Becoming a Communicatin Studies Major or Minor
(from the 2009-2011 Undergraduate Catalog)
To declare a CST major, students must fulfill the following admission requirements: completion of a minimum of 45 semester credits with a cumulative GPA of 2.50, including courses taken at other institutions; completion of CST 110, ENG 110 and CST 190 (or equivalent courses transferred from other institutions) with grades of at least B (not B/C). Students receiving a D or F in these courses on first attempt at UW-L may retake them to achieve the B grade. Students receiving less than a B in CST 110 at UW-L may obtain admission to the program by receiving a B or better in CST 210. Students receiving less than a B in ENG 110 may obtain admission to the program by receiving a B or better in any 300 level ENG writing course.
Students who have fulfilled these requirements must see the CST department chair or a CST faculty adviser to obtain approval to declare the major. A current transcript or advisement report form must be submitted to document fulfillment of admission requirements. The approval form then must be submitted to the Office of the Dean of the College of Liberal Studies.
Students choosing to declare a communication studies major, but not yet meeting the requirements, may declare a pre-CST major. Declaring a pre-CST major will identify the student’s interest to the communication studies department and insure assignment of a communication studies adviser.
To appeal admission requirements, students must submit the following materials to the CST department chair no later than midterm of the semester in which they want to be considered for admission to the program: a persuasive letter requesting waiver of the specific admission requirement(s) not met, a copy of the student’s current transcript or advisement report; and a resume documenting experiences and/or qualifications that justify admission to the program in spite of deficiencies in admission requirements.
CST majors may choose any minor offered by the CST department that does not duplicate the emphasis they have selected for their CST major. Courses counted toward the 39-credit major, while they may fulfill requirements for that minor, may not be counted in the minor. An additional elective course or courses in the minor must be taken to complete the 24 credits required in that minor. Students who combine a CST major with a minor also offered by the CST department must complete 60 credits of courses in CST programs.
The Communication Studies department incorporates a significant amount of writing through the required courses instead of identifying particular courses as writing emphasis courses. Students who complete the CST major, including any of the emphases, will fulfill the university writing emphasis requirement.