The
doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) program is based in the School of Communication and Information
(SC&I) and provides doctoral training for students seeking theoretical and
research skills for scholarly and professional leadership in the fields of
communication, library and information science, and journalism and media studies.
The focus of the program is on the nature and function of communication, information
and media institutions, policies, processes and systems and their impact on
individuals as well as social, organizational,
national, and international affairs. Interdisciplinary approaches to these
issues are strongly supported and encouraged in the program. The program is
especially well-suited for those interested in the interaction between new
information and communication technologies, the individuals who use them, and
the social/cultural/political systems in which they are embedded. However, students
with more narrowly aligned disciplinary interests (e.g., organizational
communication, interpersonal communication, health communication, library
management, journalism, and critical/cultural studies in communication) will also
find that this program serves them well. Students
may focus on any of the following areas: communication, library and information science, or media studies.
The communication (COM) area reflects faculty research and
scholarship focusing on five interrelated core areas: communication and technology, health communication, interpersonal communication, language and social interaction, and organizational communication; and mediated
communication. Students in this area
conduct problem-oriented research at the intersection of these areas that
focuses on a variety of prominent contemporary topics, such as social networks,
social media, online privacy and anonymity, children's media use, community
health programs, health campaigns, doctor-patient interaction, family
involvement in palliative care, global teams, organizational change, corporate
social responsibility, and institutional leadership. Multiple centers and
labs provide various opportunities for doctoral students, including the Center for Communication and Health Issues, the Center
for Organizational Development and Leadership, the
Network Science (NetSCI) Lab, and the Collaboratory for Organizing and Social
Media (COSM).
The library and information science (LIS) area provides a strong academic
foundation for students seeking theoretical and research skills for scholarly
and professional leadership in the library and information fields. LIS offers
concentrations in such areas as human information behavior; information retrieval, language, and communication; information agencies and artifacts; learning, youth, information and technology; and social and community informatics. The concentration considers the design, management, and evaluation
of information systems and services responsive to users' information and
cultural needs. Ph.D. students in the LIS area must have two areas of
study. With the assistance of their advisers, students select a relevant second
area from one of the other areas of the Ph.D. program or from elsewhere in the
university.
Media studies (MS) is
concerned with the political, social, psychological, and economic impact of the
media, as well as with the cultural and historical conditions that give rise to
contemporary media. The area includes the study of both the "traditional" mass
media and newer electronic technologies and telecommunications. Research and
coursework cover media content and effects; audience reception and interpretive
processes; the emergence of audiences understood in terms of race, age, gender,
class, and politics;
the sociology and production of culture; communication law, regulation, and
policy; and the media's roles in political and international communication and
in educational systems.
To earn a Ph.D., students must complete a minimum of
33 credits of doctoral-level coursework (or 36 if the student's selected area
of study is LIS) and accumulate 24 credits of dissertation research (or 27 if the
student's selected area of study is MS). In addition, Ph.D. candidates must have
completed a minimum of 12 credits of graduate coursework (or up to 24 credits if
the student's selected area of study is COM), which can be transfer credits from
their master's degree.
As a part of the interdisciplinary coursework requirement,
students must take 16:194:601 Communication, Information, and Media Proseminar: 16:194:608 Research Practicum; and 16:194:600
Colloquium. The number of credits in the student's selected area of study
within the program is 30 credits in LIS, and 27 credits in COM and MS.
There is no language or residency requirement, and students
may pursue the Ph.D. on a full- or part-time basis (except for the media studies area, which is full time only). However, students are
required to enroll for a minimum of 6 credits during the time they are taking
coursework in the program; furthermore, we currently offer no entirely online
courses. Teaching and research assistantships, which include full tuition remission,
and various fellowships are available for highly qualified full-time students.
SC&I
offers two master's degrees: the master of information
(M.I.) and the master of communication and media (M.C.M.). These
programs are described on the school's website.
Programs, Faculty, and Courses 
