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Master of Arts in Communication Arts - Advertising and Public Relations

Ellis University is not currently accepting applications for this program.

The Master of Arts program in Communication Arts is an interdisciplinary program that incorporates sound theoretical principles of research, aesthetic design and cultural studies to achieve highly pragmatic and effective professional results. This program is appealing to media professionals seeking further career development, and to recent recipients of undergraduate degrees in communication arts or other fields seeking to advance their knowledge and skills.

For this degree, students must submit a portfolio that is completed during their regular course work. This is not an independent project, but must be done in close consultation with a course instructor, verifying that the work meets professional standards. Typically, master's projects in this area can include multiple media presentations, public relations or advertising campaigns, complete media business plans or scripts.

The minimum number of credits required for the MA degree - Advertising and Public Relations is 36. Academic credit for this program will not be awarded for previous professional experience in this field.

 

Courses Required of All Communication Arts Students:

• COM 510 Vocabulary of the Media Critic

  This course is designed to provide the student with the critical vocabulary used by media critics in discussing and evaluating non-technological aspects of various media. Material will be drawn from philosophy, psychology, semantics, aesthetics and literary criticism (3 credits).
  

• COM 520 Media Research

  This course is designed to familiarize the students with the basic research techniques (quantitative, qualitative, background research for creative projects, content analysis, opinion and audience research) used in the areas of public information, television, film and instructional communications. It introduces the students to the professional literature of their fields of specialization and to the skills necessary to read and interpret it (3 credits).
  

• COM 530 Media and Culture

  An exploration of the role of media in the popular culture and in society in terms of the interaction of media and culture. The media's role in reflecting society and, in turn, the shaping of media practice by society will be explored. Reading will include an examination of major works on public opinion and public policy (3 credits).
  

• DGI 501 Multimedia Production Tools

  This course introduces the student to image, text, animation, digital audio and video in multimedia products like DC-ROMs and web sites. The focus is the use of the computer as a media development system. Students focus on message design using text and graphics, and explore the computer's potential in telecommunications and new forms of media content. The development of the Internet as a resource for education, communications, advertising, and public relations is also explored. All students create a personal web page (3 credits).
  

• ADV 560 Advertising Copy Writing

  This course examines the business, craft and creative process of writing advertising copy. Students are assigned weekly creative and text assignments. Critiques and individual reviews of draft copy help impart a thorough grounding in advertising creativity. Students work on the integration of the verbal and graphic components in imaginative concepts, supported by coherent, entertaining and persuasive text, all resting on a carefully devised foundation of sound strategy (3 credits).
  

• ADV 570 Media Planning and Buying

  This course provides an understanding of the central position of media planning and buying in campaign development, as well as analysis of the organization and the purpose of the media plan. Discussion focuses on the rates and sources of information, evaluation of the representative media, problems of coverage costs, duplication and scheduling and the media sales process (3 credits).
  

• ADV 590 Strategic Advertising Campaigns

  This advanced course studies advertising from the consumer perspective, using a case-study approach. The focus is on the different ways that advertisers and consumers view advertising and how advertising campaigns are planned and executed to account for these differences (3 credits).
  Prerequisite: PRE 520.

• COM 563 Seminar: Integrated Marketing

  These seminar courses are designed to cover areas of current professional interest or to fill specific student needs. The topic of this seminar is Integrated Marketing (3 credits).
  

• PRE 510 Principles and Practices of Advertising

  The functions, organization and economics of advertising agencies will be studied. Then, using market research data, students will develop advertising plans and budgets, as well as plans for monitoring results (3 credits).
  

• PRE 520 Seminar: Public Relations I

  This course uses a case study format to evaluate and discuss public relations as a management function; its role in employee, community, investor, customer and government relations as well as laws and regulations affecting the profession are covered (3 credits).
  

• PRE 530 Writing for Public Relations

  This class is aimed at helping the student recognize the difference between effective and ineffective writing. Students are helped to improve the writing skills they need for careers in public relations. Focus in on persuasive writing and its components, which are needed to sell writing to clients, management and other gate keepers. Students are given the guidelines and practical experience for writing for both external and internal publics, everything from letters and news releases to newsletters and presentations (3 credits).
  Prerequisite: PRE 520.

• PRE 560 Advanced Public Relations

  This course uses a real-life situation derived from a business, non-profit organization or government agency. Students develop a complete public relations program, demonstrating their ability to formulate workable strategies and tactics for reaching appropriate publics. (3 Credits)
  Prerequisite: PRE 530.

  OR

• ADV 580 Advanced Topics Seminar: Advertising/Public Policy

  This seminar deals with current issues in advertising and public relations. Specific issues and course context vary in response to developments in the field. Among the topics covered in the course are: global advertising, direct response advertising, integrated marketing communications, sales promotion, business to business advertising, or events marketing (3 credits).