Social Media Certificate
The Scripps College of Communication Social Media Certificate program is offered through the School of Media Arts and Studies. Students complete three core courses and three electives in schools across the college.
About 180 students have enrolled in the Scripps College of Communication Social Media Certificate Program. Why so many? Students who sign up say having this credential on a resumé will provide a vital edge in the competitive job market our new graduates enter today.
Program Overview
Effective citizenship and career pursuits require social media competencies in new modes of information exchange, idea production and personal connection. The Social Media Certificate (SMC) program will explore such topics as: information sharing, entertainment values, organizational behavior, marketing practices, geopolitics, social networking.
Opportunities Upon Graduation
Almost all new graduates will use social media at work. Organizations are adapting traditional roles to encompass social media responsibilities. Teachers connect with classes for work on social media platforms, professionals in arts organizations connect with their audiences through an array of social media, and health professionals use these tools to exchange information. Marketers rely daily on social media. Across disciplines, social networking skills can lead job seekers to resources and relationship prospects that aid job candidacy through such paths as LinkedIn and Instagram.
Admissions Information
Students are eligible for entry with a 3.0 GPA, must maintain a 3.0 GPA overall, and must complete an 18 credit-hour minimum. Students are required to earn a C or above in MDIA 2113: Social Media Introduction and MDIA 4120: Advanced Social Media.
Learn more about the program and view course requirements and electives on the University Catalog webpage.
Required Courses
Complete the following courses:
- COMS 3200 - Communication and New Technology: Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 2113 - Social Media Introduction Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 4120 - Advanced Social Media Credit Hours: 3
Elective Courses
Complete at least 9 hours from the following:
- COMS 3250 - Communication Technology and Organizing Credit Hours: 3
- ITS 4310 - Privacy in the Internet Age Credit Hours: 3
- JOUR 2500 - Introduction to Advertising and Public Relations Credit Hours: 3
- JOUR 4530 - Strategic Social Media Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 3122 - Content Curation Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 3705 - Podcasting Production Essentials Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 3912 - Social Media Practicum Credit Hours: 1
- MDIA 4011 - Media and the Digital Divide Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 4122 - Social Media Industries Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 4130 - Social Media Analytics Credit Hours: 3
- MDIA 4176 - Technology, Communication, and Culture Credit Hours: 3
Note: Special Topics courses are offered occasionally as electives, such as Social Media and Politics.
Double-dipping
- Courses in the Social Media Certificate potentially "double dip”—satisfy a maximum of two DARS requirements. Planning is essential. Not planning costs time and money.
- Outside MDIA: Consult your major advisor on how other SMC courses"double dip” for you.
Insider Information
- Social Media classes fill quickly. Register as soon as your time arrives.
- JOUR 4530: Strategic Social Media requires that Journalism majors have two pre-requisites. Students who are in the Social Media Certificate program need permission from Dr. Jain for JOUR 4530 because the second catalog pre-req is not required for SMC students. Like other classes in the program, JOUR 4530 fills quickly, so stay on the ball.
- COMS 3200: Communication and New Technology has set-aside seats for graduating seniors only. If the class is full when you are trying to register as a graduating senior, get waitlisted and contact the instructor immediately with through the online permission system.
- Visual Communication students may count VICO 3111: Infographics as an elective. Non- majors do not have access to this course.
- Most SMC classes are in the classroom. Some are online. MDIA Summer classes are online.
Please Note: Students are required to attend all announced Social Media Certificate check-ins. These meetings generally last an hour and cover progress toward graduation, DARS changes, program news, and other topics.
Blog
Students earning the social media certificate from the Scripps College of Communication contribute this content and design social posts to promote it.
-
April 19, 2022
Lindsay Wielonski is a senior from Cincinnati, Ohio, majoring in journalism news and information, minoring in theater, and pursuing a certificate in social media. Lindsay has used her experience from the social media certificate, specifically Ohio University’s strategic social media course, to advance her social media skills and land two internships this summer.
-
April 14, 2022
Senior Natalie Artz has combined a media arts production major with a social media certificate, participation in the OHIO-in-LA program, minors and extracurriculars.
-
April 6, 2022
Senior journalism major Nia Dumas landed a job for post-graduation at WKYC Studios in Cleveland, Ohio, as a part of TEGNA's Producer-In-Residence (PIR) program.
-
March 29, 2022
Dalton Teasley, a graduating senior from Wellston, Ohio, is an involved student in the music production and recording industry major. Currently, he acts as the publicity director of Brick City Records, Ohio University’s student-run record label. Teasley spends his time practicing photography, graphic design, and voice recording for on-campus projects.
-
March 1, 2022
This year we celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Communication and Development Studies program, or CommDev. The program focuses on using communication to promote social change. Look into what this program has to offer and from the eyes of those in it.
-
February 22, 2022
After graduating in 2020 and moving to North Carolina, Madeline Priebe has started a successful Etsy shop, created her own oracle card deck, and found employment at Epic Games in her post-grad adventures.
-
February 16, 2022
Lyric Albert is a current senior at Ohio University who is set to graduate at the end of this semester. She is pursuing a major in communication studies, minors in marketing and advertising/PR and certificates in social media and diversity studies. She shares her experience in the social media industry, including working with companies like CLE Cotton Candy, Curology, and the Ohio University Black Student Union.
-
February 10, 2022
Despite the challenges brought on by the past couple of years, Ph.D. candidate Laura Harbert is working harder than ever. Harbert is studying for her doctorate from the MDIA school while also sharing her knowledge of audio storytelling with students.
-
December 8, 2021
Junior strategic communication major Olivia Strauss discusses the certificate in social media and her campus involvement in Ohio University's Alpha Lambda Delta National Honor Society chapter, Scripps Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), and 1804 Communication.
-
December 2, 2021
Since graduating in 2017 from the School of Media Arts and Studies with a degree in integrated media, Michelle House has moved to Los Angeles and learned a lot about the industry through working with Disney, Marvel Studios, Amazon, and Netflix.
-
November 16, 2021
In life there can be that one moment or experience that drives a person to want to fix the world's problems and change them for the better. Deniza Mulaj, a third-year Ph.D. candidate in the Media Arts and Studies program from Kosova, focuses on the intersectionality of media, political violence, and ethnicity.
-
November 3, 2021
Daniel Warmke, a Ph.D. student in the School of Media Arts and Studies and an instructor in the J. Warren McClure School of Emerging Communication Technologies, is an applied ludologist and studies the actual rules of games. He is currently conducting research on video games and, more specifically, emergent game play.
-
September 8, 2021
Ohio University senior Sarah Donaldson has a passion for politics and public affairs, which has led to internships with the Columbus Dispatch, the Athens News, and now ABC News in Washington D.C.
-
April 28, 2021
The social media storytelling project began as a way to both market the School of Media Arts & Studies on online platforms and provide advanced social media certificate students with an internship-like experience to develop skills necessary to succeed in an ever-growing realm of media platforms.
-
April 19, 2021
A social media certificate student on how the program has helped her find a full-time marketing position.
-
March 4, 2021
Michael Smoley is a senior in strategic communication with a specialization in marketing. Find out how Michael is using his social media certificate to lead accounts for our own Bobcat Esports Club.
-
February 11, 2021
Read how the social media certificate has helped one graduating senior navigate the job market.
-
March 3, 2020
MDIA Student Megan Shahroozi sharpened her social media skills in her internship at an LA media company.
-
February 12, 2020
MDIA Junior Faith Lucas brought together her social media knowledge with her other media skills in a recent internship with Dow Jones.