PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS

Following is information about programs and majors offered in the School of Communications and Theater.  Listed under each degree program are the courses students must successfully complete to earn that particular B.A. degree.  These required courses are in addition to the University Core Curriculum requirements and the School's requirements.  See Core Curriculum and Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts Degree.

• American Culture and Media Arts 
• Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media 
• Communications and Theater 
• Film and Media Arts 
• Journalism, Public Relations, and Advertising 
• Speech Communication 
• Theater 
  
  

AMERICAN CULTURE AND MEDIA ARTS

Miles Orvell, Director
(215) 204-1054

Jeanne Allen, Co-Director
(215) 204-8429

The American Culture and Media Arts major combines faculty and courses from the American Studies program in the College of Liberal Arts and the Film and Media Arts Department in the School of Communications and Theater. Students can choose this major from either school. Majors will develop critical thinking skills relating to an understanding of the place of film, television, photography, and print media in our society. They will also develop skills in historical and contemporary research. Students graduating with the American Culture and Media Arts major can expect to pursue careers in media-related organizations, e.g. film, video, and radio production; archival and library positions; public relations jobs in media; museum research positions supporting exhibitions and media; writing about media for publications. Graduates can also pursue advanced training at the graduate level in documentary film production.

The program and its requirements are described in full in the Intercollegial Programs section of this Bulletin.

BROADCASTING, TELECOMMUNICATIONS, AND MASS MEDIA 
Elizabeth Leebron, Chair 
(215) 204-5401
e-mail : betsy@temple.edu 

The Department of Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media provides programs of study in the production, management, institutions, and social processes of broadcasting, telecommunications, and other popular systems of communication. Students examine both the history and the emerging future of communication technologies. The Department emphasizes four interrelated areas of coursework: 

1. Media Production -- the writing, editing, and producing of work  in radio, television, and new technologies, particularly for commercial, corporate, and instructional purposes.

Internships and Senior Seminar
Before graduating, Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media majors are required to take: (1) an Internship or Practicum and (2) the Senior Seminar, which together are designed to explore each student's professional future upon leaving the Department. Hundreds of businesses, organizations, and institutions in the Philadelphia and New York metropolitan area and beyond cooperate in providing opportunities for Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media students to work in relevant, professional ways for course credit. Also, students interested in pursuing further academic degrees can serve as research assistants in related media organizations or institutions. 

London Program 
The Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media (BTMM) Department offers special opportunities for study and research in London, England. 

Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts
The degree of Bachelor of Arts may be conferred upon a student majoring in Broadcasting, Telecommunications, and Mass Media upon satisfactory completion of a minimum of 126 semester hours of coursework with a cumulative average of 2.0 (overall and in the major). Within this coursework, students must satisfactorily complete: 

The following BTMM core courses must be taken during the student's first two years of majoring in BTMM: 

• 0011 Mass Communication Theory 
• 0020 Mass Media and Society 
• 0040 Media in Everyday Life 

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. 

A minimum 2.5 average in BTMM courses and completion of 60 credits, including the BTMM core, must be attained before registering for Internship. 

Only eight semester hours will be accepted from Physical Education or Kinesiology courses. 

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COMMUNICATIONS AND THEATER
Interdepartmental Major 
Don Heller,  Program Director 
(215) 283-1597 
e-mail:  dheller@temple.edu

The Communications and Theater interdepartmental major is designed in the liberal arts tradition to give students in the School of Communications and Theater a broad exposure to all of the communications disciplines, as well as allowing for an in-depth focus in more than one specific area of study. The major can be completed at Ambler and Tokyo, but some non-required advanced courses in special areas of interest are offered only at the Main Campus. Students are encouraged to propose individual programs that take advantage of the School’s extensive course offerings. 

Jobs in the communications industry are growing, and most SCAT graduates seek employment there. The Communications and Theater interdepartmental major also typically develops a broad range of interpersonal and mass media skills -- practical writing, oral skills, media production, and computer use. These are valuable to many careers in business, public service, and education, and many employers are looking for informed employees who understand communication processes. C & T majors can develop a suitable set of marketable skills for a broad range of such careers. 

Program Requirements 
Completion of all University and School requirements for the bachelor's degree (minimum total 126 semester hours), including the University Core Curriculum. Total hours in the major (from all SCAT departments): 42 s.h. minimum, 63 s.h. maximum. All Communications and Theater interdepartmental majors must take the following five required courses: 
 

BTMM 0011	Communication Theory
FMA X155	Introduction to Film and Video Analysis
JPRA C055	Introduction to Mass Media
Speech Com 0180	Persuasion
Theater C110	The Collaborative Art

• At least one additional course from three of SCAT’S five departments. (If these are advanced-level courses, they may also be used to satisfy requirements below.)
• At least two courses (3 or 4 s.h. each) in the major must be taken from SCAT courses at the 300 level. (Permission of the instructor may be required for Main Campus upper-division production courses in BTMM and FMA because of space limitation. Prerequisites in all departments apply.) 
• At least four other courses (3-4 s.h. each) must be taken from SCAT courses at the 200 or higher level, including one writing-intensive course. 
• At least 12 s.h. outside of SCAT must be taken at the 100 level or higher. 
• No more than 8 s.h. in physical education activity courses may be taken. 
• No more than 27 s.h. may be taken in any one SCAT department and counted toward the graduation minimum requirement of 126 s.h. 
• No more than 21 s.h. may be taken in any one department outside of SCAT. (This will allow for non-SCAT minors, if desired.) 

The Department of Film and Media Arts offers a Bachelor of Arts program in media production and theory. The program focuses on the development of creative and technical skills in film, video, audio, multi-media, computers and new technologies, and the theoretical understanding of media and culture. The program recognizes and explores the creative tension between individual expression and the social, political, and economic forces that shape culture at large. 

Students will be trained in developing content as well as craft, theory as well as practice. In learning independent and commercial approaches to production and theory, graduates will be prepared to develop their own independent productions and/or to assume a creative role in the motion picture and television industries. 

The department brings in guest media makers and visiting professors from diverse backgrounds for special lectures and workshops. Students may also select elective courses from other departments in the School of Communications and Theater in such areas as telecommunications, journalism, and theater. A highly recognized graduate program offers undergraduate students numerous opportunities to work on advanced productions and participate in advanced research in the field. 

After taking the FMA basic courses in their freshman and sophomore years, students choose to enter one of three sequences:  Production Thesis, Media Culture Thesis, or Non-Thesis. 

Faculty Mentoring 
The Film and Media Arts faculty strongly believe in the importance of close mentoring. This is particularly important in a department that focuses on individual and collaborative expression. Upon entering the department, each student will be assigned a faculty mentor who will guide the student through his/her four years at Temple. The entire Film and Media Arts faculty will participate in the review of each student's work in the Basic Core production/studies courses. 

Special Programs and Internships 
The Film and Media Arts Department offers special programs for study and research in London and Tokyo. Additionally, many organizations in the Philadelphia, New York, and Washington, D.C., metropolitan areas cooperate in providing opportunities for student professional internships. The department also offers a summer internship program in Los Angeles. 

Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Film and Media Arts 
The Bachelor of Arts degree may be conferred upon a student majoring in Film and Media Arts by recommendation of the faculty and upon satisfactory completion of a minimum of 126 semester hours of credit. Students must complete: 

1. University Core requirements 

2. School of Communications and Theater requirements 

3. At least 42 credits earned in one of the Film and Media Arts sequences as described below. 

Students may complete up to 12 additional credits in Film and Media Arts. The number of courses taken in the School of Communications and Theater is limited to 63 credits. A student must earn a C or better in all Film and Media Arts courses which count towards the degree. 

Due to the highly competitive nature of this field, students with Film and Media Arts averages under 2.0 for more than two semesters will be encouraged to change their major. Students with averages under 2.0 may not begin the program. Students may take up to four of the 42 FMA credits as an internship. 

Department Requirements
The Basic Courses 
Film and Media Arts students will complete the following FMA courses by the end of their sophomore year: 

• FMA 0100 Media Arts I 
• FMA 0101 Media Arts II 
• FMA 0102 The Production of Media Culture 
• FMA X155 Introduction to Film and Video Analysis 

Production Thesis Sequence 
Eran Preis, Sequence Director 
(215) 204-6991
e-mail:  epreis@temple.edu 

This sequence educates prospective film/video/media makers, media writers, and new technology practitioners to take creative control of their media. It emphasizes students' initiative in creating individual or collaborative projects that serve as an expression of their personal vision and voice. 

The Production Thesis sequence builds to a two-semester senior capstone course in which each student, working with close faculty guidance, will finish a film, video, new technologies production and/or script, a production book, and a critical paper on the theoretical issues that informed his/her work. Media work must be presented publicly at an end of the year screening. 

Students may enter this sequence if they earn a B average in the Basic Core sequence and a B average in Media Arts I and II, and if they continue to maintain a B average in the Film and Media Arts major. Completion of this sequence requires completion of Senior Projects I and II and is based on the grade requirements listed above, along with faculty acceptance of a Senior Project portfolio (which includes a proposal or script, and a work sample) submitted in March of the student’s junior year. 

Junior Year 

• FMA 0200 Videography or FMA 0210 Film Making or FMA 0241 Experimental Video and Multi-Media
• FMA 0201 Writing for Media 
• Production Elective 
• Studies or Second Production Elective 

• FMA 0382 Senior Project I 
• FMA 0383 Senior Project II 
• Advanced Writing-Intensive Studies Elective or Writing for Media II 

This sequence explores and explains how media works in American culture. The critical exploration of technology, economic and legal factors, social history, and institutions highlights the processes through which media culture affects identity construction and social change. Students who choose this sequence develop critical, analytical, and organizational skills in linking media culture to such arenas as community-based organizations and museums, schools, media resource centers, and the multicultural community of independent film and video producers. 

The Media Culture Thesis sequence builds to a two-semester capstone course in which each student will complete a written research-based thesis on media culture criticism and/or history or a producible script for reality-based and researched media programming. Students may enter this sequence if they earn a B average in the Basic Core sequence and a B average in Introduction to Film and Video Analysis and The Production of Media Culture. 

Students (including transfer students) who do not meet the above requirement may petition to enter this sequence based on a review of their written work. The petition must be received by the Media Culture Thesis Sequence Director no later than the third week of the semester prior to the semester when the student would be taking the senior thesis course. 

Junior Year 

• FMA 0203 Theory and Practice of Media Culture 
• 0200-0300 Level Studies Elective 
• 0200-0300 Level Production or Second Studies Elective 

• FMA 0300 Race and Racism in Film and Media Arts 
• FMA 0380 Senior Media Culture Thesis I (Serves as required advanced writing-intensive course) 
• FMA 0381 Senior Thesis II 
• 0300 Level Production or Studies Elective 

This sequence is designed for students who wish a more general approach to production and theory. Working closely with their advisers, students will choose from a number of production and studies elective courses to complete a balanced, liberal arts approach to media study in lieu of a senior production thesis or media culture thesis. Students may progress through the  Non-Thesis Sequence if they have a 2.0 cumulative average and grades of C or better in all the Basic Core courses. 
Students will work closely with their advisers to construct an individual course sequence that contains the following Film and Media Arts course requirements. 

Junior Year 

• FMA 0200 Videography or FMA 0210 Film Making or FMA 0241 Experimental Video and Multimedia 
• 200 or 300-Level Studies Course (a writing-intensive studies course will also fill the requirement for an advanced writing-intensive studies course listed below) 
• 200-Level Production or Studies Elective (with adviser's approval) 
• 200-Level Production or Studies Elective (with adviser's approval) 

• Advanced Writing-Intensive Course (Studies or Screenwriting) 
• Elective or Writing for Media II 
• 300-Level Production or Studies Elective (with adviser's approval) 
• 300-Level Production or Studies Elective (with adviser's approval) 

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