In our rapidly changing information age, graduates who possess a strong understanding of digital media have a tremendous advantage. Students in Lesley University’s Communications Program will learn about media criticism, new media technology, and professional media practice.
What to expect at Lesley
From global news organizations to individual bloggers, the field of communication is going through a dynamic transition. With Lesley’s Communications degree program, you will learn to think critically and conduct thorough research in order to support your ability to create clear, concise, and compelling communications.
Lesley’s Communications curriculum embraces a comparative media studies perspective, with which students learn the importance of integrating media platforms to effectively deliver messages.
What is a communications degree?
• The Communications major studies the basic theories and issues related to communication in a technology-driven global community
• Students will learn about interpersonal and group communication, media criticism, new media technology, and professional media practice
• Students use technology to create, collect, analyze, and communicate information
Why is the program unique?
Few areas are better suited to the study of communication than the cities of Cambridge and Boston, which together comprise one of the top ten media markets in the United States.
Lesley internships, for which students earn academic credit, ensure that each student’s experiential learning is relevant to future career goals. With focuses including public speaking, video journalism, PR, and marketing, Lesley students graduate with experience that employers covet.
Students learn from a distinguished faculty of authors, critics and media members who enhance theoretical instruction with their own real world experiences. With an average class size of 16–20, students have more opportunity to engage in challenging discussions with faculty and peers, refining their ability to differentiate truth from opinion.
The Lesley promise
• The opportunity to pursue an academically rigorous education provided by some of the most respected faculty in the country
• The opportunity to fully explore your intellectual curiosity through a wide range of undergraduate and graduate level courses
• The opportunity to learn in the work environment, exploring potential careers, accruing skills, and refining your choices for life beyond Lesley
• The opportunity to have your voice be heard with small classes, engaging instructors, and a supportive learning environment
• The opportunity to learn and work abroad, to gain a perspective essential for a global economy
Featured Course
CCOMM 2520 Media Analysis
In this course, students will have an opportunity to develop new perspectives on media. They will learn to critique, to evaluate, and to analyze such media as print, radio, television, and recorded music. By reading essays from media scholars and critics, and watching classic videos, commercials, and episodes of TV shows, students will learn to deconstruct media products, and identify media messages. Specific topics include: how "popular culture" is created and by whom; what role advertisers play in construction of media messages; what a "dominant discourse" is and how it is created; the possibility of being "media literate" today; and the validity of some of the common criticisms directed at "the media." Students will also examine how new technology--including the internet and the blogosphere--has changed the way information is understood and disseminated.
Faculty Spotlight
Heidi Gautschi
Assistant Professor of Communications
Read Bio »