Your Personal Program of Study
Advancing the body of knowledge through theory building and testing, our faculty work closely with each student to develop a program of study that is both interdisciplinary and tailored to meet the specific needs and interests of the student.
Required Credits
Our doctoral program requires full-time study on campus at UNC-Chapel Hill and completion of at least 48 graduate credits:
Program Requirements
Our Ph.D. program can be completed in as little as three years, and many students choose this path. With four years of guaranteed funding, others elect to stay longer to compete more effectively for research-intensive positions at Research 1 universities or to pursue more ambitious dissertations.
Students typically complete 10.5 credits (three, 3-credit courses, plus MEJO 801 for 1.5 credits) each semester their first year. They take 3-4 courses per semester in the second year. They then spend the remaining year or more enrolled in 3 credits per semester, focusing on completion of comprehensive exams and then the dissertation.
An example of how a student could progress through the program:
Year 1 fall | Year 1 spring | Year 2 fall | Year 2 spring | Year 3 fall | Year 3 spring | Optional additional semesters |
MEJO 703 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Comps/ dissertation 3 credits |
Comps/ dissertation 3 credits |
Comps/ dissertation 3 credits |
MEJO 705 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
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Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
Course 3 credits |
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MEJO 801 1.5 credits |
MEJO 801 1.5 credits |
Course or transfer* 3 credits |
- 9 credits from three core courses
- 12 credits (four courses) in a substantive area
- 12 credits (four courses) of research methods
- 9 other course credits (three courses) selected in consultation with a faculty adviser
- 6 dissertation credits
Our core courses ensure that students have a sufficiently broad base of understanding of the key areas of our field and are introduced to the academy. They equip you to talk intelligently with colleagues in various specialties, make connections between different areas of research, inform your teaching of undergraduates and develop strong relationships with your fellow doctoral students.
- MEJO 703: Mass Communication Research Methods
- MEJO 705: Theories of Mass Communication
- MEJO 801: Professional Seminar in Mass Communication
Each student takes four courses in the substantive area they choose and completes four courses in research methods that align with the student’s area of study and/or dissertation.
A student may earn up to 21 of the required course credits in courses taken outside our school, either in other UNC-Chapel Hill units or at neighboring universities, such as Duke, North Carolina Central or North Carolina State. A student may request up to 3 transfer credits for a relevant graduate course taken previously.
For course descriptions, please visit the UNC-Chapel Hill course catalog. To review a course syllabus from a previous semester, please visit the Park Library’s syllabus archive.
As students finish coursework in their second year, they are also working toward finalizing the five-person committee (three school faculty members, two external members) that will help guide them through written and oral comprehensive exams, the dissertation proposal and defense, and the completion and defense of the final dissertation. Each Ph.D. student is on an individualized timeline, determined in collaboration with the student’s permanent adviser/dissertation chair.
Upon entering the Ph.D. program, each student is assigned an initial adviser to help acquaint the student with our program, culture and faculty. The student then seeks to identify a permanent adviser, who could be the initial adviser or anther faculty member with compatible research interests, by the end of the first year. The permanent adviser provides academic guidance throughout the rest of the program and chairs the student’s dissertation committee.
Prospective students are welcome to contact faculty members whose research interests align with theirs to learn more about their work. But because we assign each incoming student an initial adviser based on both research fit and availability, you should not seek a faculty member’s agreement to advise you. There is an opportunity in the application for admission to list UNC Hussman faculty with whom you’re interested in working.
Substantive Areas of Study
We support the below substantive areas in our school with faculty and courses. Each student selects a primary area in which to conduct scholarly research, while also developing competency to teach and/or practice in that area.
Study of the economic, ethical, historical, sociological and technological influences on media. This includes analysis of decision-making and examination of how new ways of conceptualizing news and journalism are influencing management decisions. Current and recent research topics that fall under this heading include changing news values for changing media, work-culture change in an evolving media landscape, shifting conceptualizations of international, ethnic and alternative media, advertisers’ responses to converged and multimedia operations and the influence of ethical standards on media practice and performance.
Study of the law and public policy affecting communication. Current and recent research topics that fall under this heading include First Amendment theory, the intersection of law and ethics, regulation of online media, censorship, intellectual property and government regulation of commercial and corporate speech.
We offer a dual-degree program with the UNC School of Law, enabling students to earn Ph.D. and J.D. degrees in about five years, depending on their individual programs of study and progress.
Study of how audiences process media messages and the effects of communication on audiences, often influenced by theoretical frameworks in cognitive, social and developmental psychology. Current and recent research topics that fall under this heading include media impact on health, media and identity, audience uses of media and the effects of news and message design elements on cognitions, affect and behavior.
Study of mediated communication and how it affects health-related attitudes, behaviors and health status. This includes the theory-based study of health messages, campaigns and social marketing, as well as the Internet and emerging communication technologies. Current and recent projects have focused on improving healthy diet, reducing tobacco use, preventing skin cancer, promoting HPV vaccination and increasing safer sexual behavior.
Study of the ways in which organizations, governments and members of social and political groups create and disseminate messages designed to persuade and inform. Current and recent research topics that fall under this heading include the impact of media on the political process and public opinion, the role of media in sociocultural identities, advertising effectiveness and brand communication, crisis communication, ethical transparency in strategic communication, the role of networks in public relations and advocacy, and social media and network analytics.