Catalog Navigator : History and Aims of the School

History and Aims of the School

The School of Communication and Information (SC&I) is a dynamic center of learning at the heart of the Rutgers University-New Brunswick College Avenue campus. Founded in 1982 with the merger of the Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, the School of Communication Studies, and the Department of Urban Journalism, SC&I research and teaching focuses on organizational communication, social and new media, library and information science, journalism and media studies, information technology, and health communication and information. The school's competitive and renowned programs prepare students for top careers in today's digital environment.

The school leads the university in the study of communication, information, and media processes, organizations, and technologies as they shape and define individuals, societies, and the relationships among them. Rapidly expanding communication and information technologies are drawing these distinct but allied fields closer together while, at the same time, extending beyond them and exerting a major influence on our society and its economic and cultural endeavors. As a community of scholars and teachers, SC&I is committed to educating individuals who will make lasting contributions to the interdisciplinary study and professional practice of communication, journalism and media, library and information science, and to society at large.

Fast Facts

Almost 70 full-time faculty members in three departments: Communication, Journalism and Media Studies, Library and Information Science
Over 1,900 undergraduate students pursuing one of three undergraduate majors: communication, information technology and informatics, journalism and media studies
Over 400 students in two undergraduate minors: digital communication, information, and media; and gender and media
Over �600 students--both on campus and online--in two master's programs: communication and media, and information
Over 90 doctoral students
On-site and online continuing education classes available
About 150 part-time faculty members, most of whom are highly accomplished communication, information, and media professionals working in the metropolitan area
Over 27,000 alumni
Tuition is competitive with the top 10 national programs in these disciplines
Located less than 40 miles from New York City and 60 miles from Philadelphia
Faculty and students win national awards every year from scholarly and professional associations

The most up-to-date information about the School of Communication and Information may be found on the school's website at http://comminfo.rutgers.edu.

Undergraduate Studies

The School of Communication and Information (SC&I) offers undergraduate courses open to students across the university that are of general interest and may fulfill requirements of the Core Curriculum, such as Public Speaking; Intercultural Communication;�Gender and Technology; Gender, Race, and Class in the Media; Health Message and Campaign Design.

The school offers the following majors and minors that may be taken as part of a bachelor's program:

Communication major
Information technology and informatics major
Journalism and media studies major
Digital communication, information, and media minor
Gender and media minor

Each of these programs has specializations that are outlined in the catalog section�Programs of Study.

The school does not admit first-year or transfer students directly to the university. Students enter through a Rutgers school such as the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Environmental and Biological Sciences, or the Mason Gross School of the Arts, and may choose a major or second major or minor in a SC&I program. All students must conform to the requirements and policies of their four-year school as well as the policies of SC&I for their major and/or minor.

Because the curricula of the school reflect the very dynamic disciplines and professional fields in the areas of communication, information technology, journalism, and media, new programs and new specializations within those programs are regularly developed and offered. Check the school's website at http://comminfo.rutgers.edu for the most up-to-date information about programs offered.