Bellevue University's College of Arts and Sciences - Online Master of Arts in Business and Professional Communication Program

Bellevue University offers a Master of Arts in Business and Professional Communication degree through the College of Arts and Sciences. The degree can be completed entirely online and does not require any campus visits. Bellevue University uses an online learning management system that integrates with the university’s network to centralize class registration and allow students to access course materials, submit assignments, converse with other students via discussion boards and chat rooms, and connect with instructors via email and messaging platforms.

The online Master of Arts in Business and Professional Communication requires 36 credit hours, with most students completing the program in approximately 24 months of full-time study. The curriculum is split between core classes (24 credits) and concentration coursework (12 credits). The program’s curriculum covers major theories of professional business communication, teaching students how to use those theories to assess communication issues and develop inventive solutions. Core coursework emphasizes leadership skill development in critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making.

Students complete eight classes of core instruction that cover fundamental principles and strategies of professional business communication. Subject areas include leadership and organizational communication, communication technologies, conflict and negotiation, interpersonal and intercultural communication, writing, and ethics and decision making. Included in those 18 credits is a Business and Professional Communication Capstone course. In this course, students leverage the knowledge and skills they have learned in the program to both identify and develop approaches to solving workplace challenges using managerial communication strategies.

The remaining credits students complete as part of a four-course academic concentration. These courses allow students to specialize in a specific area of professional communication practice. Students may select from the following specializations: Business; Computer Information Systems; Executive Coaching; Human Resource Management; Project Management; Transnational and Cross-Cultural Communication; and Interdisciplinary Studies.

Specific classes vary by academic concentration. For example, the Business Concentration includes courses in areas such as business performance management, financial reporting and analysis, new media strategies, human capital development and organizational performance, and marketing strategy. The Computer Information Systems concentration covers topics such as cloud computing and IT infrastructure, IT project management, and network technologies, while the Human Resource Management concentration emphasizes human resource law, personnel recruitment and selection practices, and organizational and compensation management.

The Project Management Concentration focuses on foundational skills in the industry, including risk assessment and management, project requirement development, and project management practices in global, virtual, and information technology settings. Transnational and Cross-Cultural Communication broadly covers topics such as foreign policy, democracy in the Middle East and comparative intelligence cultures. Executive Coaching introduces students to the professional principles of the role, discussing subject such as coaching assessment skills, relationship dynamics, and the ethics of executive coaching. Finally, for the Interdisciplinary Studies concentration, students select courses from at least two of the other concentrations as they create their own course of study.

Bellevue University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.