Frequently Asked Questions
There are very few academic departments in the nation that are directly linked with broadcast companies & media professionals in one of the quickest growing media cities in the nation. This allows us to provide our students with the most updated and relevant curriculum that will develop them to be well-rounded professionals in the industry. The Journalism undergrad majors are among the largest in terms of enrollment in the state, and they are some of the most diverse in the nation.
Faculty in our department teach and research communication from a variety of perspectives, including media studies, strategic communication, and rhetoric / speech communication, offering majors at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels.
Atlanta has many media-connected industries, and many of them offer internships, paid and unpaid, for credit. With local, state, national and international government institutions and non-government organizations in the city, many within walking distance of campus, students can gain experience from professionals working at these sites as well as report on what these institutions are doing.
The university has had a contract with GPB to produce programming about culture for twelve hours everyday since June 2015. This offers students the opportunity to record cultural events and post-produce broadcast quality programming.
Moreover, our department is honored to have Dr. Colleen McEdwards, who assists students with information about journalism entrepreneurial opportunities, and Elizabeth Strickler, who provides information about film/video/new media entrepreneurial opportunities. We’ve had many students receive internships at CNN, Turner Broadcasting’s Cartoon Network, the TV show The Walking Dead, TV/radio stations in town, public relations agencies like Edelman, and speech disorder clinics like Little Listeners, Greater Atlanta Speech, Language Clinic and Cornerstone Speech and Learning Center.
Doug Barthlow (dbarthlow@gsu.edu) coordinates communication internships. Contact him right away and we'll work with you to set up an internship. See Internships.
Entermediate is a student group whose mission it to bring professionals to campus. Public Relations Student Society of America, PRSSA, is an award-winning student group that works with professionals but also provides public relations work for non-profit organizations. CGSA is a department group that provide support, mentoring and social/networking opportunities for all graduate students.
The Global Business & Media program runs during the Maymester and includes trips to Istanbul and Budapest. Students receive 6 credit hours for participating in the intensive month long course. This unique, interdisciplinary program offers students a remarkable opportunity to learn about, explore and analyze an important topic: international business and global dimensions of an important industry— media and communications. See Study Abroad.
Apply by the following deadlines, which vary by degree:
March 15 for MA Program Fall Admission
October 15 for MA Program Spring Admission
December 1 (Priority Deadline for PhD) Fall Admission
February 10 (Regular Deadline for PhD) Fall Admission
Transcripts and letters of recommendation (if sending in hard copy) should be sent directly to the College of Arts and Sciences Office of Graduate Services. Do not send these to the Communication Department. The CAS Office of Graduate Services address is:
Office/Delivery Address (FedEx, UPS, etc.)
Office of Graduate Services
College of Arts and Sciences
25 Park Place, 3rd Floor, Suite 300
Atlanta, GA 30303
Office Hours: M – F 8:30 a.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Phone: 404-413-5040
Fax: 404-413-5036
Email: artsandsciencesgrad@gsu.edu
Mailing Address (U.S. Postal Service)
Office of Graduate Services
College of Arts and Sciences
P.O. Box 3993
Atlanta, GA 30302-3997
In addition to the general requirements of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Department of Communication has the following requirements:
- Acceptable GRE* scores on the verbal and quantitative sections. Currently, the median combined verbal plus quantitative score for our students is around 1200. The minimum score for consideration for admission (combined verbal and quantitative) is 1000, with a verbal score of 500 or higher. On the new GRE scale, a typical minimum verbal score would be 153, and a quantitative score of at least 144, with a combined total score of at least 300.) Our applicants typically average higher than these minimums, averaging a combined GRE of 303 or better.
- An undergraduate cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher. (In cases where the cumulative GPA falls slightly below 3.0, but the GPA in the major or in the last two years is above 3.0, the applicant should indicate this in the personal statement.) Because Communication is an interdisciplinary major, we accept students with undergraduate degrees in all areas. We do not require applicants to have an undergraduate major in Communication.
- Two (2) letters of recommendation from individuals who can evaluate the applicant’s potential for creative or scholarly work. Please list your recommenders in the online application (so they receive a prompt for letters via e-mail). If recommenders send letters via regular mail, please have them sent to the Graduate Admissions Office.
- Official transcripts from all colleges/universities the applicant has attended.
- Personal statement of goals for pursuing the degree. The personal statement is generally 1 to 2 pages (single spaced), in essay form, which gives the admissions committee a sense of who you are, your intellectual or artistic formation and interests, and your reasons for wanting to study in our department.
- For international students, the college’s minimum overall score on the internet-based TOEFLis 80. The minimum score on the paper-based TOEFL is 550. The TOEFL is not required of students who have a Masters degree from an institution in the United States.
- A portfolio of your professional work, if you are applying to the Digital Media Track of the MA in Communication Program.
- An assistantship application, if you want to be considered for funding (click here).
Financial aid–in the form of lab assistantships, research assistantships, or teaching assistantships–is available on a competitive basis for students in all tracks of the MA. In order to be considered for financial aid, we require that your application be submitted by March 15. Students awarded an assistantship generally have either a lab assistantship (for which they serve in one of the department’s labs/service roles such as advising or equipment checkout), or a teaching assistantship (for which they teach break-out sections of a large lecture course). In addition, most assistantships involve a research component, for which a student would be assigned to a faculty member in need of research assistance or to a department-wide project.
