Welcome to the Communication Studies degree program, a new and dynamic curriculum that offers BA and BS degrees and a minor in communication studies. Communication is the process by which meanings are constructed through the use of verbal and nonverbal signals. Communication studies is the discipline that investigates the relationships among the use of symbol systems, the creation of meanings, and social behavior. Communication studies is a diverse field that impacts on all spheres of human activity—family and other personal relationships, education, commerce and business management, health care, technology development, religious communities, and civic life. Some researchers have found that communication is the most critically needed knowledge base and skills area for building good interpersonal relationships and successful organizations.
Communication studies is also a discipline of scholars who conduct research on communication processes in interpersonal and intercultural settings, in organizations of all types, in political and policy making arenas, and in many other applied contexts. The field has regional and national professional organizations—such as the Western States Communication Association and the National Communication Association—and professional affiliations that are global in scope—like the International Communication Association and the International Association of Business Communicators.