Communication Major & Minor

The core curriculum provides majors with a foundation in fundamental communication theories and concepts, allows them to develop oral and written communication skills and instructs them in common communication research methods. After completing the core curriculum, all majors must complete an additional eighteen credits in communication courses distributed among advanced writing and presentation courses, electives and focus area requirements. Students must also complete three credits of introductory-level statistics outside of the department as part of the major requirement.

Communication majors participate in academic internships and other hands on experiences, including the Interaction Design Lab where students learn how technology can help to enable healthier, more socially connected and reflective living.

Focus Areas

• Communication, Environment, Science and Health
• Communication Media Studies
• Communication and Information Technologies
• Communication and Social Influence

CALS seeks students who maintain a rigorous high school curriculum and demonstrate an outstanding record of academic achievement.

• 4 Units of English

• 4 Units of Mathematics (including pre-calculus, statistics recommended)

• 3 Units of Science (including biology and chemistry, physics is strongly recommended)

• An additional unit of science is also strongly recommended

Communication Major Requirements

A.  Core Courses (15 Credits)
B.  Focus Area Introductory Courses (6 Credits)
C.  Focus Area Upper Level Courses (6 Credits)
D.  Upper-Level Electives (9 Credits)
E.  Communication Practica (3 Credits)
F.  Additional COMM Major Requirements

A. Core Courses  (15 credits)

• COMM 1101 - Introduction to Communication (fall only)
• COMM 1300 - Visual Communication (winter, spring, summer)
• COMM 2010 - Oral Communication (fall, spring, summer)
• COMM 2310 - Writing About Communication (fall, spring, summer)
• COMM 2820 - Research Methods in Communication Studies (fall only)

B. Focus Area (6 credits)

• COMM 2200 - Media Communication (fall, summer)
• COMM 2450 - Communication and Technology (fall, summer)
• COMM 2760 - Persuasion and Social Influence (spring only)
• COMM 2850 - Communication, Environment, Science and Health (spring only)

C. Focus Area Upper Level (6 credits)

• Students must take six credits (two courses) of coursework within their declared Focus Area at the 3100+ level.

D. Upper-Level COMM (9 credits)

Students must complete 9 additional credit hours at the 3100+ level. Electives can come from any of the focus area lists. A student may elect to fulfill 3 of these credit hours by taking a third focus area introductory course.  A maximum of 6 credits can be counted for 4970 or 4990 (combined). Refer to the Course and Time Roster for the most up-to-date offerings. 

• ANTHR/COGST/STS 4330 - How Do We Know Nature? Language, Knowledge and the Environment - CESH
• COML/ENG/MUSIC/PMA 2703 - Thinking Media - CMS
• COMM  3100  Communication and Decision Making in Groups - CSI            
• COMM  3110  Educational Psychology - CSI                    
• COMM  3150  Organizational Communication: Theory and Practice - CSI        
• COMM  3189  Taking America’s Pulse - CSI
• COMM  3200  New Media and Society - CAT, CMS
• COMM  3210  Communication and the Environment - CESH, CMS
• COMM  3300  Media and Human Development  - CESH, CAT, CMS, CSI
• COMM  3400  Personal Relationships and Technology - CAT, CSI
• COMM  3450  Human Computer Interaction Design - CAT
• COMM  3460  Crowds, Communities, and Technology - CAT, CSI
• COMM  3560  Computing Cultures - CSI, CAT
• COMM  3710   Crossing Cultures Through Film - CSI
• COMM  3720   Intercultural Communication - CSI
• COMM  3760   Planning Communication Campaigns - CSI, CMS, CESH
• COMM  4200  Public Opinion and Social Processes  - CMS, CSI, CESH
• COMM  4201  Information Policy: Research, Analysis, and Design - CSI
• COMM  4220  Psychology of Entertainment Media - CAT, CESH, CMS
• COMM  4250  Sports and the Media - CMS
• COMM  4260  Gender & the Media - CMS
• COMM  4280  Communication Law - CMS, CSI
• COMM  4292  Sexual Identities and the Media - CMS
• COMM  4300  Ethics in New Media, Technology and Communication - CESH, CAT, CMS, CSI
• COMM  4350  Communicating Leadership and Ethics - CSI
• COMM  4360  Communication Networks and Social Capital - CAT, CMS
• COMM  4380  Communication in Virtual Worlds - CAT
• COMM  4400  Advanced Human-Computer Interaction Design - CAT
• COMM  4410  Communicating Self in Social Media - CAT
• COMM  4450  Computer-Mediated Communication - CAT
• COMM  4560  Community Involvement in Decision Making - CESH
• COMM  4650  Mobile Communication in Public Life - CAT, CMS
• COMM  4660  Public Communication of Science and Technology - CESH
• COMM  4760  Population Health Communication - CESH, CSI
• COMM  4860  Risk Communication - CESH, CSI
• COMM 4940  COMM Special Topics count ONLY if they are 3 credits (may be repeated if different topics)
• COMM 4970  COMM Individual Study
• COMM 4990  COMM Independent Research

* More 31XX+ courses may be added.

Students may not use the following courses to complete this area:

• COMM 2990 (Research – Freshman/Sophomore level)
• Courses ranging from COMM 3000 through 3099
• COMM 4580 (The Science of Behavior)
• COMM 4950-4952 (NYCOMM, LACOMM and SiliCOMM)
• COMM 4960 (Communication Internship - only 2 credits, one per internship, may count towards graduation)
• COMM 4980 (TA - only 6 credits may count towards graduation)

E. Communication Practica (3 credits)

• COMM 3010: Narrative for Digital Media
• COMM 3020: Science Writing for the Media
• COMM 3030: Organizational Writing
• COMM 3040: Writing and Editing for the Media
• COMM 3060: Creating a Personal Brand
• COMM 3070: Communicating for Impact: Developing Strategic Messages
• COMM 3080: Environmental & Sustainability Communication
• COMM 3090: Experiential Writing in the Yucatan
• * All courses in the 30XX range count as a Practica

E. Additional COMM Major Requirements

• One First-Year Writing Workshop (FWS). (A score of 5 on the AP English Language exam is accepted.)
• Students must take an introductory statistics class, such as PAM 2100, AEM 2100, ILRST 2100, etc.
  A transfer credit or a score of 5 in AP statistics is also acceptable as credit for this requirement. Students should consult with CALS Student Services to ensure they have the appropriate credit for this requirement.

• Develop familiarity with ideas fundamental to scholarship in the social sciences, with mastery of principles of key communication theories.
• Demonstrate understanding of how processes of social influence operate in communication contexts including science, media and technology.
• Apply systematic analytic skills to pressing social and policy issues.
• Develop communication knowledge and skills to enter into and succeed in complex social organizations.
• Recognize the foundations, assumptions, and methods of communication research, and be able to apply a wide range of empirical research methods to diverse intellectual questions.
• Write and speak lucidly, logically, and intelligently.

COMM 2450 – Communication and Technology

This course steps back from the bewildering changes in information technology and social media, to ask some fundamental questions about technology and its role in human behavior and society. Topics include the psychological aspects of computer-mediated communication; how design plays a role in the way we interface with technology and collaborate with each other; and the ways in which communication technology is situated inside social and institutional structures and cultural formations.

COMM 2760 – Persuasion and Social Influence

Social influence and persuasion are the most basic and important functions of communication. The course covers characteristics of persuasive messages, message sources, and targets; interpersonal influence; and influence in groups. Special emphasis is given to topics in health, science, risk. This course features interactive lectures, assignments that apply principles of persuasion to real world contexts, and an applied group research project.

COMM 2850 – Communication, Environment, Science, & Health

Environmental problems, public health issues, scientific research— in each of these areas, communication plays a fundamental role. From the media to individual conversations, from technical journals to textbooks, from lab notes to the web, communication helps define scientifically-based social issues and research findings. This course examines the institutional and intellectual contexts, processes, and practical constraints on communication in the sciences.

COMM 2200 – Media Communication

This course will provide an introductory understanding of media content, industries, policies, research and effects. Topics include the history of mediated communication, how the media operate, how they affect you and others, how society influences the creation of mediated messages, how messages are psychologically processed, who owns/controls the media, research to date on media content and effects and an overview of media policy. These topics will be examined through current theoretical and empirical research on mediated communication. In this sense, the course is designed to introduce you to topics that will be covered in depth in the media-related Communication courses here at Cornell.

•    Emerge educated to approach the world in analytical and critical ways. 

•     Develop familiarity with ideas fundamental to scholarship in the social sciences, with mastery of principles of key communication theories.

•     Demonstrate understanding of how processes of social influence operate in communication contexts including science, media and technology.

•     Apply systematic analytic skills to pressing social and policy issues.

•     Develop communication knowledge and skills to enter into and succeed in complex social organizations.

•     Recognize the foundations, assumptions and methods of communication research, and be able to apply a wide range of empirical research methods to diverse intellectual questions.

•     Write and speak lucidly, logically and intelligently.