Graduate Program
| Graduate Study Information |
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The Master of Arts in Communication program at Virginia Tech provides its students with conceptual knowledge and advanced skills that they can apply to academic and professional communication settings. Our curriculum and degree requirements offer students advanced study in public and mass communication research from a variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives. Students in the 33 hour, two year program engage in reviewing and discussing previous communication research and criticism, collecting and interpreting original communication research data, synthesizing and presenting communication knowledge to educate others, and obtaining professional experience in the communication industry. Areas of conceptual focus include the production, content, and impact of communication messages, media, artifacts, and objects within social, political, organizational, and cultural settings. The M.A. in Communication prepares graduates to pursue communication doctoral studies, research positions in communication industries, advanced teaching careers, and advanced careers as communication professionals.
A limited number of graduate teaching assistantships (primarily to teach public speaking) are available to exceptional applicants. All students on assistantships receive a tuition scholarship and a competitive monthly stipend.
The Department of Communication will accept only electronic application submissions. The deadline for a completed application to the Communication M. A. program for the Fall 2010 semester is Jan. 15, 2010, if you also want to be considered for funding as a GTA. We will continue to accept applications until April 15, 2010, after which applications will close. We do not normally admit students to begin in spring semester.
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| Degree Requirements - Graduate Studies |
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The Master of Arts in Communication may be earned via two different tracks (thesis and non-thesis). The thesis track is designed for those students wishing to develop analytic research skills before pursuing a Ph.D. or professional career. The internship (i.e., non-thesis) track is designed for students wishing to advance a professional career through an applied master's degree. Both the thesis and non-thesis options require completion of at least 33 credit hours, a GPA of at least 3.0 and a substantial learning experience conducted outside the classroom.
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Thesis Track
- 9 hours Communication core (COMM 5014 - Communication Theory; COMM 5024 - Communication Research Methods; COMM 5614 - Rhetorical Theory & Criticism)
- 15 hours graduate-level Communication courses
- 3 hours (minimum) graduate-level elective courses
- 6 hours Research and Thesis (COMM 5994)
Non-Thesis Track
- 9 hours Communication Core (COMM 5014 - Communication Theory; COMM 5024 - Communication Research Methods; COMM 5614 - Rhetorical Theory & Criticism)
- 18 hours graduate-level Communication courses
- 3 hours (minimum) graduate-level elective courses
- 3 hours Internship (COMM 5954) or Project & Report (COMM 5904)
In meeting these requirements, all Communication graduates will have at least 27 hours of course work in the department. The Department of Communication expects graduate students in its program to take courses designed primarily for graduate students, which are 5000-level courses. In addition, the Graduate School limits the number of 4000-level courses a student may take. The Department requires a student to complete a request form for a 4000-level course to be included on the student's Plan of Study. The request must be approved by the student's advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies and will be approved only in rare circumstances.
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