Admission to the major is restricted. Students who are not directly admitted into the Communication major when they are admitted to UMass can become a major only through a formal, written application process.
Applicants must submit a written application form and have completed, or be enrolled in, the following three courses:
1. Communication 118: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication
2. Communication 121: Introduction to Media and Culture
3. One Analytical Reasoning (R2) course, i.e., a General Education R2 course. (Enrollment in these courses is limited. No action will be taken on an application until grades have been received for these three courses.)
Transfer students must satisfy the same requirement: these three courses or their equivalents.
You may submit your application at any time during the semester in which you will complete this three course requirement. Your application will be placed in a "Pending" file. When the grades for that semester are issued, the Department office will determine if you have successfully completed the requisite course or courses and, if so, your application will be reviewed, and a decision will be made. If your application is complete, then notification of this decision should reach you by email within two weeks after the grades for the semester in question are available.
The evaluation of your application will be based primarily on (1) your performance in Communication courses, (2) your overall academic record, and (3) your application statement(s). For the 2006-08 academic year, it is projected that students with GPAs above 2.9 in University of Massachusetts Amherst Communication classes and above 2.7 overall in UMass Amherst classes will be guaranteed admission but that a number of students with GPAs below these thresholds will also be admitted. Applications with an overall UMass Amherst GPA or UMass Communication GPA below these thresholds are considered on a case-by-case basis.
If you are accepted to the Communication major and school is in session (Spring or Fall Semester) it is your responsibility to complete the Change of Major procedure. During the Summer and Winter Sessions, when you are not at school, the Department will try to complete the change of major process for you if you complete a "Permission to Change Major from Undeclared to COMM" form. This form will be attached to the application giving the Department permission to change your major.
It is strongly encouraged that you apply to the major by the end of sophomore year. Delaying entry to the major may require additional semesters to complete major requirements for graduation.
If you have any questions about this application procedure, please make an appointment with the Undergraduate Program Secretary in Machmer 407A to talk with one of the Department's undergraduate counselors.
