Open JMC Major

Interested in a career in communications but not sure about a specialty? We can help you figure it out.

At Drake, you can start taking classes with the communications major and working on campus media from day one, giving you time to experiment and discover what you can do with a communications degree that fits your interests and passions. You can declare a major right away–or declare an Open JMC major, then make up your mind in your first two years on campus.

You'll gain the skills to communicate effectively to your audience. You'll learn how to write and speak well, and to use multimedia and social media professionally. You will learn to conduct research and to think creatively and strategically. You'll gain both a broad worldview through your liberal arts classes outside the SJMC, and deeply, through a required area of concentration. Most importantly, you'll gain real-world experience, both through class projects for off-campus clients and through extracurricular activities and internships.

More than half of our students get a second major in addition to their communications degree, expanding their career options even further. Depending on your interests, you might consider political science, business, marketing, history, English, theater, psychology, or sociology.

During your senior year, you'll complete a capstone, putting your skills to work in a real-world setting and developing a powerful piece for your professional portfolio. Advertising seniors create a fully integrated campaign for a business; public relations seniors produce a multimedia campaign for a nonprofit; and magazine and brand media, digital media production, and multimedia journalism seniors collaborate on a multimedia website.

What jobs can you get with a communications degree? You can be an advertising copywriter, digital media producer, social media strategist, online magazine writer, news reporter, public relations spokesperson, or speechwriter. You can work for an ad agency or brand team, corporation, educational institution, nonprofit, government agency, newspaper, TV station, or political candidate. Whatever path you choose, strategic thinkers who can communicate across all media platforms are in high demand.

Learn more about Drake’s communication degree and what the major has to offer!

Communications Faculty

All our faculty members have extensive professional experience in their fields to complement their academic credentials. That means they bring real-world knowledge to the classroom, and a wealth of connections that benefits their students. Visit our Faculty page to see a listing of faculty members by specialty and learn more about their qualifications.

Learn more about the major requirements for Drake’s Open Journalism Major and the internships & career opportunities in the field.