Advertising & Marketing Communication, BA

Location(s): On Campus

The interdisciplinary major in Advertising & Marketing Communication prepares students for careers in advertising, graphic design, marketing, and media sales. It includes courses in business, communication, and graphic design and culminates in a capstone course that integrates the liberal arts and the interdisciplinary major.

The overarching goal of this curriculum is to provide the student with a thorough understanding of the advertising and marketing communication field, including a firm foundation in the application of visual and textual thinking in actual projects and presentations, as well as a broad understanding of the content and principles of business, communication, and graphic design.

The student learning outcomes of the major are for the student to:

Incorporate credible and relevant information into a marketing campaign.
Write technically and persuasively.
Use the elements and principles of design to create designs that effectively organize and present visual information to support a marketing plan.
Orally present and defend a creative marketing solution.

Major Requirements: Advertising & Marketing Communication

The major program requires a total of 48 hours of course work from the following:

Marketing Courses, Required: (15 hours)

Each course listed is 3 hours.

BUS 106: Business Ethics and Society Credit: 3
BUS 303: Principles of Marketing Credit: 3
BUS 306: Advertising Strategy Credit: 3

Choose two of the following: (6 hours)

Courses with an asterisk are available online through the Rize consortium.

BUS 304: SEO/SEM (Search Engine Optimization and Marketing) Credit: 3 *
BUS 336: Social Media Marketing Credit: 3 *
BUS 337: Email Marketing Credit: 3 *
BUS 338: Digital Marketing Analytics Credit: 3 *
BUS 339: Viral and Organic Growth Credit: 3 *

Communication Courses, Required: (9 hours)

Each course listed is 3 hours.

COM 202: Public Speaking Credit: 3
COM 215: Introduction to Media Studies Credit: 3
COM 340: Persuasion Credit: 3

Graphic Design Courses, Required: (15 hours)

Each course listed is 3 hours.

ART 101: Drawing Credit: 3
ART 106: Understanding Images Credit: 3
ART 225: Graphic Design Credit: 3
ART 275: Digital Photography Credit: 3
ART 340: Intermediate Graphic Design Credit: 3
OR
ART 345: Web Design Credit: 3

Upper-Level Elective, Choose two of the following: (6 hours)

Each course listed is 3 hours.

ART 340: Intermediate Graphic Design Credit: 3
ART 345: Web Design Credit: 3
ART 385: Studio Photo: Portrait & Product Credit: 3
ART 440: Portfolio Building: Graphic Design Credit: 3
BUS 304: SEO/SEM (Search Engine Optimization and Marketing) Credit: 3 *
BUS 336: Social Media Marketing Credit: 3 *
BUS 337: Email Marketing Credit: 3 *
BUS 338: Digital Marketing Analytics Credit: 3 *
BUS 339: Viral and Organic Growth Credit: 3 *
AMC 452: Field Study Credit: 1-12

Capstone Course/Integrative Experience, Required: Credit: 3

AMC 470: Senior Project/Integrative Experience in Advertising & Marketing Communication Credit: 3

Integrative Experience

The integrative experience is achieved through the AMC 470: Senior Project/Integrative Experience in Advertising & Marketing Communication . In this course, the students are asked to draw on their General Education and major experiences as they work as a team to develop a written marketing plan and supporting graphic design materials for a local business or nonprofit organization. The final plan, market research, and supporting designs are presented to the client in a formal presentation at the end of the semester.

Professional Development

Throughout her Wesleyan education each student is given opportunities to explore professional and career choices, and to develop and demonstrate the knowledge and skills essential for professional success. Each student will complete PDE 350: Professional Practice Seminar and PDE 400: Professional Development Experience .

The AMC 470 capstone course in the Advertising Marketing and Communication major is designed to function as a working ad agency. This provides professional development by giving each student a real world marketing experience through the development of a marketing project for a real business or nonprofit organization. Professional aspects of this project include: working within a team atmosphere, learning to work for and meet the needs of a client, and employ learned theory and skills of graphic design, marketing research and planning, and public relations. These criteria are met by developing a researched based marketing plan, supporting graphics materials, and culminate with a professional presentation to the client.