Department of Communication

The Dayton Independent Film Festival is proudly organized by University of Dayton's Communication students. They organize, promote and evaluate local independent films that are shown at the annual film festival every fall.

The mission of this organization is to provide meaningful artistic and cultural programming to Dayton's thriving community. The organization aims to inspire those to act on their passions in a place where passion always shines, the beautiful Gem City.

Most University of Dayton Department of Communication majors complete at least one professional internship by the time they graduate. Many students complete several internships, working at organizations in the Dayton area during the school year and elsewhere in the U.S. during summers.

Our students are highly motivated to learn and serve the workplace and community, as businesses and non-profits that have had our communication majors as interns will attest. Both the student and employer benefit greatly through these professional relationships.

Current students can visit Porches to learn more.

Employer Information

Internships can be a win-win for University of Dayton communication majors and for businesses and institutions. Whether a student pursues an internship for academic credit or not, on-the-job experience should be part of every student's college experience.

Businesses, organizations and agencies that offer professional internships to communication students get the opportunity to:

• Acquire short-term talent with minimal risk
• Gain fresh ideas and perspectives from the student intern
• Provide current employees with opportunities to gain supervisory experience by working with an intern
• Energize staff by having motivated and interested interns in the workplace
• Enhance their community and university relationships

Businesses, organizations and agencies that work with students earning academic credit through the CMM 498 Communication Internship course get interns who have assessed their professional competencies in advance of the internship, have clearly defined their goals and expectations, and have a high degree of accountability. The Department of Communication Internship Coordinator also is available to help the employer to enhance the internship relationship.

For a link to the Online Internship Performance Evaluation form, please contact Pat Enright or call the Department of Communication main office at 937-229-2028.

The Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop's mission is simple: to encourage and inspire writers in the same way that celebrated columnist and author Erma Bombeck '49 found encouragement and inspiration at the University of Dayton.

Thanks to the generosity of the Alumni Association, University of Dayton students receive free scholarships to attend the workshop. Internships for academic credit are available for communication and English majors.

The Department of Communication runs a study abroad program every summer. While the courses, locations and faculty change from year to year, each program is carefully developed to provide students with the most educationally meaningful and culturally embedded experience possible.

Our program is taught by UD communication faculty and the courses you take are UD courses. While the program is open to non-communication students as well, we carefully choose courses that will benefit multiple communication concentrations for each program in order to make this experience relevant to all of our majors.

Study abroad also offers professional development opportunities. Some of our programs include internships or opportunities to work with and learn from UD alumni who have been successful in their field. Other programs include professional site visits and lectures from industry professionals.

Scholarships

In addition to the scholarships offered by the Global and Intercultural Affairs Center (GIA), the department of communication offers additional scholarship opportunities for communication majors studying on the department program. The Maureen M. Pater Award, the Don Yoder Scholarship and the Phil Harwood Scholarship are each awarded annually based on the applicant pool and vary in amount from $250-3,000. Full details for applying to these scholarships will be present on the application page for the current year's program or contact the Department of Communication main office.

UD alumnus Jeff Jones '90, current president and CEO of H&R Block, founded Phi Beta Chi in the late 1980s. Phi Beta Chi, a coed professional and honors fraternity is open to communication and other majors across campus. Through the organization, members of opportunities to improve communication skills and build professional relationships. Activities include speakers, discussions, networking opportunities, fundraising and event planning as well as social events.

UD PRSSA is the pre-professional society for students interested in public relations and communications. Open to all majors, the University of Dayton's Chapter of PRSSA is a valuable resource for students, enhancing their public relations knowledge through innovative professional development and networking opportunities in the field of public relations.

Through UD PRSSA, members are able to network with professionals, travel to conferences, access exclusive internship opportunities, gain inside access to various public relations sectors and more.

The Society of Professional Journalists is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. The University of Dayton advisor is Professor Chad Painter. If you're interested in pursuing a career in journalism, joining the SPJ would certainly be a beneficial step.