Auburn Bulletin 2023-2024

Communication — Graduate Certificate, MA

Degree Programs

Graduate Certificate

The School of Communication and Journalism offers the Master of Arts in Communication and the Graduate Certificate in Communication Studies.

Students earning the MA in Communication have excellent employment opportunities working for organizations ranging from Fortune 100 companies to non-profit groups. For those interested in pursuing a doctorate, our graduates have been admitted to the best PhD programs in the Communication discipline.

For more information about both the MA and the Graduate Certificate, see http://www.cla.auburn.edu/cmjn/. Program statistics (e.g., number of students accepted, average GRE scores, etc.) and additional information on the application process are available on that website.

Master of Arts in Communication

Application Process

Applicants for the MA must hold bachelor’s degrees from an accredited college or university and must take the General Test of the GRE. They must submit a statement of purpose, undergraduate transcripts, GRE scores, a writing sample, recommendation review forms, and letters of recommendation for consideration by an admissions committee.

They should ensure that these materials are submitted to the Graduate School web application:
  • Application fee
  • Official scores for the General Test of the GRE
  • Official transcripts for every institution attended
They should ensure that these materials are submitted to the graduate program in the Department of Communication and Journalism:
  • Statement of purpose
  • Recommendation review forms
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Writing sample

Deadlines for application materials are posted on the departmental website.

MA Degree Requirements

Students may pursue either a thesis or a non-thesis option for the MA in Communication. The MA-thesis option requires 31 hours beyond the bachelor’s degree, including the thesis. The MA-non-thesis option requires 30 hours beyond the bachelor’s degree, including appropriate field experience.

The following courses are required for the MA in Communication:

Upon completion of the required classes, students must pass a written qualifying examination covering material presented in these three courses before continuing in the degree program. All remaining hours are elective course work.

MA-thesis option students will enroll in a minimum of 4 thesis hours (COMM 7990). MA-non-thesis option students will enroll in a minimum of 3 non-thesis project hours (COMM 7980).

All students seeking the master’s degree must pass comprehensive exams prior to graduation. The exams include both written and oral components. The nature of the written portion of the comprehensive exams will vary depending on the choice of the thesis or non-thesis option. For students choosing the thesis option, the thesis typically constitutes the written portion of the comprehensive examination. Students choosing the non-thesis option must pass a written examination covering the program of study as well as any research and special project/internship/field experience.

There is no foreign language requirement.

Graduate Certificate in Communication Studies

Application Process

Applicants for the Graduate Certificate must hold bachelor’s degrees from accredited colleges or universities and must take the General Test of the GRE. An admissions committee evaluates the applicant’s statement of purpose, undergraduate record, GRE scores, writing sample, recommendation review forms, and letters of recommendation.

Applicants should ensure that these materials are submitted to the Graduate School web application:
  • Application fee
  • Official scores for the General Test of the GRE
  • Official transcripts for every institution attended
They should ensure that these materials are submitted to the graduate program in the Department of Communication and Journalism:
  • Statement of purpose
  • Recommendation review forms
  • Three letters of recommendation
  • Writing sample

Requirements

The Graduate Certificate in Communication Studies requires 18 hours beyond the bachelor’s degree. It does not require a thesis or field experience.

The following courses are required for the Graduate Certificate in Communication Studies:

Upon completion of these three required classes, students must pass a written qualifying examination covering material presented in these three courses. The remaining 9 hours are elective course work.

Deadlines for application materials are posted on the departmental website.

Financial Aid

A limited number of competitive graduate teaching assistantships are available. To get more information about the assistantships and to learn how to apply, please visit the following website: http://www.cla.auburn.edu/cmjn/graduate-program/assistantships/. Students enrolled in the Graduate Certificate in Communication Studies are not eligible for financial aid.