Multi-dimensional in its approach, Communication Studies Department uses the rich resources of both the humanities and the social sciences in exploring the human capacity for speech - when, where, why, how, and with what effect people interact through language and extra-linguistic symbols - and focuses on the theory and practice of human communication in a variety of contexts: interpersonal, intercultural, instructional, organizational, political, in dyads, in small groups, and in the mass media. The Communication Studies program prepares students for graduate work or careers in a wide variety of occupations that place a premium on excellent communication skills. The Communication Studies degree program is now among the most popular in the College of Liberal Arts.
Modified from coms.calpoly.edu
Senior Projects from 2023
An Analysis of College Students’ Stories About How Their Religious Backgrounds Impacted Their Sexual Attitudes, Brookelyn Bochenek
Storytelling and Racial Identity: How First-Generation Students of Color Navigate Their Identities at Predominately White Institutions, Kimberly Garcia Cruz
Advising Communication in Finance, Jordan J. Schumann
Let's Talk Body: An Applied Senior Project on Social Media Body Image, Katherine R. Tonges and Lindsey J. Dwyer
Senior Projects from 2022
Social Media and Marketing as a Means of Planning and Promoting the 2022 Camp PolyHacks Hackathon, Amy Gillham, Olivia Gerraty, and Elizabeth Anderson
“Something Would’ve Been Better Than Nothing”: An Analysis of Young Adults’ Stories of Being Ghosted, Katherine Anne Holmes
The White House: No Drugs Allowed, Olivia A. Jones
Political Socialization of College-age Individuals in the Age of Social Media, Spencer G. Lowe
Senior Projects from 2021
The Unheard Voices and Privilege of a Killer: An Analysis of Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, Allison G. Jones and Emma L. Mabe
The Power of Video Games: How Celeste and Hellblade Address Mental Health, Victor M. Ortiz
How to Save a Planet: Communicating Climate Change Efficacy Through Narrative, Amanda Kaye Smith
Senior Projects from 2020
Informing the Creation of a Financial Literacy Tool for Cal Poly Students, Kelly Michelle Carroll
Fighting for Equality in the Workforce, Madison Taylor Dewing
The Effect of Communication Medium on Mental Health Outcomes, Brooke Emily Lyon
Analyzing Perceptions of Music From a Songwriting Perspective, Jackson Stephen Reynosa
Reducing Uncertainty: A Student Perspective on an Introductory Communication Course, Hannah Williams and Campbell Warren
Senior Projects from 2019
The 2019 Communication Studies Career Symposium, Emily Beth Bernstein
An Analysis on the Universalism-Relativism Debate, the Effects of Ethnocentrism, and How These Theories Dictate Human Rights Around the World, Katherine J. Brouker
Event Planning as a Means of Applying Transferable Skills: The Planning of the 2019 Communication Studies Banquet, Kylie E. Clark
Communications Theories and College Baseball Recruiting, Davis Willback Ellington
"The James Gang": Keys to the Success of Tobin James Cellars, Natalie A. Fink
The Effect of Vocal Fillers on Credibility, Communication Competence, and Likeability, Lea E. Gikas and Zachary T. Sutcliffe
REDEFINE: Messages about Masculinity, Anna Leonidovna Goryachikova, Mason Mitchell Montgomery, and Hannah Jayne Martell
The Effect of Social Media Platforms On Perceptions of Flirtatiousness and Discomfort, Brynn Alyssa Motal
A White Savior, Savagery, and Criminality in the City of "Multitudinous Opportunity" in Zootopia, Matthew Keizo Nagata