Want to establish broad knowledge, communication skills, creative talents, critical thinking abilities and multicultural awareness that will make you widely employable? Looking for an incredibly interdisciplinary and adaptable major that combines dozens of traditional fields of study?

Human Communication majors gain broad knowledge, multicultural communication skills, creative talents, and outstanding writing and critical thinking abilities for the 21st-century workplace. Our major integrates traditional disciplines within humanities and communication with contemporary fields and explores how these fields interrelate.

We offer focused curriculum in service learning to complement the interdisciplinary work of the major. You will study across the various disciplines in order to gain an integrated understanding of world issues and problems, and you will apply your knowledge ethically, critically, and creatively toward the fulfillment of concrete personal and social goals and needs.

To learn more about the major, visit the Human Communication website.

Required courses

Special Requirements

If you are majoring in HCOM and plan to take the English Subject Matter Preparation Program to complete your concentration requirements, you can find the requirements for your degree on the Requirements for ESMP-HCOM Students page.

AA-T certified students can earn a Human Communications B.A. by completing the special requirements in the following programs:

All other HCOM majors, see below.

standard requirements

In order to graduate, you will also need to complete your general education and university requirements.

HCOM Students are required to complete one course approved as research or theory intensive; these courses are indicated as (RTI) in the course lists below.

Complete ALL of the following courses:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 1:

  • HCOM 312: Cooperative Argumentation-Theory and Practice
  • HCOM 317S: Advanced Composition, Composition Theories, Service Learning

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 2:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 3:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 4:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 5:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 6:

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 7:

  • HCOM 346: African American Life/History
  • HCOM 351: Modern World History
  • HCOM 352: History According To Movies
  • HCOM 353: California At Crossroads
  • HCOM 354: Whose America?
  • HCOM 356: Multicultural History
  • HCOM 359: Sexuality, Law and History
  • HCOM 360: Topics in Constitutional History
  • HCOM 363: Topics in Social History(RTI)
  • HCOM 365: Chicana/o Latina/o History (RTI)
  • HCOM 366: History of Religion in the United States
  • HCOM 367: Gender and United States History
  • HCOM 368: Civil War and Reconstruction in the United States
  • HCOM 445: Slavery & Race in the Americas (RTI)
  • HCOM 451: Transnational Migrations (RTI)
  • HCOM 454: History of Victorian Britain

Complete ONE of the following courses for MLO 8:

Only with prior consent of the instructor:

Concentration Courses

Select one of the following concentrations to complete the requirements of the HCOM degree.

Africana Studies

Complete THREE of the following courses:

  • HCOM 324: African American Narratives
  • HCOM 346: African American Life/History
  • HCOM 368: Civil War and Reconstruction in the United States
  • HCOM 443: Black Feminist Theory & Praxis
  • HCOM 445: Slavery & Race in the Americas (RTI)

American Multicultural Studies

Complete ONE course from each of the following groups:

Group A. Comparative Hemispheric Emphasis

Group B. Monographic Emphasis

  • HCOM 309: Interracial Communication
  • HCOM 322: Asian American Literature
  • HCOM 324: African American Narratives
  • HCOM 344: Chicana/Latina Experiences (RTI)
  • HCOM 345: Chicano Life & Culture
  • HCOM 346: African American Life/History
  • HCOM 348: Race, Colonialism, and Film (RTI)
  • HCOM 353: California At Crossroads
  • HCOM 359: Sexuality, Law and History
  • HCOM 363: Topics in Social History (RTI)
  • HCOM 365: Chicana/o Latina/o History (RTI)
  • HCOM 366: History of Religion in the United States
  • HCOM 367: Gender and United States History
  • HCOM 368: Civil War and Reconstruction in the United States
  • HCOM 443: Black Feminist Theory & Praxis
  • HCOM 451: Transnational Migrations (RTI)
  • HCOM 455: Paradigms Of Chicano Comm
  • HCOM 555: Paradigms Of Chicano Comm

Group C. Comparative U.S. Emphasis

Chican@ Studies

Complete THREE of the following courses:

Creative Writing and Social Action

Complete THREE of the following courses:

History, Oral History & New Media

Complete ONE course from each of the following groups:

Group A. History

  • HCOM 346: African American Life/History
  • HCOM 352: History According To Movies
  • HCOM 353: California At Crossroads
  • HCOM 359: Sexuality, Law and History
  • HCOM 363: Topics in Social History (RTI)
  • HCOM 365: Chicana/o Latina/o History (RTI)
  • HCOM 366: History of Religion in the United States
  • HCOM 367: Gender and United States History
  • HCOM 445: Slavery & Race in the Americas (RTI)
  • HCOM 451: Transnational Migrations (RTI)

Group B. Historical Narrative

Group C. Multimedia

Journalism and Media Studies

Complete THREE of the following courses:

Upon prior consent of instructor:

  • HCOM 390: Magazine Writing
  • HCOM 406: Philosophy According to Movies
  • HCOM 486: Mass Media Internship
  • HCOM 487: Mass Media Internship
  • HCOM 487S: Community Media Project SL
  • HCOM 489: Otter Realm Production (this course must be repeated to fulfill concentration requirement)

Literary & Film Studies

Complete THREE of the following courses:

Peace Studies

Complete ONE of the following courses:

  • HCOM 340S: Topics in Social Movements Service Learning
  • HCOM 404: Restorative Justice

Complete ONE of the following courses:

  • HCOM 312: Cooperative Argumentation-Theory and Practice
  • HCOM 412: Multicultural Conflict Resolut (RTI)

Complete ONE of the following courses:

Complete the following course:

  • HCOM 340S: Topics in Social Movements Service Learning

Practical and Professional Ethics

Complete THREE of the following courses:

Pre-Law

Women’s Studies

Complete THREE of the following courses:

Writing and Rhetoric

Complete THREE of the following courses:

English Subject Matter Preparation Program

Learning Outcomes

MLO 1: Critical Communication Skills

Ability to communicate critically and empathetically in both oral and written contexts, including reading, writing, listening and speaking.

MLO 2: Media, Narrative, and Ethnographic Skills

Ability to gather responsibly, interpret critically, narrate and disseminate the voices and stories of people, communities or events by integrating ethnographic or journalistic field research methods, cultural or media analysis, narrative writing and media production, including new digital media.

MLO 3: Relational Communication Skills

Ability to interact ethically and effectively in interpersonal and group communication and decision-making processes.

MLO 4: Philosophical Analysis

Ability to understand why and how beliefs, values, assumptions and communication practices interact to shape ways of being and knowing.

MLO 5: Critical Cultural Analysis

Ability to investigate and explain relationships among cultural ideologies and sociohistorical experiences, interests, identities and actions of specific cultural groups.

MLO 6: Comparative Literary Analysis

Ability to appreciate and analyze literature in a social, historical and cultural context. Ability to compare and contrast literatures of at least three different cultural traditions, including non-Eurocentric traditions.

MLO 7: Historical Analysis

Ability to actively engage our complex multicultural pasts by integrating historical understanding with historical thinking skills.

MLO 8: Creative Writing and Social Action

Ability to acquire basic competency in creative writing. Ability to apply this skill to the production and presentation of an art project that actively responds to a public issue. Ability to sustain the creative process throughout a given project, taking it to completion.

Course Pathways

General Freshman Pathway
General Transfer Pathway

Africana Studies Pathway
American Multicultural Studies Pathway
Chicano Studies Pathway
Creative Writing & Social Action Pathway
English Subject Matter Preparation Program Pathway
History, Oral History & New Media Pathway
Journalism & Media Studies Pathway
Literary & Film Studies Pathway
Peace Studies Pathway
Practical & Professional Ethics Pathway
Pre-Law Pathway
Women’s Studies Pathway
Writing & Rhetoric Pathway