Earn Your Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication Online at UTSA
Coursework is offered fully online! You will work at your own pace to keep your work, life, and education in balance to graduate from a top-university.
Open the Door to Multiple Career Paths
A B.A. in Communication from UTSA Online opens the door to careers in a variety of industries. Through this comprehensive program, you’ll apply your writing, editing, research, and presentation talents to convey information to diverse audiences effectively and efficiently. These marketable skills will ensure that you remain highly valued by employers in many industries.
Customize Your Degree with a Concentration
Careers in Communication
Through this program, you’ll develop a highly marketable skill-set, which will allow you to seek a career in just about any industry.
Industries for Communication Graduates
Develop and sharpen your verbal, nonverbal, and written communication skill-set to prepare you for an exciting career in a multitude of sectors. Effective communication skills are prized by employers across a wide range of industries including, but not limited to:
- Advertising/Marketing/Public Relations
- General Hospitals
- Higher Education
- Insurance Carriers
- Management and Technical Consulting
- Media/Video Production Agencies
Median Salary for Communication Graduates
The median salary for open communication-related positions in the United States as of May 2021 was $62,340.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
Meet Sallye Barnes - Communication '23
Sallye knew she needed to find a flexible program who would allow her to obtain her bachelor’s degree while managing her full-time job and her personal life. After researching different universities, she decided UTSA Online was the right choice for her. Watch her story to see how UTSA Online has made a huge impact in her life, and helped her continue building her BOLD Future.
Communication Degree Classes
To earn the Communication degree, you’ll complete 120 credit hours, including 42 core hours, 42 major hours, 6 language hours, 30 elective hours. See courses below:
Concentration Classes
You can add a Digital Communication or Public Relations concentration to your Communication degree. See the course description for each concentration below:
The courses in this concentration include:
- COM 2433. Editing: Principles and applications of production editing and technical editing, including evaluation and revision of style, tone, and organization of documents. Practice in use of editing symbols and copy marking.
- COM 2733. Introduction to Digital Communication: Overview of media and networks used for entertainment and information distribution, storage, and retrieval. Emphasis on the interrelationships among technology, economics, policy, society, and culture.
- COM 3623. Commercial Publications: Theory and practice of commercial writing and desktop publishing. Includes discussion of document design, principles of layout, and typography.
- COM 3723. Digital Media Production I: Introduction to issues and practices in the design of online information. Emphasis on writing and design practices in the context of various online information genres, including writing for the World Wide Web. Other topics may include hypertext theory and interactive design.
- COM 4723. Digital Media Production II: Theory and application of digital production formats, such as Web animation, digital photo production or digital film. This course fulfills the College of Liberal and Fine Arts Signature Experience.
The courses in this concentration include:
- COM 4523. Case Studies in Public Relations: Advanced study of public relations functions, principles, and practices using local, regional, and national organizations as examples.
- COM 4533: Public Relations Planning and Campaigns: Application of public relations principles to the planning and production of messages and campaigns. Students will be expected to produce and carry out a public relations campaign within the community.
More Public Relations courses coming soon.
Earn Highly Marketable Skills
These marketable skills will ensure that you remain highly valued by employers in many industries.
Critical Thinking/Problem Solving:
Exercise sound reasoning to analyze issues, make decisions, and overcome problems. Students will be able to obtain, interpret, and use knowledge, facts, and data in this process, and may demonstrate originality and inventiveness.
Oral/Written Communications:
Articulate thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively in written and oral forms to persons inside and outside of the organization. The individual has public speaking skills; is able to express ideas to others; and can write/edit memos, letters, and complex technical reports clearly and effectively.
Global/Intercultural Fluency:
Value, respect, and learn from diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, sexual orientations, and religions. The individual demonstrates openness, inclusiveness, sensitivity, and the ability to interact respectfully with all people and understand individuals’ differences.
Teamwork/Collaboration:
Build strong, positive, and collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers across cultures, races, ages, genders, religions, lifestyles, and viewpoints to achieve common goals. Exercise the ability to compromise and be agile while employing your personal strengths, knowledge, and talents to complement those of others.
Technology:
Navigate change and quickly adapt to new and unfamiliar technologies. Learn to identify appropriate technology for completing specific tasks, and manage technology to integrate information to support relevant, effective, and timely decision-making.
Bachelor of Arts in Digital Media Influence
If you’re passionate about digital content creation and influencing audiences, check out our Digital Media Influence degree. This program equips you with skills in multimedia production and persuasive messaging.
Explore Digital Media InfluenceMicrocredentials – Certificates and Badges
Free for Students and Alumni
Expand your skillset swiftly with UTSA’s microcredentials from Coursera Career Academy and Adobe Creative Skills. These streamlined educational experiences offer a quick path to acquiring new competencies recognized by a certificate or badge that carries weight in the job market and academia. Microcredentials are an ideal way to deepen your knowledge and refine your expertise alongside or beyond your degree.
Get Started with Coursera Get Started with Adobe
Frequently Asked Questions
Tuition for the Online B.A. in Communication program is $500 per credit hour.
You may qualify for financial aid, including grants, loans, and scholarships. For eligibility, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for the applicable aid year. UTSA’s federal school code is 010115. You must complete a new application each year you are attending.
As a Military Friendly school, we offer many programs to support our students in the military, our veterans, and their families, while working closely with the UTSA Veterans Certification Office. Veterans and military families, please note that UTSA’s Online B.A. in Communication is not eligible for the Hazelwood Act benefit.
Because communication skills are so versatile, you’ll be able to seek a career in just about any industry. Top job titles for UTSA Communication graduates include:
- Marketing Specialist/Manager
- Public Relations Manager
- Communication Specialist
- Sales Representative
- Social Media Strategist
- Technical Writer
- Editor/Copywriter
Time-to-completion will vary based upon the number of previously earned credits that are eligible for transfer. If taking the full 120 credit hours required, it can take four to five years, depending on course load. With transfer credit, the time to graduation may be significantly less—possibly one to two years. The good news is that your Academic Advisor will help you customize your graduation plan.
Students who add a concentration in Digital Communication must complete the additional 5 courses for Digital Communication:
- COM 2433 – Editing
- COM 2733 – Introduction to Digital Communication
- COM 3623 – Commercial Publications
- COM 3723 – Digital Media Production
- COM 4723 – Digital Media Production II
A maximum of 66 credit hours of lower division (freshman and sophomore) transfer work from a community college will be allowed to apply to a bachelor’s degree at UTSA. If you have exceeded the 66 hours of lower division work, the most applicable 66 credit hours will be applied to the degree you would like to earn. In order to earn a degree from UTSA Online, all students must successfully complete a minimum of 30 applicable credits at UTSA.
There is no maximum number of transferable hours from a four-year accredited institution. However, the applicability of the transfer coursework to the degree you would like to earn must be determined. Any coursework that does not correspond to courses offered by the university may transfer as elective credit.
All applicants to the online B.A. in Communication are subject to the standard UTSA requirements.
