Completing a BA in Media and Communication Studies 

To earn a B.A. in Media and Communication Studies, students must complete 37 credits of coursework, divided as follows:

MCS ELECTIVE COURSES (12 credits) – Choose two courses from each of the two designated content areas.  Students may double count up to 9 credits in another major, minor, or certificate.

This is the curriculum as of June 1, 2018.  If you declared your MCS major prior to May 31, 2018, please follow the pre-2018 curriculum. If you are enrolled in the pre-2018 curriculum and would like to switch to the current curriculum, fill out the Undergraduate Requirement Term Change form and submit it to the Registrar’s office.

Additional information:

• A “C” or better is required in all courses applied toward the major.
• A total of 9 credits towards the completion of the major may be “double counted” towards the completion of an additional major, minor, or certificate.
• Students who wish to retake MCS classes in which they earned a grade of D or F may do so, following UMBC policy.  When a student fails a course, the department does not guarantee a seat in that course for the following semester and faculty are under no obligation to over-enroll their courses to accommodate demand for repeat enrollment.
• For courses that do not require permission, students will follow the regular enrollment procedure for adding the course.  For courses that do require departmental permission, students wishing to retake the course must fill out the requisite permission form.  Second- or third-attempt permissions will not be issued until permissions have been issued within the standard time frame for students enrolling in the course for the first time who require it for timely graduation.  Thereafter, if seats are available, permissions will be issued to second- and third-attempt students in the order they are received. In the event that multiple students simultaneously request permission to retake a course and there are not enough seats to accommodate them, the department will issue permissions in descending order of final grades earned during the previous attempt at the course (i.e. a student who earned a 68% would have priority over a student who earned a 65%).
• MCS students double-majoring in a discipline that also requires a capstone course may be able to satisfy this MCS requirement with the other capstone course. The subject matter and methods must, in the opinion of the Director, be relevant to the study and/or practice of media and communication.
• A knowledge of at least one foreign language and familiarity with foreign cultures are important for understanding media and communications under the conditions of globalization in the 21st century. Beyond the language and culture requirements of the General Education Program, therefore, MCS students are strongly encouraged to study a foreign language to at least the 202 level (with appropriate exemptions made for native speakers of languages other than English). Study abroad is also strongly encouraged, for it can provide not only understanding of another culture but also important perspectives on U.S. culture and media.
• For students who began their MCS major before June 1, 2013, MCS 101 will count as a Critical Media Studies elective, and 334 can either count as an Intercultural Communication elective, or can be substituted for the theory/methods requirement in the core courses (AMST 334/ENGL 324/ART 215/MLL 305).