Program Overview

Introduction to Digital Communication Arts

The Digital Communication Arts undergraduate major is offered as a Bachelor of Arts (BA), Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Bachelor of Science (BS), Honors Bachelor of Arts (HBA), Honors Bachelor of Fine Arts (HBFA), and Honors Bachelor of Science (HBS). This program is available at the Corvallis and Ecampus locations, with the BA, BS, HBA, and HBS options available at Ecampus.

Program Overview

The BA/BS/HBA/HBS in Digital Communication Arts focuses on the intersection of media and social life, providing students with a theoretical and practical understanding of the nature of changes in human interaction due to new media. The program prepares students for careers in media research and criticism, graduate studies in media, media policy, and media communications enterprises.

BFA in Digital Communication Arts

The BFA in Digital Communication Arts emphasizes media production, providing a foundation in media aesthetics, story conceptualization, and preproduction planning. Students explore their creativity within a carefully constructed curriculum, leading to independent work and portfolio development.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Appraise the relative merits of media technologies
• Choose media appropriate to a given task
• Evaluate and recommend public policy regarding media
• Manage change in the media environment
• Criticize media content using historic and emerging standards
• Communicate effectively in various media

Admission and Graduation Requirements

The Digital Communication Arts major requires a 2.0 GPA for admittance and a 2.3 GPA for graduation. Students must receive a C or better in all degree coursework, and classes for the major must be AF grading, not S/U.

Transfer Credits

Transfer students may apply a maximum of 12 credits of lower-division NMC credits toward a degree in Digital Communication Arts.

Production Foundations Experience

The Production Foundations Experience is a non-credit requirement that should be completed within the first two terms of declaring the major.

BA/BS/HBA/HBS in Digital Communication Arts

A BA/BS/HBA/HBS in Digital Communication Arts can be earned by completing the core requirements, as well as intermediate and advanced levels of study. All students receiving a BA degree must have proficiency in a second language, equivalent to that attained at the end of the second year sequence with a grade of C or better.

Course Requirements

The BA/BS major is 45-56 credits, with a minimum of 180 credits required to earn the degree. The course list includes:

• Core Requirements:
  • NMC 100: New Media and Culture
  • NMC 101: Introduction to New Media Communications
  • NMC 260: New Media Futures
  • NMC 301: Writing for the Media Professional
• Intermediate Level:
  • Select six NMC courses at the 200 or 300 level
• Advanced Level:
  • Select five courses at the 400 level

BFA/HBFA in Digital Communication Arts (Production)

The BFA major requires 91-98 credits, with a minimum of 180 credits required to earn the degree. The course list includes:

• Core Requirements:
  • ART 121: Digital Core Studio
  • NMC 100: New Media and Culture
  • NMC 101: Introduction to New Media Communications
  • NMC 260: New Media Futures
  • NMC 301: Writing for the Media Professional
• Foundation Coursework:
  • ART 101: Introduction to the Visual Arts
  • ART 115: 2-D Core Studio
  • ART 131: Drawing Core Studio
  • ART 263: Digital Photography
  • NMC 322: Landmarks in Media Content
  • NMC 351: New Media Visualization
  • TA 242: Visual Principles of Theatre
  • TA 346: Scene and Stage Design
  • WR 407: Seminar
• Select one course from the following:
  • ART 206: Introduction to Western Art: Neoclassicism to Contemporary
  • FILM 125: Introduction to Film Studies: 1945-Present
  • FILM 245: The New American Cinema
  • FILM 265: Films for the Future
  • NMC Electives:
    • Select two courses from the following:
      • NMC 240: Survey of Social Media
      • NMC 321: History of Broadcasting
      • NMC 330: The Meaning of Video Games
      • NMC 340: Social Media Strategy
      • NMC 388/COMM 388: Social Media and Interpersonal Relationships
      • NMC 399: Special Topics
      • NMC 421: Diffusion of Innovations
      • NMC 427: Digital Pornography
      • NMC 430: Media Theory
      • NMC 435: Media Effects
      • NMC 437: New Media and Society
      • NMC 490: Media Ethics
      • NMC 499: Special Topics
• Production Coursework:
  • Select 10 courses from the following:
    • MUS 493: Basic Recording Techniques
    • MUS 494: Intermediate Recording Techniques
    • MUS 495: Advanced Recording Techniques
    • NMC 255: Applied Sound Design
    • NMC 349/ART 349: Video Art
    • NMC 355: Sound Design for Visual Media
    • NMC 380: Pre-Production
    • NMC 383: Field Production
    • NMC 409: Practicum 2
    • NMC 410: Internship
    • NMC 481: Compositing and Digital Effects
    • NMC 482: Documentary
    • NMC 483: New Media 3-D
    • NMC 484: New Media Animation
    • NMC 498: Advanced Collaborative Experience