Undergraduate Degrees
The School of Communication offers a program of study leading to a B.A. degree and a minor in Communication. Many communication majors pursue, with the school's encouragement, a double major with another discipline or select a minor area to complement the major. Through careful planning, students can easily complete these options within four years.
Students should consult with the undergraduate academic advisor at least once each semester to get departmental course clearance and to explore course selections within the major, the minor, general education offerings and electives.
Transfer Credit
Requests for transfer credit are evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Some lower division courses are transferable from accredited institutions, but upper division courses must be reviewed by the department to determine eligibility toward the major. No more than 50 percent of the upper division requirements may be transferred from another college or university.
Bachelor of Arts in Communication
| Required courses | Units |
| COMM 102 | Spoken Communication | 4 |
| COMM 200 | Theories of Human Communication | 4 |
| COMM 201 | Theories and Methods of Rhetorical Inquiry | 4 |
| COMM 204 | Interpersonal Communication | 4 |
| COMM 322 | Essentials of Argumentation | 4 |
A grade of C or better in COMM 200 and 201 is required in order to proceed to those upper division courses listing COMM 200 and 201 as prerequisites and to complete the degree. Students must complete six additional upper division courses (24 units). No more than four units of COMM 380 may be counted toward the department major.
Minor in Communication
COMM 102, 200, 201, 204 and 322 are required. A grade of C or better in COMM 200 and 201 is required in order to proceed to those upper division courses listing COMM 200 and 201 as prerequisites and to complete the degree. Students must also complete three additional upper division COMM courses (12 units).
Debate Squad
USC's Debate Squad provides an opportunity for outstanding students (3.0 GPA), both majors and non-majors, to compete in an intensive intercollegiate laboratory setting. Whatever the student's intended career, the skills he or she develops in research, critical thinking and oral advocacy will be invaluable. The team has an excellent record in both team policy debate and individual speaking events and has traveled widely both nationally and abroad.
Honors Program
The department offers an honors program for exceptional students, including honors sections of regular classes, special seminars reserved only for honors students (495), an internship (COMM 496x) and an honors thesis (COMM 497x). To qualify, students must maintain a 3.5 GPA both overall and in the COMM major after completing the core courses (COMM 102, 200, 201, 204 and 322). Contact the undergraduate advisor for further information and application forms.
Interdisciplinary Law and Society Minor
See the Department of Political Science.
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Produced by the USC Division of Student Affairs, Office of University Publications, May 1, 1995
univpub@stuaff.usc.edu