The Communications program at University of Michigan-Dearborn encompasses multiple philosophical approaches to the study of communication as well as multiple areas of study within communication. The program is composed of five areas of study, with some areas emphasizing professional education and others situating the study of communication at the crossroads of particular areas of inquiry in the communication field that shape an understanding of communication structures, processes and practices.

• The Technical and Professional Communication area is geared towards providing a broad understanding of workplace communication principles and their application to specific written and oral communication tasks using relevant and current technologies.
• The Electronic and Visual Communication area focuses on the theory, practice and implications of communicating electronically and visually by radio, television, Internet and other digital forms.
• The Journalism curriculum is designed to ground students in the journalistic traditions and principles as well as its practices, to produce writers and editors who can analyze the news as well as report it. Students explore journalism’s global and national issues and challenges, its historical and literary roots, and its professional modes.
• The Speech Communication area aims to help students develop both strong communication skills and the critical perspectives that will allow them to become effective and ethical communicators across a range of professional, civic, family and social situations.
• The Public Communication and Culture Studies area is interdisciplinary, working at the nexus of three areas of inquiry within communication: Public Relations and Organizational Cultures; International/Intercultural Communication and Global Cultures; and Public Advocacy and Democratic Cultures. Interrelationships between the three areas are explored across the curriculum.

The program is geared towards situating students in the conceptual and theoretical foundations upon which all communication practice is grounded. Critical analysis, writing and speaking skills are gained within this larger context. The program also strives to provide a space for the discussion and enhanced understanding of communication practices and phenomena, especially as experienced within the multicultural and global contexts of the metropolitan Detroit area. In this, the program wishes to closely align itself with the vision of University of Michigan-Dearborn as a metropolitan university.

All students in Communications are required to do a co-op, internship or thesis project. The University of Michigan-Dearborn prides itself on a strong tradition of experiential education that will help prepare communications students for their careers.