COMMUNICATION IS A FOUNDATIONAL PRACTICE OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE. Every day, we talk, send text messages, update our Facebook profiles, watch a movie or TV program, read the news on the Internet or play a video game. The communication environment seems so natural, we tend to not even notice it at all. But that very invisibility also makes communication a critical and fascinating area of study. Our various modes of communication may be normal and routine, but they are anything but unimportant. More ...
Academic Program
RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES
The interdisciplinary nature of communication study means that research opportunities are plentiful and take many forms, from quantitative and statistical studies, to historical analyses, to interpretive and theoretical essays. Classes are small, and students engage in rigorous discussion. Many courses are writing-intensive, multiplying the occasions for in-depth, scholarly research. A number of students have presented their work at national and international conferences.
Recent communication majors gave presentations at the International Workshop on Presence at the Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain; at the annual convention of the New York State Communication Association; and at the National Undergraduate Honors Conference, hosted by the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California.
THE SENIOR PROGRAM
Senior majors in communication participate in an intensive Senior Program, during which they work closely with a faculty member on a one-semester senior project. The project represents a culmination of each student’s undergraduate experience; it synthesizes coursework, research and discussion into a focused statement of intellectual growth and insight. In communication, the project consists of both written and oral components, culminating in a final draft of original research and an oral presentation to students and faculty at the end of the course.
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RESOURCES
The Communication Department hosts several guest speakers each year who are distinguished in scholarly and professional fields. Among the recent speakers are David Gunkel, an award-winning educator and scholar in the field of information and communication technology, and author of Thinking Otherwise: Philosophy, Communication, Technology; and Jim Kennedy, vice president and director of strategic planning for the Associated Press. Students have a variety of opportunities to engage distinguished guests in conversation.
The College hosts an annual public speaking competition. The six speaking awards are among the most prestigious student honors on campus and include $6,000 in prizes. Topics and formats vary — persuasive speeches, informative speeches and essays may be considered. Additionally, Hamilton is a member of Lambda Pi Eta, a national honor society dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in communication studies. Membership is based on scholastic performance and commitment to the field.
There are also many resources available to help students across disciplines improve their communication skills and prepare for life — academic or professional — after Hamilton. Hamilton's Oral Communication Center offers support services, workshops and tutoring options designed to help students improve their public-speaking skills and classroom performance. The Nesbitt-Johnston Writing Center offers peer writing conferences to help students clarify, organize and strengthen their ideas.
Many communication students earn working internships in such professional fields as media production, public relations, marketing and advertising. The College's Maurice Horowich Career Center helps find and arrange internships in New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and other locales.
Hamilton's commitment to strong writing and speaking skills dates back more than a century and a half, when the young College first forged a distinctive program in rhetoric and elocution. Students learned to speak with power, polish and persuasive ability, and that tradition continues today with Hamilton's innovative, writing-intensive curriculum.
Honoring Excellence
The College hosts an annual public speaking competition. The six speaking awards are among the most prestigious student honors on campus and include $6,000 in prizes. Topics and formats vary — persuasive speeches, informative speeches and essays may be considered. Hamilton is also a member of Lambda Pi Eta, a national honor society dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in communication studies. Membership is based on scholastic performance and commitment to the field.
Innovative Approaches
The emerging culture of the Internet combines elements of a modern, print-oriented mentality with a much older oral tradition. Postmodern theories of self and society tell us a great deal about the practice of rhetoric in ancient Greece and Rome — and the reverse is just as true. Perhaps more than any other field of study, communication combines past and present to illuminate both.
Interdisciplinary Connections
The study of communication at Hamilton is highly interdisciplinary. It makes connections among such fields as literary studies, media studies, psychology, anthropology, education, ethics and even religion in order to explore the complexities of communication from a variety of viewpoints.
Hamilton's commitment to strong writing and speaking skills dates back more than a century and a half, when the young College first forged a distinctive program in rhetoric and elocution. Students learned to speak with power, polish and persuasive ability, and that tradition continues today with Hamilton's innovative, writing-intensive curriculum.
Honoring Excellence
The College hosts an annual public speaking competition. The six speaking awards are among the most prestigious student honors on campus and include $6,000 in prizes. Topics and formats vary — persuasive speeches, informative speeches and essays may be considered. Hamilton is also a member of Lambda Pi Eta, a national honor society dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in communication studies. Membership is based on scholastic performance and commitment to the field.
Innovative Approaches
The emerging culture of the Internet combines elements of a modern, print-oriented mentality with a much older oral tradition. Postmodern theories of self and society tell us a great deal about the practice of rhetoric in ancient Greece and Rome — and the reverse is just as true. Perhaps more than any other field of study, communication combines past and present to illuminate both.
Interdisciplinary Connections
The study of communication at Hamilton is highly interdisciplinary. It makes connections among such fields as literary studies, media studies, psychology, anthropology, education, ethics and even religion in order to explore the complexities of communication from a variety of viewpoints.
Hamilton's commitment to strong writing and speaking skills dates back more than a century and a half, when the young College first forged a distinctive program in rhetoric and elocution. Students learned to speak with power, polish and persuasive ability, and that tradition continues today with Hamilton's innovative, writing-intensive curriculum.
Honoring Excellence
The College hosts an annual public speaking competition. The six speaking awards are among the most prestigious student honors on campus and include $6,000 in prizes. Topics and formats vary — persuasive speeches, informative speeches and essays may be considered. Hamilton is also a member of Lambda Pi Eta, a national honor society dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in communication studies. Membership is based on scholastic performance and commitment to the field.
Innovative Approaches
The emerging culture of the Internet combines elements of a modern, print-oriented mentality with a much older oral tradition. Postmodern theories of self and society tell us a great deal about the practice of rhetoric in ancient Greece and Rome — and the reverse is just as true. Perhaps more than any other field of study, communication combines past and present to illuminate both.
Interdisciplinary Connections
The study of communication at Hamilton is highly interdisciplinary. It makes connections among such fields as literary studies, media studies, psychology, anthropology, education, ethics and even religion in order to explore the complexities of communication from a variety of viewpoints.
Hamilton's commitment to strong writing and speaking skills dates back more than a century and a half, when the young College first forged a distinctive program in rhetoric and elocution. Students learned to speak with power, polish and persuasive ability, and that tradition continues today with Hamilton's innovative, writing-intensive curriculum.
Honoring Excellence
The College hosts an annual public speaking competition. The six speaking awards are among the most prestigious student honors on campus and include $6,000 in prizes. Topics and formats vary — persuasive speeches, informative speeches and essays may be considered. Hamilton is also a member of Lambda Pi Eta, a national honor society dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in communication studies. Membership is based on scholastic performance and commitment to the field.
Innovative Approaches
The emerging culture of the Internet combines elements of a modern, print-oriented mentality with a much older oral tradition. Postmodern theories of self and society tell us a great deal about the practice of rhetoric in ancient Greece and Rome — and the reverse is just as true. Perhaps more than any other field of study, communication combines past and present to illuminate both.
Interdisciplinary Connections
The study of communication at Hamilton is highly interdisciplinary. It makes connections among such fields as literary studies, media studies, psychology, anthropology, education, ethics and even religion in order to explore the complexities of communication from a variety of viewpoints.
AFTER HAMILTON
Hamilton graduates who concentrated in Communication are pursuing careers in a variety of fields, including:
Investment Banking Analyst, Bear Stearns & Co. Inc.
Associate Producer, ESPN
Publicist, Random House, Inc.
Ice Hockey Coach, New York University
Homeland Security, The White House
Senior Regulatory Analyst, Lockheed Martin Corporation
