resilient communities. Our academic programs focus on making effective public policy, creating support structures to meet behavioral and mental health challenges, ensuring cities are safe and prepared to meet emergency situations, effective and ethical journalism, and interpersonal and public communication strategies.