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Home Communication & Film Undergraduate BA in Communication Studies/JD joint program

 

Communication (Communication Studies)/Juris Doctor, (B.A./J.D.)

 

The joint Communication B.A./J.D. program is designed to give students an opportunity to combine a focus on human communication and persuasion with a specialized study of the law. Students will complete most of the standard requirements for the Communication (Communication Studies) B.A., replacing some major requirements with law courses. The Communication B.A. can be completed in 3 years and students begin their 1L courses in their senior year, creating the 3+3 structure (3 years for the Communication B.A. and 3 years for the J.D.).

Specifically, students enrolled in the Comm B.A/J.D. program would:

  • be required to take electives from only 2 of the 3 focus areas (applied communication and rhetoric, excluding media courses). Rather than taking 2 courses from each of those sections, these students would be required to take 3 classes from applied communication and 3 from rhetoric;
  • be exempted from taking the senior level capstone course, replacing the course with a first-year law required course;
  • replace the final required 6 hours of upper-division Communication electives with first year law required courses;
  • complete all other university, college, and department requirements for graduation.

In particular, students in this program will:

  • demonstrate competence in producing messages through various channels for different purposes, audiences, and contexts, in preparation for expectations of legal communication, including a focus on translating nuanced technical and procedural information into understandable arguments for inexperienced audiences;
  • critically analyze, interpret, and evaluate messages across various forms and contexts, including legal communication that calls for a dissection of arguments to component parts and forming rebuttals;
  • understand and apply communication theories and methods as appropriate to the situation and context in order to adapt to legal argumentation, with an emphasis on persuasion and argumentation, rhetorical theory, listening, and interpersonal communication;
  • articulate ethical principles and apply them in diverse communication contexts, recognizing and appreciating individual and cultural similarities and differences;
  • understand and implement communication in their personal and public lives to respond to local, national, global, and legal issues by emphasizing urgency and relevance to audiences and adapting to their needs.

University General Education Program (41 hours)

See University General Education Program for the General Education requirements.

College and Degree (B.A.) Requirements (6-9 hours)

The College and Bachelor of Arts requirements are in addition to the University General Education Program requirements that are listed above.

The Major (30 hours)

Major Core (6 hours)

All students must take

Communication Studies (24 hours)

First Year Law Classes (30 hours)

Legal Methods I/II, Torts I/II, Civil Procedure I/II, Property I/II, Contracts I/II, Criminal Law.

Electives (8 - 11 hours)

Completion of courses to bring the total to 120 semester hours.

Honors Program

To be eligible for admission to the Communication Honors program a student must meet the following requirements: (1) declare a major in Communication, (2) have completed 12 hours of Communication coursework, (3) have Department of Communication faculty member as an adviser, and (4) make an honors application to the adviser. Applications may be obtained from the director of the honors program or from the department office.

To be awarded departmental honors at graduation with the designation “With Honors in Communication,” a student must fulfill the following requirements: (1) maintain a 3.5 GPA in communication coursework, (2) maintain a 3.5 GPA overall, (3) complete all Department of Communication major requirements, (4) complete an independent thesis or an independent film/video project sponsored by a Department of Communication faculty member consisting of six hours over two semesters: three hours in research preparation (COMM 3330, COMM 4381, or COMM 4891 ), and three hours in completing the thesis project (COMM 4999), and (5) successful defense of the thesis.

Typical 4-Year Communication Studies Concentration Sequence