A Scholarly Pursuit: The Academic Road to Change

America has entered a time of transition brought upon by the need for change. American Universities, as the breeding ground for future leaders, are part of this change in response to the growth of technology based information, globalization, competition, and calls for accountability. As the world rapidly moves forward, the upcoming years can be the opportunity to restore the faith and image of this country in the world. This task will fall upon recent and upcoming graduates, young people who have the ability to transform and make the difference. Responding to all of this, American universities have started to create new plans and actions that will prepare students for this world they are about to venture into; often times with helpful suggestions from students. Thinking about all of this, in this week’s blog I have decided to look into ways to improve my area of study at the University of Southern California(campus fountain shown above), and how this could serve not only me, but also universities and communities everywhere.

USC is devoted to “the development of human beings and society as a whole through the cultivation and enrichment of the human mind and spirit” stated in the central mission. In response to the upcoming change and challenges, encouraged by organizations like the Association of American Universities, in 2004 USC came up with a new strategic plan to recognize this environment through research and scholarship on critical issues by creating a global presence and impact for that research, scholarship, art, education, and service. To encourage students to contribute to improving the university the Dean of the College of Letters, Arts & Sciences (Dean Peter Starr pictured here) asked students to propose curriculum plans to enrich the academic experience and to “think seriously about learning, be creative and daring, and inspire us.” While my time at USC has been nothing short of exceptional, there are ways in which my academic experience could be more relevant and interesting. My proposal is for the Annenberg School for Communications to open majors up within the school so more courses in communications, journalism, and public relations can cross count towards any of the majors. This is especially true for the communications major where there needs to be more overlap in classes in marketing, journalism, public relations, and film; because these are all very intricately related professions in the real world.

Currently at Annenberg, an undergraduate student can either pursue a major in communications or one in public relations and journalism. While there are a few classes that a student can take from the other major that will count towards their degree, there needs to be more flexibility so that students can study and take classes in all these subjects. At the Annenberg School for Communication, as stated on the website, “you’ll study everything from the foundations of communication theory to where the latest advances will take us tomorrow. You’ll explore social, cultural, rhetorical and organizational communication processes. The result: an understanding of and ability to manage communication in education, politics, management and marketing, in government and nongovernmental institutions alike.” Communications majors learn how to effectively communicate in their personal and professional life as well as how media and politics use these methods to persuade and convey their messages. This awareness is critical to success in any field, so communications when paired with another major like International Relations or Business, works very well, but the major itself seems to lack a practical focus. Instead, the majority of the courses are based in theories and rhetorical studies, while how this information will serve a purpose later in life is left unclear.

If Annenberg (the school shown here) opened up the majors to allow students to take classes in all areas offered at Annenberg including communications, public relations, broadcast and print journalism, and some film and advertising classes, it would function much better than leaving it up to students to learn these connections during internships and on the job. A large portion of communication graduates work in the entertainment media field, which is a place where the connections between journalism, PR, film, and business are vital to success, and failing to teach this at university puts students at a distinct disadvantage. The problem is not that students are not allowed to take these other classes, because it is very easy for an Annenberg student to take any class within the school, but rather a matter of time. While trying to complete either a communications or journalism degree, USC’s required core classes, and possibly a minor, it is difficult to fit in an investigative journalism or print advertising class. This seems odd to me that as a communications student, these are not classes that can apply to my major and instead I find myself forced to take a plethora of research method and rhetorical studies classes that will have no worth after graduation and only provide background knowledge.

Lying in the center of Los Angeles, the heart and soul of the entertainment world, USC and Annenberg (logo shown to the bottom right) should be at the forefront of communications study, which requires more understanding of how various media interact rather than years of theory training. Emerging in a business world where switching jobs multiple times is protocol, having more experience in several fields can only be beneficial. Communications study is more rhetorically based here at USC, but there should be a track that is more practical that takes advantage of the natural resource and teaching ability available in LA. One way to solve this problem of theories versus real life applications would be for there to be two separate communications majors; one which emphasized rhetorical studies and research and one that is more focused on media. While the communications major now does have four tracts available in the upper level classes that include law, entertainment, culture, or interpersonal communications, the classes in these tracts are still more focused on theoretical study. Several schools have two types of communications majors that cater to both the sides discussed above, such as Syracuse University and University of Pennsylvania, two other leading universities in communications study.

Communications is about synergy, the harmonious merging of various forces coming together, and Annenberg as one of the leading universities in communications studies, needs to be the model of this synergistic future. If this university really wants to be the forefront of technology, communication, and scholarship, then instead of only teaching understanding, it needs to teach ability and real skills. For communications this means there needs to be more activities, case studies, and field trips and less lecturing on vague topics and regurgitated information; there needs to be more opportunity to explore all sides of communications and more freedom for students to pick their own tracts of study. The ability for USC (popular campus spots shown left) to fulfill its strategic plan lies on the four capabilities: span disciplinary and school boundaries to concentrate on problems of societal significance, link fundamental to applied research, build networks and partnerships, and increase responsiveness to learners. These wishes can be accomplished in the communication school by modernizing the courses and dealing with the present instead of only studying the past. The future is all about people connecting, professions coming together, and lives merging; I am proposing that the Annenberg School for Communication really starts emphasizing this so it can help shape the great leaders of tomorrow.