Graduate Studies at SMSC

About our Graduate Programs

Media professionals face unprecedented challenges as mass media converge. Digitization and globalization have created a new media landscape that is constantly evolving, and leaders are needed to manage it. The School of Media and Strategic Communications at Oklahoma State University has created a master's degree in mass communications with an emphasis in media management that will help you meet these challenges. Our program focuses on News Media and Strategic Communication Management.

There are two options to choose from to fit your career goals at both the Stillwater and Tulsa campuses. The Thesis Option is mainly for students who want to teach at a college or obtain a higher academic degree. If you want to get a doctoral degree later, writing a thesis will help you write your dissertation, a longer research paper. The Project/Creative Component Option is for students who mainly want to advance in their media careers. Projects could range from a series of stories about child health care to a management plan for a television station or an integrated marketing campaign for a company. Creative components could include a documentary about the state’s burgeoning Latino population or a promotional video for a non-profit organization.

Our program focuses on mass communications theory and research methods that will give you a more in-depth understanding of media and how to manage it. You will learn the theories of mass communication and media management and how to conduct original research, such as survey research, experiments, focus groups, in-depth interviews and analysis of media content.

Sample Graduate Courses

MC 5253 International Mass Communication. Examination of the nature and flow of news and information within and among nations, states, and societies from a theoretical vantage point grounded in region-specific realities.
MC 5853 Strategic Communication Management. The focus of this course is on an integrated approach to the management of communication in an organization, using theoretical components from both public relations and advertising, but particularly grounded in organizational theory.
MC 5863 Managing Multimedia News Outlets. Basic issues, concepts, operational procedures and strategies associated with effectively managing media corporations. Examines management operations related to media convergence.

View more Graduate courses.