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Public Relations and Advertising

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Communication, Journalism & PRUG

General

Requirements

Major Dependent Concentration(s)

Program Requirements

Students must fulfill the Oakland University General Education Requirements, the General College of Arts and Sciences Requirements, the College of Arts & Sciences Exploratory Requirement, and the Major Requirements. Additionally, students must complete a sufficient number of free elective courses to meet the overall credit requirement for their degree. A minimum of 120 credits is required, although some degree programs may require a higher total credit count.

General Education Requirements

In order to graduate on-schedule without taking additional courses, it is highly recommended that students meet with an Undergraduate Academic Adviser concerning the selection of all of their General Education courses.

Each candidate for an Oakland University baccalaureate will need to satisfactorily complete approved courses in each of the following areas: Foundations, Explorations, and Integration. For details, refer to the General Education Requirements section of the catalog.

Requirements for the liberal arts major in Public Relations and Advertising, B.A.

The B.A. curriculum in Public Relations and Advertising prepares students for careers in public relations, advertising, media planning and strategic consulting, or for graduate studies in related fields. Through practical application and rigorous coursework in theory and applied methods, students learn to analyze and interpret public opinion, create successful campaigns, engage critical problem solving, and building meaningful relationships.

The Public Relations and Advertising major requires a minimum of 44 credits (11 courses), of which 20 credits must be at the 3000 level or above. The requirements are distributed as follows:

Required Core Courses (Minimum Grade of a (C) is required)

  • course Media Ethics and Law (4)

  • course Introduction to Public Relations (4)
    or course Introduction to Advertising (4)   

  • course Public Relations and Advertising Writing (4)

  • course Research Methods in Public Relations and Advertising (4)

Theory Courses -Choose 1 (Minimum Grade of a (C) is required)

  • course Relational Communication Theory (4)

  • course Cultural Theory in Communication (4)

  • course Persuasion (4)

  • course Media Theory (4)

Capstone Course Related to the Major -Choose 1 (Minimum Grade of a (C) is required)

PR/Advertising Elective Courses - Choose 3

  • course Crisis Communication (4)

  • course  Introduction to Advertising (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Required Course, but not both

  • course Introduction to Public Relations (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Required Course, but not both

  • course Case Studies in Public Relations (4)

  • course Advertising Agency Workshop (4)

  • course Advertising Creative Strategy (4)

  • course Advertising Copywriting (4)

  • course Public Relations and Advertising Campaigns (4)

  • course Internal Public Relations (4)

  • course  Social Media in Public Relations (4)

  • course Special Topics in Public Relations and Advertising (4)

    • If appropriate; requires department approval.

Elective Courses - Choose 2

  • course Professional Communication (4)

  • course Persuasion and Social Change (4)

  • course Group Dynamics and Communication (4)

  • course Relational Communication Theory (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Theory Course, but not both

  • course  Cultural Theory in Communication (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Theory Course, but not both

  • course Persuasion (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Theory Course, but not both

  • course Communication, Culture, and Belonging (4) *

  • course Disability and Communication in Everyday Life (4)

  • course Communication in Organizations (4)

  • course Communication in Leadership (4)

  • course Health Communication (4)

  • course Health Communication and Close Relationships (4)

  • course Introduction to Journalism (4)

  • course Media and Social Identity (4) *

  • course Introduction to Digital Media Production (4)

  • course News Writing and Editing (4)

  • courseJ Media Theory (4)

    • May count as an Elective or a Theory Course, but not both

  • course Feature Writing (4)

  • course Media Storytelling for Social Justice (4) *

  • courseJ Digital Photojournalism (4)

  • course Video Storytelling (4)

  • course Television Studies in the Streaming Age (4)

  • course Popular Music Studies (4)

  • course Media, Gender and Sexuality (4) *

  • course Rise of Electronic Media (4)

  • course Multimedia Journalism (4)

  • course Media Design (4)

  • course Special Topics in Journalism (4)

Students must take 1 department approved Diversity Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) course. *Approved DEI courses have an asterisk.

Note

Courses count as either a Core or an Elective Course and may not be double counted.

Applicable Minors

All Minors are applicable to this major with the exception of the following Minor(s): Advertising, Child Welfare, International Orientation for EGR/CS, Public Relations, and Sustainability Engineering.