Media Studies & Production

Department Office:
Annenberg Hall Room 205

Nancy Morris, Ph.D., Chair

215-204-8394

nancy.morris@temple.edu

William Mooney, Assistant Chair

215-204-1884

bmooney@temple.edu

Undergraduate Contact:

Amy Caples, Director of Recruiting
215-204-9717

caples@temple.edu

http://smc.temple.edu/msp

The Department of Media Studies and Production expands students' knowledge and skills to create, evaluate, and manage media content and organizations.  With the urban and global communities as their living laboratories, students draw on their creativity, entrepreneurship, intellectual curiosity and analytical abilities to navigate digital media in our global society.

Theory and practice are integrated into all areas of study in the major.  Media Studies & Production students learn how to produce, evaluate and manage media content for traditional and emerging media in a variety of genres, including information (news and documentary), music, comedy, sports, drama, and commercial and noncommercial persuasion campaigns.  They study institutions that create, distribute and investigate media products (e.g., production studios, television and radio networks and audience measurement companies) and learn how to create and operate successful media businesses.  Media Studies & Production students learn to think purposefully and critically about media, and examine media roles in history, culture and society from many perspectives.  They also learn how to act ethically as they interact with the world both in careers in media institutions and as media consuming and producing citizens.

The Media Studies & Production curriculum features Professional Options in four areas:

1)  Media Production Professional Option:  This option introduces students to conceptual and technical tools employed to create media content for the digital world. Students who study in this option develop strong professional skills as well as critical and analytical abilities that enable them to evaluate content for various media.  They seek career opportunities as producers, writers, videographers, editors, recording engineers, web site designers, and talent in traditional and emerging media.

2)  Media Business & Entrepreneurship Professional Option:  The practical and ethical ways to start, operate or participate in an enterprise that creates, produces, and/or distributes media content.  Students who follow this option seek career opportunities as media entrepreneurs, media production freelancers, owners/operators of production companies or recording studios, web site developers, or founders/owners of a station, channel or network.

3)  Media Analysis Professional Option:  Critical understanding of the roles of media in contemporary life, including media technology as a cultural force; the nature of media institutions, audiences, and texts; and the media as a source of shared social identities.  Students who select this option are prepared for careers as media consultants, editorial or technical writers, community activists, corporate communication producers, media scholars, and market research analysts.

4) Emergent Media Professional Option:  Focuses on critical analysis and production in new digital media, specifically in mobile media, the web, and video games.  Students who study this option develop an understanding of the global nature of the new digital media environment and its business practices, and production processes.  Students follow this option will be prepared for careers as digital media consultants, web designers, and marketing professionals in the converged media environment. 

Program Requirements:

PLUS Completion of a track (Media Production, Media Business & Entrepreneurship, Media Analysis, or Emergent Media)

*courses in various categories can only be counted once.

Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts

Summary of Requirements:

- University requirements:

• New students starting in the 2013-2014 academic year are required to complete the General Education (GenEd) curriculum.
• All students must take a minimum of two writing-intensive courses in the major, one of which must be at the 3000+ level. Writing-intensive courses are listed below with a "WI" in the Attribute column and are identified as Writing Intensive in their course descriptions in Self Service Banner, accessible through the TUportal.

- School of Media and Communication requirements.

General Requirements:

• Minimum of 42 credits in Media Studies & Production / maximum of 58 credits in Media Studies & Production
• Maximum of 78 credits in the School of Media and Communication
• Each course that fulfills a requirement for the major must be passed with a C- or better
• All prerequisites must be met unless exempted in writing
• No more than 20 transfer credits may be applied to the Media Studies & Production major
• Minimum GPA of 2.0 in the major
• No more than 8 credits in Kinesiology and Dance activities courses
• No more than 12 credits total for internship, practicum, and independent study courses

Course Requirements:

• Media Studies & Production Foundation Courses: 1011 (Introduction to Media Theory), 1021 (Media and Society) and 1701 (Introduction to Media Technology) must be completed within the first 45 credits at Temple University.  Students transferring in to Temple need to complete at least one Media Studies & Production foundation course at Temple, unless exempted by the chair of the department.

• Media Studies & Production 4785 (Internship) or Practicum:  Media Studies & Production majors can choose between Internship or Practica.  All majors must have 2.75 GPA or greater to enroll in the Internship (3-4 credit hours); all other majors with a lower GPA must complete at least one Practicum (Media Studies & Production 4487, 4596, 4597, 4687, 4787, 4887).
• Media Studies & Production 4039: Senior Seminar taken during final 30 credits
• Professional Option selections (minimum 18 credit hours)
• Media Policy & Ethics requirement (minimum 3 credits): Complete a minimum of one course from the following: Media Studies & Production 4221, 4252, 4296, 4454.
• Media & Critical Topics requirement (minimum 3 credits): Complete a minimum of one course from the following: Media Studies & Production 3421, 4153, 4445, 4446, 4453, 4497.
• International/Intercultural Media Issues Requirement (minimum 3 credits): Complete a minimum of one course from the following: Media Studies & Production 3471, 3473, 3572, 4496, 4571, 4572.
• Electives (up to 16 credits)

Internships and Senior Seminar:

The academic experience for all Media Studies & Production majors culminates with the Media Studies & Production 4039: Senior Seminar and Media Studies & Production 4785: Internship for 3 or 4 credit hours (NOTE: To qualify for an internship, students must have Junior or Senior standing, a minimum of 2.75 GPA in the major, and passing grades (C-) in the Media Studies & Production requirement courses.  For students with a GPA lower than 2.75, a Practicum must be completed in place of the Internship).  Together, these courses provide students the opportunity to explore their potential professional futures.  Internship opportunities exist locally (at virtually every media-oriented organization in the greater Philadelphia region), nationally (in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and other U.S. media markets), and internationally (in London, England and Tokyo, Japan, through the School of Media and Communication's Study Away Program and Temple's Education Abroad Office).  Students who wish to enroll in a second internship as an elective can take Media Studies & Production 4786 for 1 to 3 credit hours.

Practica

There are six (6) practica options:  4487: TUTV Practicum; 4596: TV News Production Practicum - Temple Update; 4597: Sports Production Practicum; 4687: Recording Industry Practicum; 4787: TV Production Workshop; and 4887: Radio Production Practicum.  Students enrolled in TUTV Practicum (Media Studies & Production 4487) play a key role in the operation of Temple University Television (TUTV) and will work with the course instructor, engineering staffers and others to schedule the station and produce original content.  In the TV News Production Practicum - Temple Update (Media Studies & Production 4596), students produce a weekly live-to-tape TV newsmagazine that airs on local cable TV.  The Sports Production Practicum (Media Studies & Production 4597) is a weekly sports program produced by students. Recording Industry Practicum (Media Studies & Production 4687) is an intensive, practical course that engages students in the day-to-day operation of our student-run record label.  TV Production Workshop (Media Studies & Production 4787), also fulfills the requirement of a practicum and involves the production of various content also for broadcast on local cable. The Radio Production Practicum (Media Studies & Production 4887) takes place at the WRFT 1610 AM radio station, located on Temple University's Ambler campus.

Media Studies & Production courses designated a "Practicum" can be taken as either Media Studies & Production electives or in place of Media Studies & Production 4785: Internship.

Suggested Semester By Semester Plan

Please note that this is a suggested academic plan. Depending on your situation, your academic plan may look different.

Bachelor of Arts in media Studies & Production

Requirements for New Students starting in the 2013-2014 Academic Year