Programs

Overview

New Media Studies at DePaul is an interdisciplinary project involving faculty from the departments of Writing, Rhetoric, & Discourse; Art, Media, & Design; and the College of Communication. By joining critical interpretation and situated practical action, the Master of Arts in new media studies will prepare its graduates to function as productive and responsible individuals in the evolving social contexts created by the new media. In small core courses, working collaboratively with each other and professionally engaged faculty members, students will gain:

• An understanding of rhetoric and visual aesthetics—how visual, image-based communication differs from and interrelates with text (language) based communication
• An understanding of the technical and practical necessities (planning, budgeting, scripting) of moving a project from idea to completion
• An ability to apply rhetorically sophisticated strategies for designing and producing Web sites as delivery systems for technical information and creative expression
• A capacity to work well individually and as part of a team charged with solving a communications problem using new media technologies
• The potential to compete for employment in contexts defined by new media design, production, and criticism

Students take core courses in the history and theory of media and technology, graphic design, and relationships among text and image. Courses chosen from a wide array of approved electives—production and/or theory-based courses in departments across the University—round out students’ self-defined programs of study. The program concludes with a student-directed project—a team-built website for a non-profit organization, for example, or an individual portfolio tailored to the individual student’s career goals. Most NMS courses are taught in the College of Liberal Arts and Science’s innovative Digital Media Center.