Department of Communication

The School of Communication is located in the School of Communication + Journalism  (SCJ) at FIU. The SCJ is part of the College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts (CARTA) and includes the former School of Journalism and Mass Communication and School of Communication Arts.

The School of Communication is committed to educating our students to become professionals, scholars and leaders in advertising, public relations and strategic communication in a multicultural and digital world. Our faculty conducts research for and about organizational communication, advertising and public relations.  This includes researching audiences, messages, and media as well as the influences and effects of strategic communication. Our degrees will prepare you for the fast-paced and demanding positions in organizational and strategic communication, advertising and public relations fields.  Our distinguished alumni work all over the world in all levels of professional practice in the industry.  We are also proud of a growing number of alumni who have pursued careers in academia.

In our curriculum, we consider advertising and public relations as complementary and overlapping disciplines that apply to all sectors of society including political, organizational, health, science, technology, in governmental, corporate and non-profit sectors. Ethics and social responsibility are central to the practice of strategic communication.  We emphasize these issues in all our graduate and undergraduate tracks. Students enrolled in Communication Arts courses can expect to develop communication skills essential for leadership, corporate communication and crisis management. Students will learn how to advocate and critically debate ideas in social and political settings, to appreciate diverse communication styles, to work productively in task oriented groups, and to engage in rewarding interpersonal relationships.

In our programs, you will learn to see strategic communication as a vehicle for social change, as well as a tool for influence and reputation management.  Combining the expertise of our faculty who are established professionals and scholars, we provide our students with an in-depth understanding of the most current issues in the fields of advertising, public relations, and strategic communication, and conduct research to advance knowledge in these fields.

Every year our graduating students work on a capstone campaign, pitching their campaign proposals to a real client with real-world feedback.  We have worked with hundreds of community business and partners throughout the years from largo corporations, to small businesses, start-ups and non-profit organizations.

We strongly emphasize practical hands-on experience to prepare our students for the workplace, and pride ourselves in our community outreach and community partnerships.  Also through a generous grant from Wells Fargo, we have re-launched the student-run, faculty-led communications agency BOLD.  We work with university as well as community clients to provide competitively priced services to clients and provide opportunities for student professional training.

Our department has one of the most successful PRSSA chapters in the country.  We enjoy excellent relationships with employers and alumni in South Florida and the United States. We also have a chapter of AdFed , a chapter of the AAF (American Advertising Federation). In addition to our diverse course offerings, the nationally recognized FIU Debate Team, the Communication Arts Studio, the student chapter of TEDxFIU,  and the FIU chapter of Lambda Pi Eta, the national honor society for Communication Arts students, are all housed within the department. Our graduate program also has a student group, the Global Strategic Communication Graduate Society that facilitates student engagement with the school for busy graduate students, most of which work full time.

Our study abroad program in Seville, Spain is a signature program for our department and school.  For more than a decade, SCJ students have traveled to the South of Spain to work with community partners there, including tourism and social service organizations, to conduct market research and present proposals based on their needs.

This is a great time to study strategic communication.  Jobs in corporate communication, public relations and advertising, whether in creative or management positions are in high demand.

We welcome you to explore our majors, our faculty bios and our student work.  Our faculty is passionate about our students and our fields of study.  We look forward to seeing you around our halls.

Definitions:

• Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics (PRSA, 2012).
• Advertising refers to the placement of announcements and persuasive messages in time or space purchased in any of the mass media by groups and individuals who seek to inform and/ or persuade members of a particular target market or audience about their products, services, organizations, or ideas (AMA, 1995).
• Communication Arts refers to communication skills essential for leadership, corporate communication and crisis management.

Profesional ethics:

• PRSA Code of Professional Ethics 
• AAAA Standards of Practice

Department Hours:

MMC: VH 212 from 8am to 4:30pm

BBC: AC2 320 from 8:30 to 5:00pm