Media & Communication Studies

BACHELOR OF ARTS

On this page: Requirements | Learning Objectives | Faculty & Staff | Courses

Do courses like Interactive Media and Politics & Popular Music sound exciting to you?
Do you want to explore a career in Public Relations, Media Production, or Journalism?

Use your creativity, imagination, and passion for innovation to develop or express meaning across audiences! The Media & Communication Studies (MCS) major at the University of Washington Bothell offers students the opportunity to think critically about access, use, and control of communication and media on the local, national, and global level. The major combines hands-on production with a rich grounding in media and communication theory and history that focuses on power, difference, and injustice. MCS students develop the intellectual capacities and skills needed to use media and communication effectively and ethically.

PURPOSE

Students in the Media & Communication Studies major are skilled communicators who are passionate about understanding how media and popular culture impact our everyday lives. Students with interests that cross a range of disciplines and professional contexts thrive in this major.

PRACTICE

Through coursework in the Media & Communication Studies major students develop and hone skills as critical readers and practitioners. Courses integrate theory and practice through media production workshops, classroom seminars, and community-based research projects.

PROFESSION

Using their background in Media & Communication Studies, graduates go on to become strategic communicators and media production practitioners. Students in the MCS major pursue careers in the media industries and cultural studies, as well as community organizing and social justice work.

Learning objectives

The Media & Communication Studies curriculum advances the five core IAS learning objectives. Students taking courses and/or majoring in Media & Communication Studies:

Develop communication literacies across different genres, mediums, and social contexts
Recognize and name how different populations experience power, difference, and injustice in relation to media organizations and representational practices
Engage with media and communication scholarship in order to research and analyze diverse communication processes
Apply media and communication scholarship to the processes of producing ethical media and communication content in a variety of contexts and for a range of purposes
Analyze the role, practices, histories, rules, and regulations of media and communication technologies in contemporary societies

Plan your degree

Interested in exploring this major but not ready to commit? Consider taking one of the below courses! Any of these selections will help familiarize you with the academic program and prepare you for advanced coursework in the major.

BIS 161 Introduction to Film Narrative
BIS 162 Race, Gender, and Sexuality through Film & TV
BIS 176 Introduction to Analyzing Media
BIS 177 Introduction to Making Media
BIS 178 Introduction to Media & Communication
BIS 179 Introduction to Journalism

Useful preparation for this major includes formal and informal training in new media production. Students will need strong skills in critical and creative thinking, communications, and collaboration.

There are no formal prerequisites for Media and Communication Studies major.

Current UW Bothell students in good academic standing (2.0 cumulative GPA or above) can declare this major anytime using the online Major Declaration Form.

Incoming students can apply for this major when applying for admission to UW Bothell.

Degree requirements

The following degree requirements are required as of Autumn 2024 quarter. Students who entered the Media & Communication Studies (MCS) major prior to Autumn 2024 have different requirements. Please see your Academic Advisor for questions and academic planning.

Interdisciplinary Writing Seminar: BIS 290 (5 credits) (Prerequisite of B WRIT 135 or ENGL 141)*
Core Course: BISMCS 333 (5 credits) (Prerequisite of BIS 176, BIS 177, BIS 178, BIS 179, or COM 200)
MCS Communication Practice & Media Production (MCS:P&P) Courses (10 credits)
Additional MCS Major Coursework (MCS) (25 credits)
Additional School of IAS Coursework (20 credits)
10 credits of Composition Coursework
- B WRIT 133 or B WRIT 134 or ENGL 131 or equivalent (5 credits)
- B WRIT 135 or ENGL 141 or equivalent (5 credits)

TOTAL = 75 Credits
*Recommended to take prior to MCS Core Course

School of IAS Requirements & Policies

Residency Requirement: 30 credits must be completed in residency at UW Bothell.
Cumulative GPA Requirement: Major GPA must be at a cumulative of 2.00 or higher.
Interdisciplinary Practice & Reflection (IPR): The IPR requirement can overlap with the 75 credits of major coursework, or it can be completed through elective credits. Please see the IPR webpage for course options.
Upper Division Credit Policy: A maximum of 35 credits earned in 100- and 200-level courses may apply toward the major. Remaining credits must be earned in upper division courses (300-level and above).
Note: See all IAS policies and procedures on the Student Resources webpage.

A. MCS Core Course (MCS:CORE)

BISMCS 333 Media and Communication Studies
- Prerequisite of any Introduction MCS course (BIS 176, BIS 177, BIS 178, BIS 179 or COM 200)

B. Communication Practice and Media Production Courses (MCS:P&P)

BIS 177 Introduction to Making Media
BIS 217 Introduction to Debate
BIS 237 Public Speaking and Communication
BISIA 244 Time-Based Media Art
BISIA 344 Video Art
BISIA 350 Photography and Digital Art
BISIA 399 Art and Design Digital Portfolio
BISIA 401 Literary & Arts Journal
BISIA 444 Video Installation Art
BISIA 450 Image and Imagination
BISMCS 234 Media and Communication Techniques
BISMCS 240 Working with Video
BISMCS 260 Working with Audio
BISMCS 279 Journalism Writing
BISMCS 343 Media Production Workshop
BISMCS 402 Community Media Practice
BISMCS 472 Advanced Media Production Workshop
BISMCS 475 Global Media Lab

C. Additional MCS Courses (MCS)

BIS 115 Digital Cultures
BIS 161 Introduction to Film Narrative
BIS 162 Race, Gender, and Sexuality through Film & TV
BIS 176 Introduction to Analyzing Media
BIS 178 Introduction to Media & Communication
BIS 179 Introduction to Journalism
BIS 205 Technologies of Expression
BIS 207 Shakespeare and Film
BIS 216 Introduction to Cultural Studies
BIS 223 Introduction to Feminist Film Studies
BIS 233 Social Media in Context
BIS 234 Media, Culture, and Capitalism
BIS 235 Critical Media Literacy
BIS 236 Introduction to Interactive Media
BIS 238 Language, Identity, Culture and Power
BIS 261 Introduction to Film Studies
BIS 313 Issues in Media Studies
BIS 317 Language, Society and Cultural Knowledge
BIS 324 Gender, Human Rights and Global Cinema
BIS 325 Japanese Popular Culture in History
BIS 331 Journalism and Media History
BIS 332 Global Digital Industries
BIS 333 Life Online: Interpreting the Internet
BIS 347 History of American Documentary Films
BIS 363 Politics and Popular Music
BIS 373 Caribbean Film and Popular Culture
BIS 375 Contemporary “Muslim” Artists
BIS 464 Topics in Advanced Cinema Studies
BISAES 369 American Culture and Mass Media
BISMCS 471 Advanced Topics in Media and Communication
BISMCS 473 Visual Communication
BISSTS 307 Science, Technology and Society

D. Topics (MCS)

Topics courses under the below course numbers may apply to the MCS major depending on the subject and title. Please see the Time Schedule notes for additional details about how these courses count toward the major.

Special topics counting as general MCS courses (MCS):

BIS 293 Introduction to Writing Studies
BIS 322 Theorizing Black Performance BIS 339 Global Media and Social Justice
BIS 339 Politics of Bollywood Cinema
BIS 341 Japanese Cinema, Theatre, Novel and Manga
BIS 341 Caribbean Popular Culture
BIS 341 Japanese and US Popular Culture
BIS 341 Gender in Film
BIS 341 Girls on Film

Special topics counting as Practice & Production courses (P&P):

BISIA 340 Art of the Remix
BISIA 483 Experimental Writing
BISIA 483 Internet Poetry, GIFs, and Memes

Petitions

IAS students may submit an online Major Petition form to request that alternate coursework satisfy a School of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences (IAS) major requirement. Students must be admitted or declared in an IAS major in order for the online petition to be reviewed.

Faculty Director

Please contact the Faculty Coordinator if you have any questions, concerns or ideas about the Media & Communication Studies major.

Lauren Berliner
Faculty Coordinator

All MCS Faculty

MCS Research Librarian

Nia Lam