Do you love the written and spoken word? A communications major might just be fore you! Its curriculum includes a wide range of subjects such as mass media, journalism, corporate communication, public relations, and more. A foundation in these subjects prepares graduates for careers in several different fields, from human resources and education to media, business, digital media, and advertising. Communications graduates are also employed by tech and healthcare manufacturing companies to create their marketing documents.
Before exploring what you can do with a communications major, it helps to understand more about what you would study in this program.
What Does A Communications Major Study?
A 4-year undergrad communications program is designed to hone students’ communication and writing skills. The aim is to equip students with the knowledge and practical skills they need to craft and share messages that inform and resonate with a variety of audiences.
With the advent of the internet and social media, the way we find and consume information has undergone a drastic transformation in recent years. At the undergrad level, communications majors learn to discover, analyze, and share information using different media platforms to reach out to a wider audience.
Here’s a sneak peek at some of what you can expect to learn if you choose to pursue this major. You’ll study creative writing, advertising, television and media broadcasting, speech writing, news writing and reporting, public speaking, and mass communications. The curriculum also includes courses on technical communications, mass media, marketing, political science, and the theory of communication. Learning how to leverage various social media platforms is a relatively new but extremely important addition to the curriculum.
In a communications program, you’ll also learn how to write various forms of communication including catchy short-form advertising slogans, informative long-form articles, press releases, news reports, and technical documents. On completing a four-year program, communications graduates walk away with the ability to communicate and share information using different techniques across a variety of mediums from traditional forms to social media and video.
Now that you have a better idea of what a communications major studies, it’s time to answer the big question, ‘What does a communications major do?’
5 In-Demand Career Fields For Communications Majors
Communications majors are employed in a wide range of roles in many industries as you’ll see below.
1. Media and Communications
The field of media and communications is diverse and wide-ranging. The three major industries in this field include television, radio, and online media. Just these three industries alone employ communications majors in several different roles. Depending on your skills and strengths, you may be employed to handle written text, newscasting, or visual communications.
As part of your job, you may spend the major part of your workday:
- writing, editing, or distributing content
- creating marketing material, website content, speeches, and press releases
- analyzing annual reports that convey information about the company’s products, services, or activities.
Depending on the industry you’re employed in, your job may also include:
- acting as the spokesperson for your company
- presenting information orally
- responding to media inquiries
- arranging interviews with notable individuals.
Communication remains the main focus of the media sector, whether it’s for educational, informational, or entertainment purposes.
The main focus of the media sector is to communicate, whether for educational or entertainment purposes. While there’s tremendous scope for communications majors in this field, it’s also highly competitive.
2. Social And Digital Media
There’s no doubt that social and digital media are quickly emerging as the most powerful mediums of communication. The potential for growth in this field is right up there with traditional media and communications. Companies understand that leveraging social and digital media platforms is the fastest way to build their brand, attract new customers, and increase sales and profits.
Today, companies of all sizes make use of these platforms to disseminate their message, share company information, and inform customers about new launches. Some of your tasks in this field will include:
- creating content for marketing initiatives
- updating existing website content
- tracking the success of digital campaigns.
- managing a company’s social media accounts
- engaging in social media to increase brand awareness.
Trends change rapidly with social and digital media in terms of which platforms are trending and which are out of favor. To be successful in this highly competitive field, you must be flexible and learn to adapt quickly to changes as they happen. You’ll have to be able to develop effective and appropriate digital content strategies quickly in response to rapid changes across platforms.
3. Marketing And Advertising
Marketing and advertising have traditionally played pivotal roles in the success of any business. Despite the emergence of newer platforms such as digital media and social media platforms, the principles of marketing and advertising have remained the same over the years.
As a marketing and advertising professional, your responsibilities involve:
- helping companies build a solid brand identity
- developing a loyal customer base
- exploring ways to attract prospective customers
- boosting the company’s profits and name recognition.
In this role, you can expect to spend many hours monitoring market trends and conducting market research. You would also work together with the product development, public relations, and sales teams to develop relevant messaging campaigns. In addition, you may work alone or as part of a communications team to publish engaging informative and marketing content for different media platforms.
If you’re called for an interview in this role, take time to learn more about the company and prepare a marketing strategy based on what you learn. Most companies will assess your suitability for the role based on the potential marketing plan you’ve developed for them.
4. Public relations
A career in public relations may be a good fit for you if you are an extrovert and thrive on interacting with people. Public relations is all about building your network in order to spread your message to individuals, organizations, and the general public. This means speaking one-on-one to individuals as well as participating in press conferences and speaking to the media.
In this role, you will also be responsible for:
- writing press releases
- developing compelling story ideas to achieve media placement
- deflecting the negative media attention after a crisis in the company
- brainstorming ways to divert attention to more positive aspects of the company.
You must excel in the art of written and verbal communication to be successful in a public relations role. In addition, a great quality of a PR person is someone who can think quickly on their feet.
5. Writing And Publishing
You don’t necessarily have to be an extrovert to excel in the field of communications. With strong writing skills, you can be successful in the field of writing and publishing regardless of whether you’re an extrovert or introvert. There are plenty of job opportunities you can choose from in book authoring, journalism, or technical writing.
Professionals in this field communicate ideas using clear and concise writing. They know how to structure written content in a way that delivers the message in the most impactful and efficient manner.
If your strengths lie in revising and proofreading, publishing may be a better option for you. In this role, you would spend most of the workday editing and preparing content for publication.
There are several other job opportunities available to communications majors in addition to these five. You can find opportunities in human resources, sales, fundraising, politics, and others.
Although a bachelor’s degree in communications can get you a foothold in most jobs, a specialized communications degree is the ticket to a niche career in communications. Depending on your area of interest, you can choose a specialized communications degree in fashion, health, sports, technical communications, human resources, business, or visual communications among others.
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