Communication, Media, and Design, B.S.

4 Years On Campus Bachelors Program

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Program Overview

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s Communication, Media, and Design (CMD), B.S. prepares students to communicate creatively across multimedia and multicultural environments, combining strategic and creative writing, media studies, graphic design, digital storytelling, interactive design and mixed-reality concepts. The flexible 40-credit program is particularly attractive as a dual major for students in engineering, science, computer science, business or the arts who want to add strong communication, media and design expertise to their technical or professional background.

Curriculum Structure:

Year 1: Students can begin building their communication and creative foundation through subjects such as COMM 2660 Introduction to Graphic Design, WRIT 2110 Strategic Writing, and other HASS courses that develop writing, visual communication and critical analysis. This stage introduces students to the relationship between communication, design and technology while giving them room to connect CMD with their primary major.

Year 2: Students can expand into contemporary communication through courses such as COMM 2962 Social Media and Society and COMM 296x Intercultural Communication, examining how digital platforms influence identity, relationships, information and culture. Students can also explore creative and collaborative communication through COMM 2960 Leadership and Creativity, which uses experiential projects to develop strategic professional communication and creative project-design skills.

Year 3: More advanced study can move students toward media analysis, digital culture and interactive storytelling through courses such as COMM 4567 Adaptations in Media and Games, COMM 4650 Media & Dis/Misinformation, and COMM 4540 Visual Culture. These subjects encourage students to analyze contemporary media while considering how images, social platforms, film, television, games, VR and emerging technologies shape communication.

Year 4: Students can bring their communication, writing and design skills together through advanced electives and substantial creative work, including projects that combine graphic, textual and digital media. RPI's program emphasizes the ability to collaborate across media and produce integrated graphic and textual information for diverse audiences, making the final stage particularly valuable for developing a professional portfolio alongside a second major.

Focus Areas:

Strategic and creative writing, graphic design, digital storytelling, media and communication studies, film and television studies, game studies, HCI usability and interaction design, multimedia communication, social media, media culture, interactive design, mixed-reality design, visual communication, technical communication, information architecture.

Learning Outcomes:

Students learn to communicate strategically and creatively in oral, visual and textual formats; analyze the relationship between society, culture and technology; understand how mass media and new technologies influence communication and design choices; and evaluate audiences, purposes, content and genres to communicate effectively.

Professional Alignment (Accreditation):

The CMD B.S. is an interdisciplinary program within RPI's School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. RPI does not identify a separate specialized professional accreditation for the Communication, Media, and Design B.S.; its professional value comes from combining communication, media literacy, design thinking and technology-oriented skills.

Reputation (Employability & Official Recognition):

RPI positions CMD as a flexible program that can strengthen career prospects when paired with engineering, science, business, computer science or arts degrees. The university specifically identifies career opportunities spanning graphic and multimedia design, media production, usability engineering, information architecture, instructional and interface design, technical communication, animation, game design, education and industry research.

RPI's Career and Professional Development office also maintains graduate hiring and salary reports and employer information specifically covering the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, although the university does not publish a current CMD-specific salary figure on the program page.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

CMD connects communication theory with practical creative work, giving students opportunities to write, design, analyze media and develop projects across multiple formats. RPI's Communication and Media department emphasizes creative, intellectual and collaborative work in strategic writing, graphic design, digital storytelling, HCI, interaction design and film, television and game studies, while student work demonstrates how these skills can be combined into substantial multimedia projects.

Students can build their practical experience through opportunities such as:

• Graphic Design Projects: COMM 2660 Introduction to Graphic Design introduces students to visual communication, with RPI's CMD gallery showcasing student work including personal identity/logo design and motion-graphics studies.

• Strategic Writing: WRIT 2110 Strategic Writing develops the writing side of professional communication and can complement students' design and media work.

• Social Media and Society: COMM 2962 examines identity, community, surveillance, digital labor and information within social media environments, helping students understand the systems behind contemporary digital communication.

• Intercultural Communication: COMM 296x applies communication principles to cultural exchange in interpersonal, educational, business, political and mass-media settings, strengthening students' ability to communicate across cultural boundaries.

• Leadership and Creativity Projects: COMM 2960 Leadership and Creativity uses weekly experiential projects to develop strategic professional communication and creative project-design skills, including collaboration and creative risk-taking.

• Adaptations in Media and Games: COMM 4567 gives students opportunities to undertake critical analyses and produce their own adaptations in a medium of their choice, connecting theory with creative production.

• Media & Dis/Misinformation: COMM 4650 examines fact-checking, digital journalism, public relations, marketing, propaganda and social-media manipulation, giving students analytical experience with real contemporary communication challenges.

• Visual Culture: COMM 4540 Visual Culture explores photography, art, television, film, social media and newer technologies such as YouTube, TikTok, VR and AI, providing a strong foundation for analyzing contemporary visual communication.

• Digital and Multimedia Portfolio Work: RPI's CMD student gallery showcases work in writing, graphic design and electronic media, giving students examples of the kinds of creative work that can support a professional portfolio.

• Interdisciplinary Dual-Major Projects: Because the CMD B.S. is specifically designed to complement engineering, science, management, computer science and arts programs, students can apply communication and design skills directly to another academic discipline.

• HASS Research Opportunities: RPI encourages undergraduate research across HASS departments, with students able to collaborate with faculty, pursue projects and develop work that can lead toward further academic or professional interests.

Facilities & Academic Resources: RPI School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences and Communication & Media resources.

Progression & Future Opportunities

The CMD B.S. is designed to give graduates flexibility across creative, technical and communication-focused industries, with RPI identifying careers in multimedia design, media production, usability, information architecture, interface design, technical communication, animation, games, education and industry research. Its dual-major structure can be especially valuable because students can combine communication expertise with a technical or business specialization, creating a broader professional profile.

Typical career directions include: UX Content Designer, Multimedia Producer, Information Architect, Technical Communication Specialist.

• Center for Career and Professional Development: RPI's CCPD supports HASS students with resume and cover-letter development, portfolio preparation, career-fair preparation, interview practice, graduate-school planning, job and internship searching, LinkedIn support and salary negotiation.

• Handshake Recruiting: RPI uses Handshake to connect students with employers posting jobs, internships, co-ops and career events.

• Employer Engagement: RPI's Recruit at RPI initiative gives employers opportunities to participate in career fairs, information sessions, panels and networking events, with Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences among the academic areas from which employers recruit.

• HASS Career Resources: The HASS Career Corner specifically supports students with building portfolios and preparing application materials, which is particularly relevant for CMD students pursuing design, media and communication roles.

• Employment & Salary Data: RPI's Career and Professional Development office publishes annual hiring and salary reports, including starting salaries and co-op/internship salaries, and maintains employer lists for Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences graduates.

• Industry-Relevant Skill Set: RPI identifies CMD graduates as prepared for careers spanning graphic and multimedia design, media production, usability engineering, information architecture, instructional/interface design, technical communication, animation and game design.

• Dual-Major Advantage: RPI specifically promotes CMD as an added-value dual major for engineering, science, business and arts students, allowing communication and design skills to complement a more technical or specialized degree.

• Long-Term Professional Value: The program's emphasis on strategic communication, design thinking, media literacy and critical understanding of technology gives graduates skills that can transfer across changing media platforms and professional environments.

Further Academic Progression: Graduates can continue into advanced study in communication and rhetoric, media studies, strategic communication, design, interactive media, information studies, writing, or related interdisciplinary fields. At RPI, students can progress toward the Communication and Rhetoric M.S. or the combined Communication and Rhetoric B.S. + M.S. pathway, while the broader HASS environment also supports graduate-level work connected to communication, media, technology and culture.