The Master of Arts in Organizational Communication is an online degree that focuses on helping early- and mid-career professionals refine an advanced set of communication competencies related to understanding and managing organizational culture, team productivity and their personal career growth. The degree is applicable to a wide range of professions, including human resources, communications, or engineering – especially as one advances into management and leadership positions.
Professionals in every field today must be skilled at communicating across boundaries and uniting people around big new ideas and business imperatives. The M.A. in Organizational Communication provides students research-based insights helpful in clarifying, connecting, and inspiring diverse groups of employees and customers through communication. This differentiating communication skillset will help graduates become a trusted advisor for peers, company leaders and clients. Whether planning for a role change, looking to transition back into the workforce after taking care of family, or simply looking to effectively share expertise with others, advanced communication knowledge helps professionals transition within and across multiple industries and professions over the long term.
The program focuses on key facets of communication within organizations such as,
- Effectively building trust, prevent conflict across diverse teams and departments
- Identifying the management communication issues driving low employee engagement
- Leading a global team on a complex organizational change project
- Increasing retention of a diverse workforce with inclusive team communication practices
- Building effective onboarding programs for new hires and promotions
- Distilling survey findings into a presentation or report to address the concerns of multiple stakeholders or audiences, from marketing to finance and manufacturing
- Leveraging the power of social networks to successfully launch new internal initiatives, products
All courses for KU's Master of Arts in Organizational Communication are offered online in synchronous or asynchronous formats.
Admissions
An applicant seeking to pursue graduate study may be admitted as either a degree-seeking or non-degree seeking student. Policies and procedures of Graduate Studies govern the process of Graduate admission. These may be found in the Graduate Studies section of the online catalog. For more information on admission to graduate programs at KU, see the policy on Admission to Graduate Study.
Applications may be submitted at http://graduate.ku.edu/ku-graduate-application.
The following materials must be included to submit a complete application for admission:
- Official transcript from the institution where the bachelor's degree (or equivalent) was earned
- Resume
- Statement of Purpose*
- Writing Sample**
- Letter of Recommendation***
*Submit a 2-3 page statement of purpose letter indicating the importance of your goals and academic interests and how these goals and interests could be satisfied by studying Organizational Communication.
**Submit a research or professional writing sample.
***Submit 1 letter of recommendation from an individual in a position to comment meaningfully on the applicant's potential for graduate work. Applicants are evaluated on the overall strength of their materials based on a balance of the following criteria: academic record as reflected in overall GPA; the strength of the recommendation letter; and the strength of the research sample submitted by the student. The final decision is based on the overall strength of the application as reflected in all of the criteria listed.
Degree Requirements
The MA in Organizational Communication degree is comprised of the following 30 credit hours:
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| PFS 730 | Writing and Speaking for Decision Makers | 3 |
| or PFS 801 | Interpersonal and Persuasive Communication Skills for Managers |
| PFS 810 | Organizational Communication Strategies | 3 |
| PFS 850 | Interview-Based Research in Organizations | 3 |
| PFS 860 | Exploring Communication Theory | 3 |
| Intercultural Communication in Organizations | |
| Employee Onboarding and Role Development | |
| Organizational Change and Communication | |
| Communication Practices for Inclusive Organizations | |
| Communication Ethics for Managers and Leaders | |
| Communicating Across Workplace Generations | |
| Case Studies in Organizational Communication | |
| Communication and Team Development | |
| Interpersonal Communication Skills at Work | |
| Communication Strategies for Remote and Hybrid Teams | |
| Conflict Dynamics in Organizations | |
| Special Topics in Organizational Communication | |
| Independent Study in Organizational Communication | |
| Capstone Project in Organizational Communication (The master’s degree concludes with a demonstration of content mastery. Students can choose to complete either a comprehensive exam or a capstone project. Selection from these two options should be based on your learning goals and chosen in consultation with program faculty and your academic success coach. An additional three credit hours of electives will be required for the exam option. Please consult with your advisor to discuss which option will work best for your needs and goals.) | |
| Total Hours | 30 |
At the completion of this program, students will be able to:
- Employ organizational communication theories, perspectives, principles, and concepts.
- Apply ethical organizational communication principles and practices.
- Create messages appropriate to the audience, purpose, and context.
- Engage in organizational communication inquiry.
