Communication and Media Studies
YOUR MAJOR
Communication and Media Studies You’ll develop the skills needed to write for a variety of media formats, to produce visual media, and to conduct research while achieving an appreciation for critical media literacy, civil discourse, and the value of free speech.
EXPLORE
the areas of study that fit your interests The CMS program gives students the training and resources necessary to succeed in a variety of media industries including: • Adverstising • Public Relations • Journalism • Video and Digital Media Production • Film and Television • Media Research
WORK SIDE-BY-SIDE with our outstanding faculty
The program’s faculty consists of scholars who have experience working in public relations, print and digital journalism, TV production, and advertising. Our full-time faculty have earned doctorates, have published articles in national journals, and have received awards at the local and national level for their devotion to excellence in teaching and research.
Hone Your Skills in Our State-of-the-Art Facilities The CMS media labs include a full range of state-of-the-art equipment for digital photography, desktop publishing, web design, and video editing. Students can utilize the university’s multi-camera HD television studio and radio station to create and webcast their own programming.
“The CMS program is unique in that it offers so many awesome internships, projects, and hands-on opportunities that give you practical field work experience.” JUSTIN CRAWFORD, ’19 Intern, Pegula Sports and Entertainment
THERE’S A COURSE FOR THAT! The CMS program offers students a wide variety of classes that cater to their interests. From studying the next cultural phenomenon to becoming the next big screenwriter, our program provides students with an unforgettable academic experience. Some of our diverse courses include: Comics and Graphic Novels: With the current popularity of DC and Marvel entertainment, students explore comics as a narrative art form and the significant contribution comics have made to our popular culture. The Wire: In a newsroom setting, students encounter the rewards and demands of working together as a newspaper staff to produce monthly issues of our student-run newspaper, The Wire. Film and Culture: Students act as media historians and critics as they examine the cultural and social contexts of horror and sci-fi films and learn about the historical impact of each genre.
Our curriculum strongly focuses on the importantance of the mass media’s role in bettering the human condition. CMS students and faculty are dedicated to this mission having collaborated on events such as The Fostering Racial and Social Justice Conference.
COURSE SPOTLIGHT: Sports Broadcasting
Communication and Media Studies students have an exclusive opportunity to produce live athletic events for the ESPN family of networks. Students take on the roles of the production crew acting as camera operators, assistant directors, graphics producers, video and replay operators, and sideline reporters. Our upgraded multimedia facilities give students an immersive learning experience resulting in high-quality content that meets the standards of major television networks like ESPN.
Study in London Through Our Media Abroad: UK course! • Tour Warner Brothers Studios: The Making of Harry Potter • Take seminars at the Guardian Newspaper, the British Board of Film Classification, and the Museum of Advertising • Go behind the scenes at the CNN London Bureau • Visit the London Eye, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, Abbey Road, The British Museum, and more
“I was the co-founder of PR Student Society of Niagara and I loved every second of it. Being able to work side-by-side with students and faculty that shared the same passion was the best part along with seeing people smile after helping them promote an event or create print collateral for them.” JENNIFER GALLO, ’17 Membership, Marketing, and Banquet Director, Brook-Lea Country Club
GETTING INVOLVED
has never been so rewarding Our clubs include: • The Ridge Report News Webcast • The Niagara Wire Newspaper • WNIA Radio • Public Relations Student Society of Niagara • Lambda Pi Eta – National Communication Association Honor Society
Dr. Carrie Teresa and the student editorial board of the Niagara Wire visit Buffalo’s WIVB television news station for a tour of its studio. The Niagara Wire is one of the many extracurricular clubs that CMS students can join for practical industry experience.
ACHIEVE your career
Our graduates typically obtain positions in one or more areas of the communication industry, such as television, radio, newspaper, advertising, and public relations. They also apply their media writing, production, marketing, and research skills in other areas including nonprofit, education, healthcare, and governmental agencies. Recent CMS alumni have found jobs with: • Archer Communications, Rochester, N.Y. • Buffalo Bisons Baseball, Buffalo, N.Y. • WBBM CBS 2, Chicago, Ill. • WJZY Fox 46, Charlotte, N.C. • Respawn Entertainment, Los Angeles, Ca. • Spectrum News, Buffalo, N.Y. • WKBW News, Buffalo, N.Y.
“It was a Niagara alum connection that landed me my dream internship with WCBS in New York City. As I look at the other people in my field I see that we all started with high-profile internships. I am thankful to the CMS department for the opportunity. I’m not sure I would have gotten my foot in the door otherwise.” LEANNE STUCK, ’15 News Reporter, WGRZ-TV (NBC)
INTERN
with the area’s best professionals We have placed interns in all areas of the communications industry, including nonprofit organizations, public relations firms, advertising agencies, radio stations, television stations, cable companies, magazines, and newspapers. Our students intern with Buffalo Bills, Sabres, and Bisons, the Buffalo-Niagara Film Festival, Entercom Radio, Pegula Sports and Entertainment, Spectrum News, and many more!
For more information about the Communication and Media Studies program, please visit us at
www.niagara.edu/communication or call 716.286.8285.
Department of Communication and Media Studies Niagara University Dunleavy Hall 5795 Lewiston Rd. Niagara University, N.Y. 14109 www.niagara.edu