Academic Catalog 2022–2023

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Bachelor of Arts in Communication

Overview

Lebanon has long been the hub of the Arab world when it comes to the professions of communication, especially advertising and public relations.  The BA in Communication offers a critically-needed specialty designed to meet projected demand for new communication professionals in the region, particularly in the three areas of advertising and public relations, political and social communication, and interpersonal and organizational communication. It offers a multidisciplinary curriculum that incorporates the latest advances in communication technologies and methods. The BA in Communication builds on the department’s long history of graduating renowned communication professionals and scholars in various specialties.

Mission

The B.A. in Communication offers an interdisciplinary liberal arts and sciences curriculum balancing theory, research, professional practice, and critical inquiry. It prepares students to become innovative, professional, and ethical communicators capable of thriving in a rapidly evolving communication field and industry. It also enables them to be life-long learners, scholars, and critical thinkers who possess innovative and resilient capacities to adapt, succeed, and lead in an ever-changing and diverse global environment.

Program Objectives

Graduates shall be able to:

1.      demonstrate conceptual and practical knowledge for careers in communication across various specializations, such as advertising, public relations, social and political communication, and organizational communication,
2.      exhibit an appreciation of the theoretical aspects of communication, and an understanding of the cultural, economic, and political contexts that affect communication professions and processes in the Arab region and globally,
3.      exhibit technical competences with a wide range of convergent communication technologies and create professional, ethical, and civically engaged communication strategies and content, in order to communicate with diverse stakeholders in an increasingly multicultural and global environment, and
4.      demonstrate the required research, critical, and analytical competencies that enable them to pursue scholarly work and graduate studies.

Learning Outcomes

Students will be able to:

1.      demonstrate knowledge of the functions and roles of various communication professions,
2.      understand the value and needs of effective relationship management in today’s participatory media environment,
3.      critically apply major theories to various genres of communication studies,
4.      comprehend the historical, political, economical, legal, ethical, and technological developments in the communication industry and profession, globally, and in the Arab region,
5.      demonstrate technical abilities with a wide range of convergent communication technologies to research, plan, manage, and produce communication content, as well as design communication campaigns and strategies, and
6.      conduct research using quantitative and qualitative methods of scientific inquiry. 

Curriculum

For the B.A. in Communication, a student must complete a minimum of 92 credits, distributed as follows:

  • Major Core Courses (25 credits)
  • Departmental General Electives (15 credits)
  • Departmental Professional Electives (15 credits)
  • Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) Courses (30 credits)
  • Free Electives (7 cr.)

Major Core Courses (25 credits)

  • JSC224 Social Media (3 cr.)
  • JSC312 Media & Society (3 cr.)
  • JSC419 Media Law & Ethics (3 cr.)
  • JSC451 Media Research Methods (3 cr.)
  • COM202 Interpersonal Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM213 Public Relations (3 cr.)
  • COM226 Principles of Advertising (3 cr.)
  • COM498 Internship (1 cr.)
  • COM499 Capstone Project (3 cr.)

Departmental General Electives (15 credits)

  • COM223 Persuasive Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM260 Advanced Public Speaking (3 cr.)
  • COM301 Human Communication Theory (3 cr.)
  • COM312 Media and Gender (3 cr.)
  • COM313 Nonverbal Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM488 Topics in Communication (3 cr.)
  • JSC330 Arab & International Media (3 cr.)
  • JSC480 Global Media Literacy (3 cr.)
  • JSC481 Global Change, Cooperation, & News (3 cr.)

Departmental Professional Electives (15 credits)

  • COM305 Crisis Communication & Conflict Management (3 cr.)
  • COM316 Political Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM350 Media Entrepreneurship & Information Architecture (3 cr.)
  • COM353 Organizational Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM354 Health Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM358 Small Group Communication (3 cr.)
  • COM430 Writing for Advertising & PR (3 cr.)
  • GRDE313 Advertising Design (3 cr.)
  • JSC220 News Writing and Reporting (3 cr.)
  • JSC222 Digital Media Design (3 cr.)
  • JSC226 Multimedia Journalism Basics (3 cr.)
  • JSC228 Arabic News Writing and Reporting (3 cr.)
  • JSC314 Data and Society (3 cr.)
  • MKT201 Introduction to Marketing (3 cr.)
  • MKT302 Integrated Marketing Communication (3 cr.)
  • TVF222 Introduction to Audiovisual Media (3 cr.)

Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) Courses (30 credits)

Courses in the major cannot be counted towards the 24 LAC elective credits.

Free Electives (7 credits)

Study Plan

Important: English Level

The below 3-year study plans are based on the English level at which the student started: ENG009, ENG101, or ENG102. Please choose the right study plan according to your English level.

Students starting in Byblos

Students who start in Byblos may complete the first 3-4 semesters in Byblos. For the last 3-4 semesters, they need to transfer to the Beirut camps and complete their program there. Or they can split their courses between Beirut (T-TH) and Byblos (MWF). The department will try its best to schedule all required second/third year courses in Beirut on Tuesday-Thursday to limit the number of visits Byblos students need to make.

Students starting as of Fall 2018

Students who started their study as of Fall 2018 follow LAS Curriculum A. As such, the following courses no longer count toward LAS: ETH201, HLT201, PED elective. Instead of these courses, students who start as of Fall 2018 get an extra free elective. This is marked in the study plan in the last semester: LAS (or Free Elective if you started in Fall 2018).

 

For Students Starting at ENG009 Remedial English

Year One

Fall (13 credits)

  • ENG009  Remedial English (0 cr.)
  • LAS (ARA) Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)             
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • CSC201 Computer Applications (1 cr.)

Spring (16 credits)

  • COM226 Principles of Advertising1 (3 cr.)
  • COM202 Interpersonal Communication1 (3 cr.)
  • COM213 Public Relations1 (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • ENG101 Academic English I (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Summer (6 credits)

  • ENG102  Academic English II (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)

Year Two

Fall (18 credits)

  • JSC224 Social Media (3 cr.)
  • JSC312 Media & Society (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • ENG202 Advanced Academic English (3 cr.)

Spring (16 credits)

  • JSC419 Media Law and Ethics (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM203 Art of Public Communication (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Summer (1 credit)

Year Three

Fall (13 credits)

  • JSC451 Media Research Methods (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Spring (15 credits)

  • COM499 Capstone (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • Free Elective (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)

 

For Students Starting at ENG101 Academic English I/ ENG102 Academic English II

Year One

Fall (16 credits)

  • COM202 Interpersonal Communication3 (3 cr.)
  • COM213 Public Relations3 (3 cr.)
  • ENG101 Academic English I (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG101]/ ENG102 Academic English II (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG102]
  • LAS (ARA) Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)             
  • CSC201 Computer Applications (1 cr.)

Spring (16 credits)

  • COM226 Principles of Advertising1 (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • JSC312 Media and Society (3 cr.)
  • ENG102  Academic English II (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG101]/ ENG202 Advanced Academic English (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG102]
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Summer (3 credits)

  • ENG202  Advanced Academic English4 (3 cr.)

Year Two

Fall (16 credits)

  • JSC224 Social Media (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM203 Art of Public Communication (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Spring (16 credits)

  • JSC419 Media Law and Ethics (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM203 Art of Public Communication (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG101]/ LAS Course (3 cr.) [for students starting at ENG102]
  • LAS Course2 (1 cr.)

Summer (1 credit)

Year Three

Fall (15 credits)

  • JSC451 Media Research Methods (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Professional Elective (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)

Spring (15 credits)

  • COM499 Capstone (3 cr.)
  • COM Departmental Liberal Art Elective (3 cr.)
  • Free Elective (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)
  • LAS Course (3 cr.)

1 With prerequisite override/ Students can take this course in fall and substitute it for a LAS course in Spring. Students should consult their advisor on this matter first.

2 Students who started as of Fall 2018 get a free elective instead of these 3 credits, as PED elective, HLT 201 and ETH 201 are no longer required for them. 

3 Or the student can take this course in spring and substitute it for a LAS course in Fall. Students should consult their advisor on this matter first.

4 Students who start at ENG101 may take ENG202 in the following Fall with a heavier course load (18 credits) if they do not wish to take summer courses. Those who start at ENG102 do not need to take any course in summer of year one.