Online Bachelor's in Communication
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Top companies need content experts to help them stay ahead. Earn an online bachelor’s degree in communications and build the skills these employers are looking for.
Choose from two concentrations in strategic communication or emerging media strategy and social media. Then complete an internship, conduct research, and polish your writing portfolio. Graduates can emerge as skilled digital writers and content strategists who can lead campaigns in many fields.
Get Curriculum Details
100% online
Choose from two concentrations
Financial aid available
Start in fall, spring, or summer
No SAT or ACT required
Eligible transfer credits accepted
When you earn your online bachelor’s degree in communications, you can develop skills that can directly translate to varied settings. At Maryville, you can learn to pitch and lead media campaigns by working directly on contemporary client-based projects.
Our online communications degree provides options to gain the skills to succeed in media today. You can choose between concentrations in strategic communication or emerging media strategy and social media. Each concentration requires an internship, so you can graduate with experience practicing your skills in a modern communication role.
We connect you to resources that can help you become digitally savvy and in tune with what employers need. Here, you can connect to our faculty of passionate media experts and graduate with a portfolio of professional writing, hands-on experience, and strategic insights to help lead media forward.
Flexible, affordable — and study 100% online
100% online coursework.
No campus visits required.
Earn certificates.
Depending on your concentration and chosen electives, you can pursue certificates in place of some exams.
Practical and project-based.
Complete your internship and gain access to relevant communication tools preferred by media professionals today.
Study at a respected school.
Join Maryville University, which ranks among Forbes’ “America’s Top Colleges” and the best values in private colleges by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.
Simplified admission.
Apply with no fees or entrance exams.
Get the support you need.
Apply to be considered for financial aid and get transfer credits for eligible courses.
Your bachelor’s degree in communications can help you qualify for jobs in a broad range of settings, from digital media companies to private companies seeking content creators to engage with customers online. Throughout the program, you can develop versatile skills to deliver strategic communications that can adapt as audiences, technology, and delivery modes change.
Continuously growing demand.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects job growth in communication careers, especially for media professionals who can create, edit, and transmit content on a variety of platforms. The greatest growth is for public relations specialists, where 17,300 jobs are expected to be added from 2018 to 2028.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Increase your earnings.
Jobs in communications pay higher than the national average for all occupations, with an average salary of $59,230 across all jobs in the field. Some senior level roles, which require related work experience, have median salaries in excess of $100,000, including advertising, marketing, and promotions managers ($135,900). Other lucrative opportunities can be found in roles like public relations specialist ($61,150) and editor ($61,370).
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Mobile is key.
Global devices and connections are growing faster than population and internet users, signaling a shift in how media is consumed today. Average number of devices and connections per capita is expected to grow to 3.6 by 2023. This has led to an industry increase in demand for skills delivering content that’s optimized for mobile. It has also caused employers to emphasize video skills.
Cisco Visual Networking Index
At Maryville University, we recognize that communication and digital media will continue to shift as technology adapts. That’s why we developed an online bachelor’s degree in communications that emphasizes learning by doing. It’s our goal to help you gain hands-on experience executing strategic media projects using the latest digital media tools.
Our online bachelor’s degree in communications offers you convenient access to courses designed to help you launch your career or advance in your desired field. It provides options so you can develop in-demand communication skills and specialize in an area that helps you achieve your career goals. Graduates emerge prepared to lead campaigns in PR, marketing, journalism, advertising, media, and other fields.
Maryville University was founded in 1872 and has been connecting motivated professionals with industry expertise ever since. Here, 90% of our faculty holds a doctorate or terminal degree. We’re proud of our reputation for quality academics, accelerated growth, and accessibility, because it demonstrates our devotion to advancing students like you.
Program Director and Associate Professor of Communication
Rebecca Dohrman, PhD, brings extensive professional experience to the classroom to prepare students for real-world applications. She holds a PhD in organizational communication from Purdue University. Dohrman has served as an extension services consultant for the National Center for Women & Information Technology since 2009, working with a range of universities to develop recruitment and retention plans to increase the number of women studying computer science using research-based strategies.
Dohrman is dedicated to enriching the workplace through diversity and inclusion, and her work focuses specifically on recruitment and retention of women in STEM professions. Dohrman’s forward-thinking leadership prepares the next generation of communicators and marketers to bridge organizational divides. She empowers communication students with hands-on digital and software experiences that foster collaboration and innovation in the workplace.
Dohrman believes technology and communication hold the key to authenticity and fulfillment at work. Her passion for cyber readiness has brought her to high schools, teaching students in the St. Louis area to build their own computers. She strives to equip students with the knowledge and skills to be productive in the digital workplace of the future.
The online bachelor’s degree in communications curriculum is designed to prepare you to adapt as the media landscape changes. It includes general education, the communication major, electives, and concentration courses.
You can specialize your degree with a concentration relevant to your career goals:
Strategic communication focuses on campaigns, law, and ethics, allowing you the opportunity to design and create dynamic communication strategies that can be adapted to changing situations, audiences, social movements, technology, and delivery modalities.
Emerging media strategy and social media covers advanced web design, video and audio communications, and crisis management. Coursework for this specialization is designed to prepare students for the transformation of traditional communication organizations into digital environments and to give insights about the latest e-media technology and applications.
Courses cover the broad spectrum of skills and tools essential to communications today. Qualified online communications degree students can satisfy the general education requirement through eligible transfer credits to complete the program sooner.
Required Communication Major Courses — Learn how communication is used in social, professional, and global applications.
Strategic Communication Concentration — Gain the skills to translate communication into actionable strategy for organizations.
Emerging Media Strategy and Social Media Concentration — Study the emerging trends that are shaping social media, its users, and our interconnected world.
Earning your online bachelor’s degree in communications can lead to more career opportunities as these skills continue to be prioritized by employers. Whether you decide to seek a leadership position or new insights to sharpen your strategic expertise, you can continue building your communications career here.
At Maryville, your communications degree can qualify you for early access to online master’s degree programs in business, management, and leadership so you can get a head start on your next round of studies. If you’re a qualified undergraduate student and you have not yet completed your elective requirements, we invite you to explore Early Access as an option.
Master of Business Administration (MBA), with twelve in-demand concentrations available.
Master of Management and Leadership, with options to create your own career path from areas like human resource management, executive management, and more.
Master of Arts in Strategic Communication and Leadership, learn to lead through an immersive curriculum that gives you the opportunity to study theory, gain practical experience, and earn relevant professional certifications.