Nov 23, 2024
OHIO University Undergraduate Catalog 2014-15
OHIO University Undergraduate Catalog 2014-15 [Archived Catalog]

Media Arts and Studies - Screenwriting and Producing (B.S.C.)


Major code BC5372

Scripps College of Communication
Media Arts and Studies, School of
Radio TV Building 202
Athens, OH 45701
Phone: 740.593.4870
Fax: 740.593.9184
http://www.mediaschool.ohio.edu
mediaschool@ohio.edu

Jeff Redefer, associate director, undergraduate studies/ contact person

Program Overview

The School of Media Arts and Studies provides a liberal arts approach to media education. In addition to media production, every one of our students learns media history, media theory, and media business concepts that will allow them to succeed in the modern media world. Students have exceptional opportunities to focus in one of five emphasis areas: Media and Social Change; Games and Animation; Music Production and Recording Industry; Screenwriting and Producing; or Integrated Media (which includes video, audio, web, animation, and/or digital game production classes). Our broad-based curriculum enhances long-term success, which is reflected by our school’s mission statement: The School of Media Arts and Studies prepares responsible, critical, and creative media professionals for a global, multicultural, and continuously changing landscape. The School also provides several media-related student organizations, and we strongly encourage participation in internships. These opportunities lead to important connections that foster career advancement. With almost 700 undergraduates and nearly two-dozen faculty members, the School of Media Arts and Studies is proud to play a central role in the Scripps College of Communication. Strong demand to join the School dictates that we have entry requirements above the university’s requirements. Our excellent students become graduates that make a real difference in the media industries. We are proud of our strong reputation both regionally and internationally. The School of Media Arts and Studies also offers a major through the Honors Tutorial College for students with outstanding high school records.

Emphasis Areas:

  • Media and Social Change: The Media and Social Change emphasis area provides students with creative skills in nonfiction production, while exploring the social effects that media have on society.
  • Games and Animation: The Games and Animation emphasis area encourages students to explore the production of computer animation and digital games, while also providing an understanding of the management and leadership roles in these industries.
  • Music Production and Recording Industry: The Music Production and Recording Industry emphasis area encourages students to explore the music recording industry and, in addition to teaching skills in audio production, is organized to provide an understanding of the management, creative, and leadership roles inside the industry.
  • Screenwriting and Producing: The Screenwriting and Producing emphasis area develops skills and experiences in the writing and producing of fiction scripts for film, video, television, games, and the web.
  • Integrated Media: The Integrated Media emphasis area offers students the most flexibility to design their own curriculum. We encourage students to explore a variety of creative production skills while still emphasizing the context in which their media is created; courses may include both fiction and non-fiction elements in a variety of media.

Admission Information

Freshman Admission

For admission consideration into the School of Media Arts and Studies, all applicants should meet or exceed the following minimum guidelines:

  • Class Rank: Top 40% of your class with a 3.2
  • GPA: 3.2
  • Test Scores: ACT composite score of 23 or SAT 1 Combined math and verbal score of 1060

All students are admitted to Ohio University with a premajor code of ND5368 for the first year of matriculation. At the end of the first year, students apply to one of the five emphasis areas. All students in the premajor will be accepted into one of the five emphasis areas; however, not every student will be placed in his/her first choice of emphasis area.

Change of Major/Minor/Certificate Policy

Because the School of Media Arts and Studies sets high academic standards and limits enrollment, students from other universities or other programs at Ohio University must show strong academic performance. An accumulative grade point average of 3.0 or above will be required for consideration. Students at Ohio University wishing to change majors into the School of Media Arts and Studies must apply by the second Friday in October for transfer the following spring semester. Beyond the change of major application, support materials should include three letters of recommendation (two from university instructors, one from the professional community), a resume, and a letter explaining why he/she would like to study in the School of Media Arts and Studies. More information available at http://mediaschool.ohio.edu/transfer .

External Transfer Admission

Because the School of Media Arts and Studies sets high academic standards and limits enrollment, students from other universities or other programs at Ohio University must show strong academic performance. An accumulative grade point average of 3.0 or above will be required for consideration. Students at Ohio University wishing to change majors into the School of Media Arts and Studies must apply by the first Friday in October for transfer the following spring semester. Beyond the change of major application, support materials should include three letters of recommendation (two from university instructors, one from the professional community), a resume, and a letter explaining why he/she would like to study in the School of Media Arts and Studies. More information available at http://mediaschool.ohio.edu/transfer .

Opportunities Upon Graduation

By using scripts, sound, moving image, and interactivity to create stories through music, games, animation, video, and social media our students learn the pre-production, production, and post-production processes, while continuing to hone the skills needed to analyze the media they are creating. Alumni of the Media Arts and Studies program work in a variety of media industries. They create, analyze, and oversee media for education, entertainment, activism, journalism, or public relations purposes in the corporate, nonprofit, and entrepreneurial media industries.

Requirements

Media Arts and Studies General Requirements


MDIA offers a depth of general requirements along with the University’s breadth of general requirements.

Arts and Humanities


Complete 6 hours of 3000- to 4000-level courses (or 2000-level or above for language courses). Courses include Tier I junior composition with the balance of the hours chosen from African American studies, art, art history, classical languages, comparative arts, dance, English, film, humanities, modern languages, music, philosophy, and theater. Note: Language courses may count for Arts and Humanities or Cross-Cultural Perspectives areas, but not both.

Social Sciences


Complete 6 hours of 3000- to 4000-level courses chosen from anthropology, classical archaeology, economics, history, international studies, management, marketing, political science, psychology, and sociology.

Cross-Cultural Perspectives


Complete 6 hours of 3000- to 4000-level courses (or 2000-level or above for language courses) chosen from African American studies, classical languages, communication sciences and disorders, communication studies, journalism, linguistics, modern languages, and visual communication. Note: Language courses may count for Arts and Humanities or Cross-Cultural Perspectives areas, but not both.

Media Arts and Studies Core


Complete the following courses with a grade of C (2.0) or better in each course:

Complete courses in the following areas to total 3 hours:


Note: These courses are intended to be taken during the first year premajor.

Storytelling and Context


Complete three courses from Storytelling and Contexts lists, with at least one from each list.

Advanced Screenwriting and Producing


 Complete three courses from Advanced Screenwriting and Producing lists, with at least one from each list.

Total Media Hours


Complete additional media courses to earn a minimum of 39 hours. Media courses comprise all MDIA courses and all EM or FILM courses listed as options in the major. Note that some courses might be listed as options for multiple areas of the major, but a course may only count once in the major (i.e., a course may not be used to fulfill more than one requirement in the major).

MDIA Corollary


Students in the School of Media Arts and Studies are required to complete a corollary of coursework. These courses are outside of the School of Media Arts and Studies and are selected by the student and the student’s academic advisor to enhance the student’s area of interest. The corollary requires a minimum of 21 credit hours from no more than two areas outside of MDIA with at least 12 hours at the 3000 or 4000 level, or completing an advisor-approved minor.