Bachelor of Individualized Studies: Mass Communication, Art, Design Studies

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1 Bachelor of Individualized Studies: Mass Communication, Art, Design Studies I bought my first camera seven years ago this fall. I began taking pictures as quickly as possible, set on never missing a moment. Four years ago, I began making pictures. There was a major change in my approach to photography and I began to think about spending the rest of my life working with photos. I started my company, Absolute Images, four years ago and after an incredible amount of work and learning, I realized there was no way I could go into any other field. I have decided to pursue a Bachelors of Individualized Studies degree in art, mass communication and design studies. My work in Absolute is in commercial photography, working on digital marketing and advertising for companies. My goal is to continue this track to work professionally in creative advertising and commercial photography. My unique concentrations are designed to give me all the tools I will need for the future. Even if I decide to move into other directions, these three areas are applicable in a very wide gamut of career opportunities and in the rest of my life. Studying these areas provides a level of versatility and knowledge that I haven t been able to find in any one single major option. I have decided to pursue art, mass communication and design studies. They will prepare me to be an active learner and flexible in any situation. Photography is the backbone for my passion. My love for art and learning about art is crucial to my degree and gives me the ability to become an artist working in a creative field. Advertising takes that creative field to a specific avenue and focuses my art into an avenue for advertising. Lastly, design studies is incredibly important to my interactions with businesses and my photography. Not only is good design and user understanding essential for an effective advertisement, it also drives productive communication between clients and photographers.

2 Art First, art is the basis for my photography. I find art a naturally cathartic but also incredibly challenging process. When I edit or spend time in a darkroom working with photos, I find I lose track of time for hours but it still requires my total attention. That is a solitary time for me to focus on my photos. Art is an independent and social process. When I take photographs, I am working within myself to find the perfect angle and exposure but when the photo is made, I want to share it with as wide an audience as possible. Art 5990 Independent Studies in Art gave me an appreciation for the play between social and asocial parts of art. Next, Art 3701 Photography: Silver Processes gave me the basic skills for all photography like composition and careful exposure. Black and white film photography is the most basic and fundamental form of photography. Art History 3577 Photo Nation: Photography in America is a great course to give me the historical context on photography and a little more diversity than just art application courses. Of course, Art 3703 Photography: Digital Imaging is more practical as digital is the only form used in advertising and commercial photography now. Art 5710 Advanced Photography is the next level of photography, teaching me advanced techniques that are critical to making impactful photographs. Last, Art 5990 Independent Studies in Art is a capstone to show the progress and final work that I ve accomplished. After taking art classes, I ve decided that it isn t personally enough for my major. I love art but I have a desire to develop more areas of study rather than just art. Mass Communication Mass communication is how groups and individuals share information through different channels. Taking that a step further, strategic communications is the a refined version of mass communication with a specific goal and strategy to achieve their goal. Strategic communications

3 is a natural decision because of my area of interest in photography. Working with business clients is very different than other photographic work. Taking a thought that a business has from the creation of the idea all the way through the process to a final output is extremely rewarding for me. I want to make artistic decisions based on my knowledge of advertising to make provide a business identity. Studying advertising is really the study of market influence. It is the intersection of branding, company image, audience research and persuasion which means it is a convoluted and difficult area to study but very rewarding if done successfully. A strong background in business and psychology as well as mass media are vital to advertising. First, Journalism 3551 Economics in New Media gave me an understanding of the business behind the digital age, something I was unaware of before this class. Journalism 3005 Mass Media Effects gives me the background of all mass media, providing history and a context for advertising and media. Journalism 3976 Mass Media and Politics teaches about image, especially how political figures use media to shape public opinion, much like advertising does. Journalism 3004W Information for Mass Communication is designed to teach techniques of mass communication and how they are implemented. Journalism 3241 Advertising Strategy and Creative Development is the perfect class after learning the background and foundations of advertising. It is a chance to work specifically with the creative side of advertising and dissect how it works. Last, Journalism 4251 Psychology of Advertising is crucial to understand how the audience interacts and understands advertising and what makes advertising successful in the context of psychology. Advertising and art is a powerful major combination for someone that wants to do what I want to but I still felt like there was something missing. I found that art and mass communication would provide an artistic and a business context for work but I was missing

4 the experience in taking the photos I made into a final advertisement with cohesive design and that had a positive impact on users. Design Studies I ve been drawn to user experience and user interfacing in design. I believe this is an important addition to my major because it gives unique insight into the user, in ways that art and advertising are unable to. So much of design is spent on making experience better for users and I want to bring that into my major to put an art and advertising spin on it. Design is intertwined with both art and advertising. Bad design is instantly noticeable to users now so I believe studying design will be important for my dreams after school. First, Design 3341 (un)wrapping It Up gives a perspective on new materials trends in design and where the future of design is going. Design 3351 Phenomenon of Everyday Design is a look at the design of common items and how simple design yield drastic user implications. Design 3141 Technology, Design Society provides the idea of designing with technology for a human context. Design 3131 User Experience in Design is learning how to put yourself into the users mind to improve their design experience. Much like 3131, Design 5185 Human Factors in Design is all about understanding the human elements of design and how people interact with design through designing products for unique situations or universal design. A well rounded view of working for the user is what I want from studying design because I think it becomes a crucial asset when business are trying to reach a specific audience. Understanding the audience and how they interact with media and our message is vital in communicating with them. Overall, my proposed program is designed specifically to give me the exact tools I will need for the future and it is unique to me. I think this uniqueness is a really attractive quality of my major that I can show to clients. An Individualized Studies degree is different that what most

5 clients will see so I have an opportunity to provide a more well rounded experience not only for businesses but also their target audience. Working in a creative business field has been a dream of mine and this major program is not only challenging me to move into areas I wouldn t be able to with only one of my concentrations alone, but also driving me to diversify my skills in these areas. Taking the classes described above, I will have exposure to ideas and eventually build a combination of skills that are exclusive to me. With my goals, having a mixture of knowledge in the process of art, being able to communicate with a business client and understanding the user or audience will make me effective in that field. My courses in art, strategic communications and design studies are the expression of my passion and will continue to fuel my love for the work that I do.

6 BIS/IDIM Program Course Worksheet Nam ID#: IDIM Titl Total number of credits in proposed program: 64 Total number 3/4/5xxx level credits in proposed program: 64 Total credits in program left to complet 52 Titl Dept. Course Code Art Concentration One Course Title (Grade ) Art 5990 Independent Study in Art 3 Art 3701 Photography: Silver Processes 4 ArtH 3577 Photography in America 3 Art 3703 Photography: Digital Imaging 4 Art 5710 Advanced Photography 4 Art 3496 Internship in the Arts 4 TOTALS: 3/4/5xxx level credits in area: 23 Total credits in area (IDIM only): Not (Term) Titl Dept. Course Code Concentration Two Mass Communication Course Title (Grade ) Journ Economics in New Media 3 Journ Mass Media Effects 3 Journ Mass Media and Politics 3 Journ. 3004W Information for Mass Communication 3 Journ Principles of Strategic Communication 3 Journ Advertising Strategy and Creative Development 3 Journ Psychology of Advertising 3 Journ Multimedia Prodcution and Story Telling 3 Not (Term) TOTALS : 3/4/5xxx level credits in area: 25 Total credits in area (IDIM only):

7 Titl Dept. Course Code Concentration Three Interdisciplinary Design Course Title (Grade ) Des (un)wrapping It Up 3 Des Phenomenon of Everyday Design 3 Des Technology, Design, Society 3 Des User Experience in Design 4 Des Human Factors in Design 3 TOTALS : 3/4/5xxx level credits in area: 16 Total credits in area (IDIM only): Not (Term)