Mission and Student Learning Outcomes

Mission

Revised October 19, 2010

1. We give students a humanities-grounded education in both the theory and practice of mass communication, preparing students for further study or life in the workplace.  We emphasize learning and discovery through exemplary teaching, innovative scholarhip, creative expression, co-curricular activities, undergraduate research, engaged service and practical experience.
2. UNC Asheville's Mass Communication department is distinctive in its emphasis on a broad liberal-arts approach.
3. Our approach to education in Mass Communication emphasizes life skills including critical thinking, clear and thoughtful expression, and honest open inquiry, while developing an understanding of the connection between mass communication and the liberal arts and between other disciplines on campus.
4. We encourage students to understand the dimensions of human diversity and respect the values of others, while clarifying their own values.
5. As a department, we seek to address the needs of the community through usable research, and through outreach via a continuum of learning and creative and engaged service.
6. And, as a department, we seek to engage in social, economic and environmentally sustainable practices.

Student Learning Outcomes

Student learning outcomes are the guidelines which each department uses in the formation of course guidelines, syllabi and procedures.  The student learning outcomes for the Mass Communication Department, which were approved by the Office of the Dean of Social Science in the Summer of 2010, are as follows.

1. Students develop skills in critical thinking, clear and thoughtful communication, and open inquiry through research and creative activity.
2. Students develop mastery of the theoretical, legal and practical underpinnings of mass communication and an understanding of the connections between mass communication and other disciplines.
3. Students learn to clarify and articulate their own values through the expression of opinion and an understanding of the differences between opinion and fact.
4. Students learn both the concepts and value of economic, social and environmental sustainability through an understanding of the principles of the theoretical perspectives that discuss human responsibilities within the social realm. 
5. Students demonstrate that they are responsible, engaged citizens through engagement in service learning and in projects involving community outreach.
6. Students are prepared to engage in lifelong learning through an emphasis on the changing nature of the media and student participation in research and creative efforts. 

• University Mission Statement
• University Student Learning Outcomes