Thank you for your interest in the Ph.D.
Program in Communication at the University of New Mexico. I'd like
to take a moment to describe why you should consider the University
of New Mexico's doctoral program in Communication.
First, the Department of
Communication and Journalism at the University of New Mexico enjoys
a national reputation for providing a balanced, quality graduate program
leading to the doctoral degree. A recent survey conducted by the National
Communication Association ranked our program in intercultural communication
as one of the best in the country.
Second, the doctoral program
has a distinctive mission and focus unlike any other program in the
U.S. Our mission is to promote the study of communication, culture,
and change. The curriculum and research programs of the faculty address
the complex relationship between communication and culture as interaction,
artifact, and text. We are committed to excellence in teaching and
mentoring of graduate students, research, and service, and to fostering
a sense of social community which extends to the graduate community.
Third, the Ph.D. Program
offers an emphasis in three core areas of communication: intercultural
communication, health communication and mass communication and is
designed to prepare individuals for university teaching and research
positions. We encourage and engage a breadth of theoretical and methodological
orientations to the study of communication.
Fourth, we have an excellent
faculty whose work is internationally recognized. The faculty ranks
among the top schools in communication in research and creative publications.
The faculty has contacts with research institutions in many countries
across many continents including South Africa, Kenya, Mexico, Puerto
Rico, the West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Denmark, England,
Ireland, Palestine, Israel, Japan, China, and Taiwan.
Fifth, our faculty is not
only collegial but also collaborative. Doctoral students have ample
opportunities to work with the faculty on research projects to gain
valuable experience. Additionally, the faculty is oriented toward
working with you to design a program of studies to meet your needs.
Sixth, our graduate students
are known for building a sense of intercultural community that is
evident in their collaborative relationships, their abilities to engage
difference, their creation of structures of support, and their production
of excellent work.
Seventh, we provide different
forms of financial assistance. Most doctoral students who are admitted
to the program are offered an assistantship that includes a stipend,
tuition waiver, and health insurance. We have 17 teaching assistantships
and other research assistantships available each year. Our teaching
assistantship includes the opportunity to individually teach two classes
per semester, teach a variety of classes, and teach undergraduates
who bring a variety of cultural experiences into the classroom. The
specific details are available in the assistantships
section on the web.
Eighth, our graduates get
jobs. Over the past five years, Ph.D. graduates have accepted positions
at California State Univ., Northridge, Clemson, Montana State, and
the Universities of: Arkansas, Denver, Hawaii, South Alabama, San
Francisco, and Texas, to name a few. Our graduates obtain employment
in their chosen areas. The doctoral program prepares students for
a career in academia or in a research field.
Ninth, the length of the
program allows for efficient completion. For a full-time student with
a background in communication, the program may be completed in approximately
three years. Course work may be completed in two years plus a summer,
with a year for dissertation research and writing.
Tenth, the city of Albuquerque
and the state of New Mexico offer a number of unique advantages. New
Mexico is a multicultural state and the opportunity to study culture
and communication in the field is limitless. Additionally, Albuquerque
is the largest city in New Mexico and thus there are a number of health
and environmental organizations, television and radio stations, museums
and galleries, and businesses to access. The locale offers an environment
of beauty begging to be explored. We have over 340 days of sunshine,
mild winters, miles of recreational trails in the city, mountains
within 30 minutes, breathtaking open spaces and vistas, beautiful
sunsets, not to mention excellent cuisine.
Please call the Communication & Journalism
Department at (505) 277-5305, or send an e-mail to Dr. Pamela Lutgen-Sandvik
at
,
and
we'll be happy
to put you in contact with some of our current graduate students.
Please be aware that our deadline is January
15 for fall admission.
Thank you again for your interest in our
program.
Pamela Lutgen-Sandvik and Patricia Covarrubias
Co-Directors of Graduate Studies
Communication
P.S. If you are in the area, please come
for a visit. We'd love to show you around and have you meet the faculty
and graduate students.
Program
Overview
Typically
70 students are enrolled in the graduate program at any one time (40
Masters and 30 Doctoral). This provides a program large enough to
have a variety of communication interests but small enough to have
individual attention (with a 3-to-1 ratio of faculty to graduate students
and an average seminar size of 10 to 15 students).
What makes
our doctoral program distinctive is the focus on the role of culture
and change in communication. We define culture broadly as pertaining
not only to social/psychological orientations held by particular groups,
but also emergent identities, discursive practices and norms, artistic
and mediated forms, locations of speaking/acting/producing, organizational
systems, and institutional structures. We view culture as socially
constructed and structurally produced and therefore a factor that
is influential across all communication contexts.
The Ph.D.
program features culture and communication applied to three areas
of concentration: intercultural communication, health communication;
and mass communication. The doctoral program is designed to prepare
individuals for university teaching/research positions or positions
in the private/public sector that require the ability to conduct research
in applied contexts.
According
to C & J departmental requirements, the Ph.D. Program in Communication
requires 36 hours of course work beyond a Master's Degree, plus 18
credit hours for the dissertation. Additionally, 12 credits from M.A.
programs/other doctoral programs may be transferred to meet UNM requirements;
see section on Transferring Credits.
Areas
of Study
You
will work closely with faculty advisors to design a program of study
suitable to your interests and goals. While completing core courses
in communication theory and research methodology, you will concentrate
your Study in one or two of the following areas:
Intercultural
Communication - Communication between persons who are culturally
unalike. Cultures can include national, ethnic, gender, and other
distinctions.
Mass Communication - The structure, practice, social impact,
and criticism of the mass media.
Health Communication - Communication based on improving health
outcomes.
Advisement
or Program Information
Advisement:
Pamela Lutgen-Sandvik, Communication graduate adviser (
) Program
Information: Mary
Bibeau, C&J academic adviser
(277-1903,
)
Program
Requirements
The C & J Departmental
requirements for the Ph.D. Program in Communication are 36 credits
of course work beyond a Master's Degree, plus 18 credit hours for
the dissertation. Check the graduate course schedule for when courses are offered.
Required Courses:
Three theories/historical
foundations courses:
C
& J 600 History and Philosophy of Communication
C & J 601 Theories of Communication
C & J 614 Advanced Intercultural
Communication
Three methods coursesselected from the following list:
C
& J 507 Quantitative Research Methods
C & J 607 Advanced Quantitative
methods
C & J 608 Qualitative Methods
C & J 506 Critical/Cultural Study
Methods
C & J 538 Rhetorical Criticism
Electives and
Outside Cognate
The remaining 18 credits
of course work are electives. Nine credits (three courses) are to
be taken outside the Communication department to constitute an outside
Cognate.
Language/Tool
Requirement
You must demonstrate
competency in a language/research tool. There are two options to
meet this requirement.
Dissertation
and Comprehensive Exams
All doctoral students must write a Comprehensive Examination that
is read by a Comprehensive Examination Committee and participate in
an oral defense of this written work to the satisfaction of the committee.
Upon the successful completion of the comprehensive exam, you are
advanced to doctoral candidacy and begin work on the dissertation.
Doctoral
students must choose a Dissertation Committee of four people. The
chair of the committee must be a regular faculty member in the C&J
department. Two of the other members are members of C&J, while
the remaining member is a faculty member from a different department.
Ph.D. students must then write a dissertation prospectus that is read
by a Dissertation Committee and gain endorsement from a dissertation
committee for the prospectus in an oral defense of the prospectus.
If your dissertation involves human subjects, a completed IRB (Institutional
Review Board) Application must accompany the dissertation prospectus
when it is submitted to the committee.
Once
enrolled, you must remain continuously enrolled (except for summers
unless you are graduating that summer semester) in dissertation hours
until the work has been completed and defended. The completed dissertation
is also presented in an oral defense in front of the committee.
UNM's
Mission to Honor Cultural Diversity
New Mexico provides a rich cultural environment in which such diverse
communities as Chicano/a, Hispanic, Anglo, Native American, and others
have interacted for centuries. One of the strengths and missions of
the University is to engage in teaching and research within our multi-ethnic
context.
Relationships
with Other Programs
The UNM Department of Communication and Journalism maintains positive
relationships with other departments in the University, including
anthropology, education, sociology, psychology, women studies, public
health, and business. Graduate courses and seminars typically include
students from these allied disciplines. In addition, the department
cooperates with a variety of research institutes and centers located
at the University
For a complete list of deadlines for enrolled graduate students from
the Office of Graduate Studies, a pdf file can be downloaded at www.unm.edu/~ogshmpg/ogs_deadlines.pdf.
You will need Acrobat Reader to view the file. If you do not already
have a copy, you can download the software for free at this
Adobe site.
Doctoral
Program Courses
DOCTORAL PROGRAM CORE REQUIREMENTS:
600.
History and Philosophy of Communication (3) Advanced study of modern
history and philosophical foundations of the study of human communication,
with attention to contributions of both humanistic and social science
traditions, and with consideration of contemporary controversies
concerning theory and research.
601. Theories of Communication (3) Advanced
study of concepts, models, and perspectives in the development of
theories of communication, with attention to reciprocal relationships
between theory building and theory testing in the study of human
communication process.
614. Advanced Intercultural Communication
(3) Attention to historical roots and development of intercultural
communication, discussion of foundations and metatheoretical perspectives
to research about culture and communication, historical and current
exemplary theories and programs of research, with implications for
intercultural encounters, structural critique, and applications
for social change.
METHODS COURSES:
506.
Critical/Cultural Studies (3) Methods of analysis and critique
of structures, contextual factors, power relationships, and ideologies
in discursive texts, images and representations.
507.
Quantitative Data Analysis (3) Designing empirical research
in communication, with special reference to applications of experimental
design to communication research; methods of data analysis; developing
a research report..
538. Seminar: Rhetorical Criticism (3)
Analysis of criteria, methods, and procedures by which dependable,
trustworthy, and useful evaluations are made of rhetorical discourse.
607. Communication Research
Methods: Quantitative (3) Advanced study of methods, techniques,
and instruments useful in investigations that employ quantitative
analysis of human communication processes.
608. Communication Research
Methods: Qualitative (3) Advanced study of methods, techniques,
and procedures useful in investigations that employ qualitative
analysis of human communication process.
OTHER COURSES:
513. Seminar:
Culture and Discourse (3 per semester, to a maximum of 6)
This course studies the ways culture is created, maintained, and
changed through discursive practices. Content varies each semester
— e.g., gender, ethnicity, age, etc. and may be selected as
the focus of study. May be repeated with different content.
514. Seminar:
Intercultural Communication (3) Theories and evidence on
factors that facilitate and inhibit communication between representatives
of different cultural groups, across national boundaries, and among
people of different ethnic backgrounds.
518. Seminar:
Language Behavior (3) Theories and evidence on relationships
among speech, language, and behavior; specific focus on the pragmatic
dimension of semiotics, including general semantics, socio- and
psycholinguists, and communication systems.
521. Seminar:
Interpersonal Communication (3) Theories and research on
the components and dynamics of interpersonal interaction and comparative
analysis of approaches to study of interpersonal communication
523. Topics
in Interpersonal Communication (3 per semester, to a maximum of
6) Content varies; may be repeated with different content.
527. Seminar:
Persuasion (3) Theories and research on the processes by
which behavioral and attitudinal change are produced primarily by
messages.
531. Contemporary
Rhetoric (3) Approaches of different rhetorical theorists
to the analysis of rhetorical discourse.
533. Topics
in Rhetorical Communication (3 per semester, to a max of 6)
Content varies; may be repeated with different content.
542. Current
Developments in Organizational Communication (3 per semester to
a maximum of 6) Intensive study of one area of theory and
research in organizational communication chosen by the instructor
— e.g., conflict and negotiation, information technology,
organizational cultures. Content varies from semester to semester;
may be repeated with different content.
543. Organizational
Analysis and Training (3) Identification and analysis of
communication problems in organizations. Attention to problems and
requirements of communication training and development in organizational
settings.
544. Seminar:
Organizational Communication (3) Intensive survey of classical
and contemporary organizational communication theory emphasizing
current research trends. Advanced readings in such topics as organizational
innovation, intercultural organizations, critical theory applications
to organizations, computer mediated communication, and employee
participation.
550. Health
Communication (3) Concepts and strategies for preventative
health communication, in such contexts as provider-patient interaction,
health campaigns, social marketing, health images in the mass media,
and communication in health care organizations.
553. Topics
in Health Communication (3 per semester, to a max of 6)
Content varies; may be repeated with different content.
554. Diffusion
of Innovations (3) The spread of new ideas, especially
technological innovations, among the members of a system. Sources
of innovations, importance of interpersonal networks in diffusion,
and consequences of technological innovations
561. Seminar:
Communication and Media (3) Analysis of theories and methodological
approaches used to examine media impact on society. Current media
topics may be selected for class analysis.
563. Current
Developments in Mass Communication (3 per semester to a maximum
of 6) Intensive study of one area of theory and research
in mass communication chosen by the instructor. Content varies from
semester to semester, may be repeated with different content.
567. Mass Communication:
International Perspectives (3) The structure and role of
international and national media in molding public attitudes and
in policy making. Development of opinion on central issues in international
relations and in nation-states other than the U.S.
572. Multiculturalism,
Gender and Media (3) Students gain interdisciplinary study
in culture and communication by reading, discussing, and writing
about audiences, co-cultures (Chicana/os, Blacks, and others) and
feminist popular culture.
573. Teaching
the Basic Course. (TARC) (1) Current issues associated
with teaching introductory courses, focusing on the role of graduate
teaching assistants.
593. Graduate
Problems (1-3 hrs. per semester, to a max of 6) Independent
study on questions and issues beyond those covered by regularly
approved seminars Plan must be prepared and a faculty member must
agree to direct the study. Permission of Chair required.
699. Dissertation
(3-12 hrs. per semester)
Frequently
Asked Questions (FAQs) about the Doctoral Program
Q. How many applications
do we receive each year and how many people are admitted?
A. For the PhD program, we receive about 40-50 applications per year.
We admit 6 to 9 applicants per year depending on funding.
Q. What criteria do we use
for admission?
A. We utilize GPA, GRE, letters of recommendation, statement of intent,
writing sample (for PhD students), and other qualifications (e.g.,
conference presentations, publications, work experience, lived experience,
awards and honors, etc.). We analyze these criteria holistically.
That is, one is not more important than the others. We also address
how well your specific goals for research and teaching fit with the
goals and opportunities provided in the doctoral program. Our goal
is to accept a cohort of excellent students with diverse interests
across the areas of concentration and diverse backgrounds and whose
research goals are consistent with our program.
Admission to the MA and PhD
program is competitive. We only admit 6-9 people per year in the PhD
program. We choose to limit the number of people into the program
in order to maintain our intimate and supportive climate. We want
to make sure that students have ample opportunities to interact with
faculty by maintaining a relatively small faculty to student ratio
(about 3 students for every faculty member).
Q.I didn't receive a 1000
on my GRE test. Should I still apply?
A. Probably. You do need to have at least 800 on the GRE. While the
GRE is an important part of our application process, it isn't the
only criterion. In particular, the GRE doesn't measure a student's
motivation and perseverance. We have admitted students with scores
below 1000 before and we will do so in the future. We will carefully
examine your other qualifications and look for other evidence of your
abilities to succeed.
Q. What are the qualifications
for receiving an assistantship?
A. For a teaching assistantship, we utilize the following criteria:
(a) background in communication (i.e., we want you to have knowledge
about what you are teaching); (b) prior teaching experience (not required,
but certainly helps and can come in a variety of areas such as training);
(c) potential for being an effective teacher; and (d) academic credentials
(a degree from a respected institution and strong letters of recommendation
that include observations of your teaching).
Research assistantships are
positions on funded research projects conducted by professors in the
department. Therefore, these professors make decisions about the RAs.
Generally, they are looking for people who have good research skills
in one or more of the following: (a) library research, (b) internet
research, (c) grant writing, (d) statistics, (e) quantitative or (f)
qualitative research methods.
Q. How many assistantships
does the department have at any one time? A. At the Ph.D. level, we have 17 teaching assistantships (TA)
at any one time and usually assign 6-7 per year for new students.
We usually have about 10 TA slots available in the fall semester and
2-4 available in the spring semester for new students. Exact numbers
will vary year to year.
We also have research assistantships
(RA), but we don't have any set numbers. These positions depend on
the amount and nature of funded research being completed by the faculty.
Q. How long is the program
and how long does my funding (for a TA or RA) last?
A. The PhD program is a minimum of a 3-year program if you attend
full-time. Funding for teaching assistantships is for 3 years. The
University requires the degree to be completed within 5 years of passing
your comprehensive exams.
Q. May I research what I
like?
A. Yes, for the most part. Your assignments are limited only by the
parameters of the class (e.g., a theory class may require you to investigate
a theory) and you are free to choose the topics that you wish to work
on. For your thesis/dissertation research, you may select any communication
topic you wish so long as you are able to form a committee who will
work with you.
Q. Will I have trouble getting
a committee together and graduating?
A. Our faculty members are committed to helping you finish your degree
in a timely manner. We readily serve on committees and we will make
sure that you have the support to complete your degree.
Q. How many students who
enter the program actually graduate?
A. For the PhD program, we have a graduation rate of 91% (within five
years of entering).
Q.Do I need to have a degree
in communication to apply?
A. We do not require a communication degree to apply to the PhD program.
A degree in a closely related field, or work experience in communication,
are beneficial for your application, but we accept and consider applicants
from all disciplines. If you do not have any (or you have limited)
academic communication experience, we may require you to take foundational
courses as a pre- or co-requisite. For PhD students, these courses
are our MA level theory and research methods courses.
Q. What do people do with
a communication degree?
A. Most students with doctorates assume research positions in universities,
research centers, nonprofit agencies or become independent consultants.
If you have further questions
or want clarification about these questions/answers, please contact
the graduate co-director:
.
An
on-line copy of the Graduate Student Handbook is available here.
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