Degree Requirements
Transfer students
Transfer courses will be evaluated individually for mass communication equivalency by the Undergraduate Director.
Requirements for the Major
The major in Mass Communication leads to the Bachelor of Science degree. Students must earn a letter grade of C or higher in all mass communication courses and Satisfactory or S in COM internships, independent studies and workshops for these to count toward the major. Students may enroll in multiple internships up to 12 credits each. The total number of credits from all internships combined may not exceed 12. In addition, students must complete a 9-credit interdisciplinary concentration of upper division classes (300 or 400 level). Mass Communication majors must satisfy all Stony Brook Curriculum (SBC) requirements and accrue a total of 120 credits.
Completion of the major requires a minimum total of 36 mass communication credits. Mass Communication (CMM) majors are not permitted to declare a second major or minor in Journalism (JRN). They may double major or minor in Communication (COM) as well as minor in Communication and Innovation (CBI). Double majors and minors cannot get double credit for the same elective. Elective courses will be counted once and only apply to one program.
All mass communication students should see a departmental advisor to plan their course programs. The following courses are required of all mass communication majors; an asterisk (*) denotes an online course:
SBC Courses
This table illustrates major courses that can also be used to fulfill SBC requirements. (See Note 1 & Note 2)
| SBC Category | Required Major Courses | Optional Major Courses (see Note 3) |
| ARTS | | |
| GLO | | |
| HUM | | |
| LANG (see Note 4) | | |
| QPS | | |
| SBS | COM 106, JRN 101 | |
| SNW | | |
| TECH | | |
| USA | COM 106, COM 208 | |
| WRT | | |
| STAS | COM 415 | |
| EXP+ | COM 491 | COM 494 |
| HFA+ | | COM 307 |
| SBS+ | | COM 316 |
| STEM+ | | |
| CER | JRN 101 | |
| DIV (see Note 5) | | |
| ESI | COM 305 | |
| SPK | COM 120 | COM 365 |
| WRTD | COM 491 | |
Note 1: Some course information may be subject to change. Please contact your major advisor for additional consultation.
Note 2: For majors that require study in a related area or completion of a minor, visit the respective program’s “Major SBC Courses” page to view expanded SBC options.
Note 3: Denotes any course in which students can choose from more than one option. These may include, but are not limited to, major electives, concentration/track/specialization courses, or calculus/physics/chemistry sequences.
Note 4: CEAS majors, the Athletic Training major, the Respiratory Care major, and the Clinical Laboratory Sciences major are exempt from the LANG learning objective. Students enrolled in the major in Social Work are exempt from the LANG learning objective, but are required to enroll in and pass with a letter grade of C or higher the first semester of an elementary foreign language course numbered 111, or satisfy through alternate methods.
Note 5: Students are responsible for completing the general education requirements published in the Bulletin that was current as of the first semester of matriculation (or rematriculation). The following student groups must satisfy the DIV learning objective as part of their degree requirements:
- Freshmen who matriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
- Transfer students who matriculate in the Spring of 2020 or later
- Students who rematriculate in the Fall of 2019 or later
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