Minor in Media Studies
Overview
We are all consumers and creators of media, regardless of our background or field of study. It's crucial, however, to be able to critically engage with the content we take in, moving beyond our routine consumption. As a media studies minor, you will receive the training you need to thoughtfully analyze the stories being told through film and television. We will dive into visual style, media literacy and the cultural dynamics of media — dynamics that have the power to wield incredible influence in our society. The minor is offered upon the completion of 18 credits, 12 of which must be upper division.
Courses
Below are the course requirements for this academic program. In addition to these program-specific requirements, all majors include Biola's traditional undergraduate core curriculum. For more program details, including a sample course sequence, visit Biola's academic catalog.
Core Courses
| CNMA 102 | Visual Aesthetics |
| Through an introduction to the building blocks of visual storytelling, students will learn to use film grammar to tell their stories effectively. Special emphasis will be given to lighting, color, shape, line, and space. Grade Mode: A. | |
| CNMA 205 | Perception and Media |
This course focuses on the role perception plays in our relationship with media. While we may feel as though our perception is thorough and complete in our experience of the world, it is actually partial at best. However, that does not prevent us from interpreting our world. In this course we will explore the numerous ways in which we compensate for that perceptual deficit. These practices take on added significance when we perceive and interpret mediated images. Grade Mode: A. | |
| CNMA 353 | Media Literacy |
| This course will cover the effect of visual media on society and the noticeable absence of learning the grammar of visual language within the educational process. Instead of relegating the study of media to a simple inoculation against negative images, this course seeks to understand and celebrate the quite human process of media creation and consumption with the hope of restoring agency to the audience and accountability to the creator. Grade Mode: A. | |
| COMM 254 | Communication Theories |
| Descriptions and applications of communication theories such as symbolic interaction, relational theories, narrative paradigm and selected group operational theories. Grade Mode: A. | |