Media & Communication Studies
BACHELOR OF ARTS
On this page: Major Description | Requirements | Learning Objectives | Faculty & Staff | Courses
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.
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?
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 from this major 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.
Major requirements
Recommended preparation
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
Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites for Media and Communication Studies major. Current UW Bothell students can submit a declaration form if they are in good academic standing (2.0 cumulative GPA), follow this link to the IAS Major Declaration Form. Incoming students can apply directly into the major when applying to UW Bothell.
Useful preparation for this option includes formal and informal training in new media production. Students will need strong skills in critical and creative thinking, communications, and collaboration.
Degree requirements
The following degree requirements are required as of Autumn 2024 quarter. Student who enter the Media & Communication Studies (MCS) major prior to Autumn 2024 have different requirements. Please see your Academic Advisor for questions and academic planning.
- 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)
- 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 Courses (MCS) (25 credits)
- Additional IAS Coursework (20 credits)
TOTAL = 75 Credits
*Recommended to take prior to MCS Core Course
Note: Classes in this option are offered primarily during daytime hours.
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 Practices & Reflection (IPR): The IPR requirement can overlap with 70 credit major coursework or it can be completed through elective credits. Please see the IPR page for course options.
- Upper Division Credit Policy: Of the credits applying to the major requirements, a minimum of 35 credits must be completed at the Upper Division (300-400) level.
Courses
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 343 Media Production Workshop
- BISMCS 402 Community Media Practice
- BISMCS 472 Advanced Media Production Workshop
C. Additional MCS Courses (MCS)
- 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 232 Introduction to Data Visualization
- 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 331 Journalism and Media History
- BIS 332 Global Digital Industries
- BIS 347 History of American Documentary Films
- BIS 363 Politics and Popular Music
- BIS 464 Topics in Advanced Cinema Studies
- BISAES 369 American Culture and Mass Media
- BISCLA 318 Performance, Community, Identity and Everyday Life
- 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 to determine how they count toward the major view the special topic courses table.
- BIS 293 Special Topics
- BIS 295 Community-Based Practice
- BIS 322 Topics in Performance Studies
- BIS 339 Issues in Global Cultural Studies
- BIS 341 Topics in the Study of Culture
- BIS 351 Topics in American Culture
- BIS 393 Special Topics
- BIS 410 Topics in Qualitative Inquiry
- BIS 485 Topics in Cultural Studies
- BIS 493 Special Topics
- BIS 496 Community Service Project
- BISGST 397 Topics in Global Studies
- BISGST 497 Advanced Topics in Global Studies
- BISSTS 397 Topics in Science, Technology, and Society
- BISSTS 497 Advanced Topics in Science, Technology, and Society
| Course # | Title | MCS Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| BIS 293 | Introduction to Writing Studies | MCS |
| BIS 322 | Theorizing Black Performance | MCS |
| BIS 339 | Global Media and Social Justice | MCS |
| BIS 339 | Politics of Bollywood Cinema | MCS |
| BIS 341 | Japanese Cinema, Theatre, Novel and Manga | MCS |
| BIS 341 | Caribbean Popular Culture | MCS |
| BIS 341 | Japanese and US Popular Culture | MCS |
| BIS 341 | Gender in Film | MCS |
| BIS 341 | Girls on Film | MCS |
| BISIA 340 | Art of the Remix | P&P |
| BISIA 483 | Experimental Writing | P&P |
| BISIA 483 | Internet Poetry, GIFs, and Memes | P&P |
People
Faculty
- Lauren Berliner
Faculty Coordinator - Anida Yoeu Ali
- Carrie Bodle
- Peter Brooks
- Jill Friedberg
- Kristin Gustafson
- Susan Harewood
- Howard Hsu
- Ron Krabill
- Kari Lerum
- Minda Martin
- Joe Milutis
- Georgia Roberts
- Louise Spiegler
- Masahiro Sugano
- Min Tang
- Amoshaun Toft
- Samuel Yum
Research Librarian
Learning objectives
The Media and 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
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.