How to Declare a JMC Major?
If you want to study Journalism and Mass Communication (JMC) in the American University in Bulgaria(AUBG) you have to go through several courses to declare it. AUBG has a liberal arts system of education so you can take only one JMC course to see if this is the right major for you. However, you need to take five specific courses to declare your major.
Communication Media and Society (JMC 141) is one of the core courses in JMC. It gives an overview of modern media to students. The course has no prerequisites and students can take it whenever they want. If you are a JMC 141 student, you will have to do a brief analysis of news articles every week. In the second part of the course, students will need to make a presentation about a video, movie, or song which is going to be graded on the content and presenting skills.
Writing for Media (JMC 150) is a Writing Intensive Course (WIC). This means that students will have writing assignments throughout the course. JMC150 teaches students how to write for the public. Students can take JMC 150 only if they have taken JMC 141 and if they have a Sophomore standing. The writing pieces of students are not only corrected by the professor but also by the other students in the class. Stories need to be written clear and free of mistakes. The atmosphere in class is professional. The professor is the editor and the students are the writers.
Visual Communications (JMC 200) is a course that teaches students the concept and importance of communicating visually. The course teaches the students how to create an impact on the audience through visuals like color, graphic design, and effects. For example, students could research the impact of warm colors on the audience and how they might react. Students have creative assignments like shooting videos and making visual effects.
Media Law and Ethics (JMC 356) is a course that gives students knowledge about what is ethical to do as a journalist and what they can do according to the law. Students can take the course only if they have taken JMC 141. During the course, students analyze what is ethical in media from the perspectives of different philosophers like Kant, Aristotle, John Locke, etc. Practical assignments are given in class and a student analyzes the ethics of different media outlets, like ads, newspaper articles, movies, and videos. The course encourages discussions and presentations.
Digital Storytelling (JMC220) is a creative course that teaches students to tell a story using various digital platforms. Students can take the course if they have taken JMC 141, JMC 200, and JMC 150 because the knowledge from the previous JMC courses is essential. In JMC 220 there is an assignment to photograph people that are unknown to the students. The photo that they have taken needs to tell a story. They also have the assignment to interview an elderly person. At the end of the course, students need to tell a personal story with a video. The video needs to have a voiceover and images. This is the assignment that always makes people in class emotional because the videos are played in front of the whole class.
After students complete the above-mentioned courses, they need a signature from the JMC head of the department. Studying JMC is a combination of all these courses and every JMC student needs to know at least the core concepts of every course.
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Victor Velev is a student majoring in Journalism and Mass Communication (JMC) at the American University in Bulgaria. This is an explainer of how to declare the JMC major.
