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Major

Communication and Media focuses on history, content and impact of media.

The mission of the Communication and Media major is to study and teach about the mass media and emerging media: Their evolution, their effects, their uses by everyday people, and their regulation and industry practices. We cultivate thorough-going media literacy among our students, and produce cutting-edge scholarship about the media’s impact on individuals and society.

Four crucial reasons for studying media:

  • Enormous influence on our culture and those around the world
  • Role in shaping our individual and collective identities (including our attitudes toward others)
  • Centrality to every day life, politics, the economy, and public policy
  • Impact on democratic institutions

Key elements of the major are:

  • Classes taught by world-renowned faculty
  • Small, upper-level seminars examining a range of issues like impact of mobile communications, gender and media, media and public opinion, health and media, media and globalization, media effects on individuals and society
  • Emphasis on critical thinking and writing
  • Opportunity to include study abroad, research and transfer credit towards major elective requirement
  • A Senior Thesis Program that is providing unique support to students interested in pursuing and presenting their own research
  • Combining classroom training with internship opportunities in a variety of media-related fields
  • Opportunity to learn about careers and network with outstanding U-M alumni through our Career Exploration events and Shadowships