Communication Major Requirements

Graduation with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication requires a total of 34 course units, including 14 courses in the major. The following requirements are effective Fall 2026:

• Three Communication Core courses designed to introduce students to the breadth and depth of the field;
• COMM 2100 Research Methods in Communication (or a research methods course from the approved list below);
• Seven additional Communication courses. A minimum of three of these must be at the advanced level (3000-4999);
• Three non-comm elective courses from other schools and departments that complement the Comm major.
• Students who decide to enroll in a concentration or the Communication and Public Service program have more structured requirements for the completion of their 14 major credits.

In addition, students can take advantage of our many academic opportunities including choosing a concentration, engaging in the Communication and Public Service (ComPS) program, completing a thesis and graduate with honors, creating their own independent study, participating in an internship for credit, conducting research with a faculty member, and studying abroad.

Course Requirements

Communication Core Courses

Communication offers four Core courses, each of which has been carefully designed to introduce students to key areas of research within the field. Comm majors can choose which three of the four Core courses they take and are strongly encouraged to complete these before their Junior year. If a major completes all four Communication Core courses, the fourth course may count towards their intermediate COMM elective requirement. The four introductory courses are:

• COMM 1220 Communication and Culture​*
• COMM 1240 Media and Communication Industries*
• COMM 1260 Media Consumption and Effects*
• COMM 1280 Data Science for Communication**

*COMM 1220, 1240, and 1260 are revised versions of the following Core courses respectively: COMM 1230 Critical Approaches to Popular Culture, COMM 1300 Media Industries and Society, COMM 1250 Introduction to Communication Behavior. Students who completed these earlier iterations of these Cores can count them towards the three required Cores in the new major.

**COMM 2550 Foundations in Data Science for Communication can be substituted for COMM 1280 Data Science for Communication.

Communication Research Methods

To fulfill the research methods requirement, students are required to complete:

• COMM 2100 Research Methods in Communication*

COMM 2100 is Annenberg’s flagship research methods course. The course prepares students to understand the logic of social science research, to view research with a critical eye, and to conduct research independently. COMM 2100 is offered every semester. Comm majors are encouraged to complete the research methods requirement as early as possible. Students in the ComPS Program or those interested in writing a Senior Honors Thesis are required to complete the research methods requirement no later than the second semester of their Junior year.

*One of the approved courses below can be substituted for COMM 2100. 

• MKTG 2120 Data and Analysis for Marketing Decisions
• SOCI 2000/HSOC 2002 Sociological Research Methods
• URBS 2000 Introduction to Urban Research
• INTR 3500 Research Methods/Practice in International Relations (Note: Only available to Communication and International Relations double majors.)

Communication Elective Courses

Comm majors select eight Communication courses. As you explore the course list, bear in mind the following:

Non-Comm Elective Courses

Comm majors may take up to three non-comm elective courses from other schools and departments that complement the Comm major.

General Policies

All courses that count toward the major must be taken for a letter grade (not pass/fail). A maximum of three courses from either transfer credit, study abroad, or credit away may be applied to the Communication major. Undergraduates are generally ineligible to register for graduate level courses. Students who may have an interest in a specific graduate course are advised to contact the Registrar, Basha Starr, well in advance of the registration period.

Comm majors, as members of the Penn community, are responsible for adhering to the principles and spirit of the Code of Academic Integrity.