Earn your Communication bachelor’s degree or minor at Portland State University and build strategic, data-savvy communication skills. Customize electives in media literacy, family communication, and environmental campaigns. Learn research methods and analytics, gain hands-on experience with community partners, and fast-track with a bachelor’s + master’s option to launch careers in marketing, PR, public service, health, and media.
Learn to be an effective and strategic communicator with a bachelor’s degree in communication from Portland State.
Our flexible curriculum lets you customize your studies as you explore communication theory, research and methods. You’ll choose from a variety of electives — like media literacy, family communication and environmental campaigns — that connect classroom lessons to current issues.
Our faculty will help you improve your written and oral communication skills and introduce research methods and statistics that apply to real-world situations. You’ll learn applied skills like how to prepare public engagement plans or how to use data to track advertising expenses for political campaigns. You’ll also have the opportunity to study current issues like the relationship between social media use and mental health.
By graduating from our strategic communication program, you’ll better understand human behavior and communication and have the skills to start a professional career or attend graduate school in a wide range of fields.
We leverage our location in downtown Portland, Oregon to help you maximize your experience as a communication major. From hands-on coursework with community partners to alumni panels and guest lectures with local professionals, we connect you with the many possibilities Portland offers. Plus, PSU’s University Career Center can help you prepare to get your first job after graduation.
Enhance Your Skills with a Minor in Advertising for Communication Majors
PSU also offers a dedicated Advertising Minor for Communication Majors that provides you communication, advertising, and media skills, as well as the opportunity to work with real clients to understand consumer behavior, develop campaigns, and execute message and media strategies that connect consumers to brands in relevant and creative ways.
Flexible Online and Hybrid Course Options
Our flexible program helps you balance school and other responsibilities. You’ll combine fully online classes with hybrid classes that meet on campus one day each week, giving you the benefits of remote learning and the advantages of in-person interactions with your professors and peers.
We also offer a unique accelerated Bachelor’s + Master’s degree, which allows you to double-dip on your senior year credits. You’ll get your master’s in one year, not two, and save both time and money.
Graduating from PSU’s Communication program creates job opportunities with top Oregon employers like Nike and Oregon Health & Science University. Career paths for communication graduates include:
- Healthcare and education: Patient communication and academic advising.
- Marketing and public relations: Social media strategy, advertising and corporate communications.
- Media and journalism: Reporting, digital media and content creation.
- Nonprofit and advocacy: Fundraising, community outreach and political campaigns.
- Public sector and government: Community engagement, public information and public relations.
Communication is a growing field that shifts with new technologies. Our well-rounded graduates know how to adjust and innovate, whether they’re entering the professional world or pursuing a master’s degree in communication or a related field.
Ready to take the next step?
Apply today and take the first step toward an impactful, dynamic career.