Science Communication, Minor

The ability to communicate vital, complex scientific discoveries to a general audience is an essential component to any healthy democratic society. Social media now provides all scientists and scholars with a direct link to the general public, and as recent crises in public health and our climate have demonstrated, this has made these skills more important than ever. This minor offers the opportunity for undergraduates interested in either scientific or communication fields to build a strong base of knowledge in theories of communication and public engagement while providing training in the practice of communicating scientific phenomena to a broad audience. The minor provides students with the flexibility to design their own curriculum to further either a theoretical basis in the field or to develop a broad range of journalistic skills central to the accurate transmission of important scientific knowledge.

Complete all courses listed below unless otherwise indicated. Also complete any corequisite labs, recitations, clinicals, or tools courses where specified.

Note: A student pursuing the minor in science communication must complete a minimum of three courses exclusive to this minor beyond the courses required for the student’s declared major(s), minor(s), or PlusOne.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Required Courses
COMM 1125	Science, Communication, and Society	4
JRNL 3650	Science Writing	4
Electives
Some courses may have prerequisites not listed in the curriculum.
Complete 12 semester hours of the following:		12
Data Visualization
ARTG 5100	Information Design Studio 1: Principles
ARTG 5150	Information Visualization Principles and Practices
ARTG 5330	Visualization Technologies 1: Fundamentals
JRNL 3700	Data Storytelling
Health Communication
COMM 3201	Health Communication
COMM 4102	Health Communication Campaigns
Science and Media Production
COMM 2300	Risk Communication
COMM 2625	Communication, Technology, and Society
COMM 3500	Environmental Issues, Communication, and the Media
JRNL 3370	Podcast and Radio Journalism
JRNL 3610	Digital Storytelling and Social Media
JRNL 5314	Video News Reporting and Producing
Science Writing
JRNL 1101 and JRNL 1102	Journalism 1: Fundamentals of Reporting and Writing and Journalist’s Toolbox
JRNL 2200	Writing for Public Relations
JRNL 2201	Journalism 2: Intermediate Reporting

GPA Requirement

2.000 GPA required in the minor.