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Kansas State University

Undergraduate Students

A.Q. Miller School of Journalism and Mass Communications
Kansas State University
105 Kedzie Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6890
Fax: 785-532-5484

JMC Curriculum Guide: Electives

With the College of Arts and Sciences specifying about 60 hours of coursework and with JMC specifying another 39, students need 10 to 20 hours of electives to accumulate the minimum 126 hours for graduation. Some of these elective hours, of course, will be used to develop an Outside Concentration. But what about the rest? Students have complete freedom to choose these remaining courses.

Students often ask for suggestions of courses outside JMC that relate in some way to their professional interests. Some suggestions are listed below. A number of these courses can be taken to fulfill specific College of Arts and Sciences requirements. Or they can be taken as electives.

Business and Professional Speaking (COMM 311) (Pr: none) 3
Theories of Human Communication (COMM 320) (Pr: SPCH 106) 3
Interpersonal Communication (COMM 322) (Pr: none) 3
Freedom of Speech (COMM 430) (Pr: none) 3
Persuasion (COMM 526) (Pr: none) 3
Psychology of Mass Comm (PSYCH 530) (Pr: PSYCH 110) 3
Social Psychology (PSYCH 535) (Pr: PSYCH 110). 3
Psychology of Organizations (PSYCH 564) (Pr: PSYCH 110) 3
U.S. Politics (POLSC 325) (Pr: none) 3
The Legislative Process (POLSC 611) (Pr: POLSC 325) 3
Constitutional Law I (POLSC 614) (Pr: a history or polsci course) 3
Introduction to Ethics (PHILO 130) (Pr: none). 3
Graphic Design Techniques (ART 205) (Pr: ART 100 and 190) 3
Photography in Art I (ART 295) (Pr: ART 100 and 190) 3
Digital Photography (ART 395) (Pr: ART 386) 3
Computer Imaging (ART 400) (Pr: ART 200 and 210) 3
Marketing (MKTG 400) (Pr: ECON 110 and 120) 3
Consumer Behavior (MKTG 450) (Pr: MKTIB 400) 3
Business Marketing (MKTG 550) (Pr: MKTIB 400) 3

Extracurricular Coursework

Many JMC students participate in student government, athletics, music, debate or student publications activities. Students can earn academic credit for such extracurricular activities, but limits exist. For instance, a student selected to participate in the band can earn 1 hour a semester and apply up to 4 credit hours total toward graduation. The same rule applies to other music groups, athletic teams, and debate teams. Students can only acquire 3 hours of academic credit for student publications work. For example, only 3 hours maximum can apply toward graduation for work on the Collegian, Royal Purple or KSDB-FM.

Overall, a student can count no more than 8 hours of extracurricular credit toward the 126 required for graduation. For more details, see the K-State Undergraduate Catalog section on extracurricular credit.

Upcoming JMC Events

  • Nov 25: Thanksgiving break begins
  • Dec 11: Last day of classes, fall 2009