Diploma in Communications, Culture, and Journalism Studies

The Diploma in Communications, Culture, and Journalism Studies (CCJS) is a two-year interdisciplinary diploma that foregrounds a critical analysis of the mass media as contemporary society's most pervasive agent of political and cultural transformation. Students will explore the social, political, and economic functions of news and communications media, the history of journalism, and cultural policy & theory. Particular attention will be paid to questions of social justice, as well as of identity and constructions of gender, race, class, sexuality, and nationality. Housed in the Department of Communications, CCJS offers students foundational courses in media theory, writing-intensive courses in Communications and English, and a selection of elective breadth courses from a range of departments --including Anthropology, History, Philosophy, Geography, Political Science, Sociology, and Women's Studies. While students may proceed directly to potential entry-level careers in communications, journalism, public relations, marketing, advertising, research, writing, publishing, consulting or new media, especially in small markets and independent digital environments, completion of this program is intended primarily to provide students with the liberal arts education necessary for further study. Communications explores how meaning is made in a range of contexts, including advertising, television, film, popular culture, and the internet. Learn how communication is fundamentally related to the development of self and society and examine how the messages of the contemporary world influence perception of such issues as gender, race, class, and community.

B.C. secondary graduation, or equivalent.

English 12 with minimum 60% or alternatives.

Students with a passing grade of less than 60% in English 12, English 12 First Peoples or TPC 12 will be admissible to the first year of the program, subject to the following conditions:

Registration is restricted to courses for which the student satisfies the prerequisites. Registration in first-year English courses is, therefore, prohibited.

Successful completion of the English entrance requirements within the first year of studies. This may be done in one of the following ways:

Successful completion of English 12, English 12 First Peoples or TPC 12 or an equivalent course with a minimum grade of 60%. This may be done concurrently through the College's Adult Basic Education Program or by completing an equivalent course through a distance education program.

Mature Applicants: A mature applicant will be at least 19 years of age and will not have attended secondary school on a full-time basis for a minimum period of one year.

International Baccalaureate (IB) programs accepted.

Duolingo English Test - Overall score 105
IELTS - Overall band score of 6.0 (with no band less than 6.0)
TOEFL - 79 (Internet-based), or 213 (computer-based), or 550 (paper-based)