Missouri State University

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Communication 

Undergraduate Admissions

Declaring your major is not the same thing as being admitted to your degree program. Declaring a major simply identifies your intent to pursue a particular major. Being admitted to your degree program signifies two important things: (1) You have satisfied all the requirements to be admitted to your major program; and (2) The graduation requirements for your degree program are "locked in." In other words, if changes are made to your major's requirements after you've been admitted, those changes would not apply to you.

Being admitted to your degree program.  The Missouri State University Undergraduate Catalog specifies the following admission requirements for Department of Communication majors (except the B.S. in Education degree):
  1. Complete a minimum of 59 credit hours.
  2. Complete the general education basic required course: IDS 110/UHC 110, CIS/CSC 101 or CSC 111, COM 115, ENG 110, MTH 130 or higher, and PED 100.
  3. Have a combined grade point average (Missouri State and transfer) of 2.50 or higher or have a GPA of 2.75 for the last 30 hours of courses completed before applying for admission to the degree program.
  4. Complete the departmental core courses and COM 115 with a GPA of 2.50 or higher.
  5. Complete any additional admission requirements for selected emphasis or major.
  6. Submit application for admission and receive approval by faculty advisor and Head of the Department of Communication.

Completing "the Core."  In order to be admitted, you must have completed COM 115 Fundamentals of Public Speaking, MED 120 Media and Society, and COM 209 Survey of Communication Theory with a combined GPA of 2.50 or better in those three courses. For the Public Relations major you also must complete JRN 270 and achieve a combined GPA of 2.50 or better in those four courses.

Taking COM courses before you've been admitted.  While you should compete the Core as early as you can and many upper division courses have completion of the Core as a prerequisite, there are several "pre-major" courses you may take prior to being admitted. These courses include:

  • COM 205 Interpersonal Communication Theory & Skills
  • COM 210 Communication Research Methods
  • COM 307 Gender and Communication
  • COM 315 Public Speaking II
  • COM 322 Introduction to Argumentation
  • COM 325 Nonverbal Communication
  • COM 390 Communication and Aging