Media Studies Minor

The Media Studies minor provides an overview of mass communication and requires 24 credits from the classes listed below. You must have at least a 2.00 UO GPA to apply to the minor. Effective Fall 2024, all minor courses must be taken graded and passed with a “C-” grade or higher. Prior to that, the minimum passing grade was a “C.” You may not take minor courses pass/no pass.* See below for COVID exceptions.

  • SOJC students under the Fall 2022 curriculum may not use this minor for their “non-SOJC minor” requirement.
  • Advertising, journalism and public relations students under the Fall 2024 curriculum may use this minor for their UO minor requirement. Media studies majors may not. Only one course may be used for both the major and minor requirements.

Required courses (8 credits/2 courses). Both courses are typically offered every term:

  • JCOM 201 Making Sense of Media >2 or J201 Media and Society >2
  • JCOM 311 Intro to Media Studies or J314 Intro to Media Studies (prerequisite: MEST minor status)

Elective courses (choose 16 credits/4 courses). All courses have JCOM 201/J201 as a prerequisite. The 400-level courses require MEST minor status:

The five courses below will be eligible for the minor only through Summer 2025. Effective Fall 2025, these five courses are no longer eligible courses.

  • JCOM 301 or J320 Gender, Media and Diversity
  • JCOM 302 or J385 Communication Law
  • JCOM 303 or J397 Media Ethics
  • JCOM 305 or J387 Media History
  • JCOM 306 Global Communication >GP or J396 International Communication

These courses remain eligible for the minor.

  • J400M Computer Crime Law (Winter 2021 only)
  • JCOM 411M or J411M US Film Industry
    • Formerly a J412 course. Do not take if you have taken J412 US Film Industry.
    • This is a multi-listed course. Students must take it under the J/JCOM subject in order to have it count toward the minor.
  • J429 Media Technologies and Society [Topic] **
  • J430 Culture and Power in the Media [Topic] **
  • J431 Media Structures and Regulation [Topic] **

Effective Fall 2024, additional titles have been added under the new JCOM subject. Some courses were previously offered under the J429, J430 or J431 topic number. Do not repeat the same title under its new number.

  • JCOM 314 Understanding Disney
  • JCOM 315 Indigenous Media
  • JCOM 316 Black American Media
  • JCOM 317 Media and Religion
  • JCOM 318 Documenting International Human Rights
  • JCOM 319 Documenting Civil Rights
  • JCOM 399 Games Industry (Winter 2025 only)
  • JCOM 412 Internet Law and Regulation
  • JCOM 413 Data/Media/Surveillance
  • JCOM 414 Topics in Media Technologies and Structures (titles will vary)
  • JCOM 415 Topics in Culture, Power and the Media (titles will vary)
  • J416 Survey of Documentary (Winter 2025 only)
  • JCOM 416 Black American Television
  • JCOM 417 Cross Cultural Monster Narratives
  • JCOM 418 Global Television
  • JCOM 419 Reality Television
  • JCOM 424 Latin American Cinema
  • J482 Analog Games (Fall 2024 only)

In Fall 2021, the courses offered under these topic numbers transitioned to J429, J430 and J431 topics. Do not take the same title under its new number.

  • J412 Issues in Communication Studies [Topic] ** / ***
  • J467 Issues in International Communication [Topic] ** / ***
  • J496 Issues in Communication Ethics & Law [Topic] ** / ***

** These are special topics courses. Course titles offered within each “topic” will vary. These courses are repeatable three times if the topics have different titles.

NOTE: The following courses are eligible for the minor only if they were taken any term through Summer 2019. Effective Fall 2019, they were no longer eligible for the minor.

  • J340 Principles of Advertising
  • J350 Principles of Public Relations

* COVID-exceptions to the pass/no pass rule: 

  • Any pass (“P”) grades taken during Spring 2020, Summer 2020 and Fall 2020 are permitted.
  • One pass (“P”) grade is allowed for any elective course (J320 through J496) taken during Winter 2021, Spring 2021 or Summer 2021 combined (not one per term).