Communication

Overview

Overview

Communication students from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign will study the nature of effective communication across domains, develop effective communication skills, and gain knowledge of how to help others improve their skills. Students gain theoretical and practical knowledge of public advocacy and debate and the critical capacity to evaluate the face-to-face and mediated political and cultural information upon which we all depend. They also should achieve a sophisticated understanding of the political and social import of communication on all aspects of public and private life, from public policy and health care to cultural norms, personal interactions, and notions of racial, class, gender, and sexual identity.

Communication is an appropriate major for:

• students seeking a general liberal arts education, with a particular focus on communication issues

• students preparing for careers in many different fields involving communication skills (for example, law, business management, sales, public relations, human resources, corporate communication, consulting, media-related fields, or politics)

• students preparing for graduate work in areas such as communication, media studies, public policy, or public health

• students preparing for advanced study in law, medicine, business, or human resources