what's required?
Once accepted into the BTMM program major, students are required to complete a minimum of 124-126 semester hours of course work, including Temple University Core courses and School of Communications and Theater (SCT) requirements.
Note: Requirements for new freshman students starting in the 2009-2010 academic year can be found in the Academic Bulletin.
New Bachelor of Arts Degree Requirements
(effective in the fall 2011 semester)
Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts
Summary of Requirements:
- University requirements:
- New freshman students starting in the 2009-2010 academic year are required to complete the General Education (GenEd) curriculum.
- All students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses in the major, one of which must be at the 3000+ level. Writing-intensive courses are identified with the code "WI" in the RCI column.
- School of Communications and Theater requirements.
General Requirements:
- Minimum of 42 credits in BTMM / maximum of 58 credits in BTMM
- Maximum of 71 credits in the School of Communications and Theater
- Each course that fulfills a requirement for the major must be passed with a C- or better
- All prerequisites must be met unless exempted in writing
- No more than 20 transfer credits may be applied to the BTMM major
- Minimum GPA of 2.0 in the major
- No more than 8 credits in Kinesiology and Dance activities courses
Course Requirements:
- BTMM Foundation Courses: 1011 (Introduction to Media Theory), 1021 (Media and Society) and 1701 (Introduction to Media Technology) must be completed within the first 45 credits at Temple University. Students transferring in 45 or more credits need complete only two of the three BTMM foundation courses; at least one BTMM foundation course must be completed at Temple, unless exempted by the chair of the department.
- BTMM 4785 or Practicum: BTMM majors can choose between Internship or Practica. All majors must have 2.75 GPA or greater to enroll in the Internship (3-4 credit hours), all majors with a lower GPA must complete at least one Practicum (BTMM 4487, 4596, 4597, 4687, 4787, 4887).
- BTMM 4039: Senior Seminar taken during final 30 credits
Internships and Senior Seminar:
The academic experience for all BTMM majors culminates with BTMM 4039, Senior Seminar for 3 credits, and BTMM 4785, Internship for 3 or 4 credit hours (NOTE: To qualify for an internship, students must have Junior or Senior standing, a minimum of 2.75 GPA in the major, and passing grades (C-) in the BTMM requirement courses. For students with a GPA lower than 2.75, a Practicum must be completed in place of the Internship).
Together, these courses provide students the opportunity to explore their potential professional futures. Internship opportunities exist locally (at virtually every media-oriented organization in the greater Philadelphia region); nationally (in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and other U.S. media markets); and internationally (in London, England, and Tokyo, Japan, through the School of Communications and Theater's International Studies program). Students who wish to enroll in a second internship as an elective can take BTMM 4786 for 1, 2 or 3 credit hours.
Note: BTMM 4785, the traditional internship, has been changed from "1 to 4 credits" to “3 or 4 credits," since this course or a practicum is required for those students with a major GPA of 2.75 or higher, and must match the same credit hours as the practicum courses.
Note: BTMM 4786, was recently added as a second version of the BTMM internship course. It is for 1, 2 or 3 credits. This internship may be taken as a second internship or as an elective after the student takes a practicum, provided that the student has completed all prerequisites and has a GPA of 2.75 or higher.
Practica:
There are six (6) practica options: 4487, TUTV Practicum; 4596, TV News Production Practicum—Temple Update; 4597, The Sports Production Practicum; 4687, Recording Industry Practicum; 4787, TV Production Workshop; 4887, Radio Practicum. Students enrolled in TUTV Practicum (BTMM 4487) play a key role in the operation of Temple University Television (TUTV), and will work with the course instructor, engineering staff and others to schedule the station and produce original content. In the TV News Production Practicum—Temple Update (BTMM 4596), students produce a weekly live-to-tape TV newsmagazine that airs on local cable TV. The Sports Production Practicum (BTMM 4597) is a weekly sports program produced by students. Recording Industry Practicum (BTMM 4687) is an intensive, practical course that engages students in the day-to-day operation of our student-run record label. A summer offering, TV Production Workshop (BTMM 4787), also fulfills the requirement for a practicum and involves the production of various content also for broadcast on local cable. The Radio Practicum (BTMM 4887) takes place at WHIP, Temple University’s Internet radio station located in the Tech Center on Main Campus.
BTMM courses designated a “Practicum” can be taken as either BTMM Electives or in place of BTMM 4785: Internship.
Existing Degree Requirements
To obtain the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media students must satisfactorily complete a minimum of 126 semester hours (124 semester hours for freshmen students starting in 2009-2010 academic year) of course work. Within this course work, students must complete:
1. Temple University requirements: Core Curriculum or GenEd
2. School of Communications and Theater (SCT) requirements. See SCT Requirements.
3. BTMM requirements.
The BTMM department requires majors to complete a minimum of 40 semester hours and a maximum of 54 hours in the major.
All students must complete these courses during first two years:
• 1011 Communication Theory
• 1021 Mass Media and Society
• 1701 Intro to Media Technology (starting fall 2011)
During senior year:
• 4039 Senior Seminar
[Note: Students who transfer in 45 credit hours or more are required to take only two of the three BTMM core: courses 1011, 1021, 1701.]
All BTMM students must also complete at least one of these courses:
• 4487 TUTV Practicum
• 4785 Internship
• 4596 TV News Production Practicum
• 4597 Sports Production Practicum
• 4687 Recording Industry Practicum
• 4887 Radio Practicum
[Note: Students can take a maximum of 12 credits among 4487, 4785, 4596, 4887, and 4682 Independent Projects.]
And BTMM students must take three courses between 2000 and 4887 and a writing intensive course in the major.
Click here to download the Graduation Checklist (PDF format)
(you will need Adobe Reader)
Any course serving as a prerequisite must have been completed with a grade of C- or better. Prerequisites are noted in BTMM's course descriptions.
For more information about course requirements, see the FAQs page.
- For a PDF of the transfer student Advising Checklist click here.
- For a table that converts old course numbers to the new University system (in PDF format) click here.