2024 Master's in Communication Programs in North Carolina (Charlotte, Online)

Campus Programs in North Carolina
Online Programs in North Carolina
Directory of All Programs in North Carolina

There are currently eight schools in North Carolina that offer a total of 13 master’s in communication programs. Of these 13 programs, nine are campus-based, while four are online. Students researching master’s in communication programs in North Carolina have a variety of specializations to choose from, including interpersonal communication, health communication, political communication, and mass communication.

All of the schools listed on this page are non-profit institutions of higher education that are regionally accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).

Campus-Based Master’s in Communication Programs in North Carolina

In Greenville, East Carolina University’s School of Communication offers a Master of Arts in Communication with a concentration in Strategic Communication that prepares students for versatile roles in public relations, consumer-facing marketing and media, organizational communication leadership, business-to-business communication, and health marketing and advocacy. Students take core courses in communication theory and research methods, as well as strategic communication. From there, they choose electives in areas such as health communication campaigns, communication approaches for health advocacy, risk and crisis communication, social media for professionals, organizational communication, social influence, and more. For their final graduation requirement, students must choose between two options: a traditional master’s thesis, which is a structured work of scholarly research on a communication-related research question; and an applied communication project, wherein students select a professionally relevant topic and develop an applied project on that topic.

High Point University’s Nido R. Qubein School of Communication offers a Master of Arts in Communication and Business Leadership that is designed to cultivate students’ professional skills in leadership, critical thinking, strategic communication, and teamwork. Students take core courses in strategic message design, organizational behavior, data and decision-making, persuasion and negotiation, and leadership. From there, students take classes according to their professional interests, choosing from electives in areas such as crisis communication, intercultural communication, media and public policy, leadership ethics in a global arena, empathetic communication in the digital age, storytelling and leadership, change management, and consumer insights. Students must complete a strategic communication practicum as well as a capstone project that involves analyzing a case study and designing a communication action plan both in groups and individually.

Online Master's in Communication Programs that Accept Students from North Carolina
Johns Hopkins University	Online Master of Arts in Communication with Concentrations in Public and Media Relations, Political Communication, Health Communication, Digital Communication, and Corporate and Non-Profit Communication	Program Website
Wake Forest University	Online Master of Communications	Program Website
Syracuse University	Online Master of Science in Communications with Specializations in Strategic Communications, Journalism Innovation, and Media Management	Program Website
Southern New Hampshire University	Online Master of Arts in Communication with Optional Concentrations in New Media & Marketing, and Public Relations	Program Website

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In Raleigh, North Carolina State University’s Department of Communication offers a Master of Science in Communication that has a flexible curriculum that students can tailor to their professional or academic goals. Students take core classes in critical and interpretive inquiry in communication, quantitative and qualitative research methods, and communication theory. They can then take electives in areas such as the history of rhetoric, communication campaigns, risk communication, environmental communication, nonprofit marketing and public relations, visual content analysis, intercultural and international communication, visual rhetoric, gaming and social networks, and non-profit marketing and public relations. For their culminating experience in the program, students can choose between a master’s thesis and comprehensive exams.

North Carolina State University’s Department of English offers a Master of Science in Technical Communication with elective clusters in Web Design and Development, Environmental Communication, Medical/Health Communication, Training and Development, Organizational Information Systems, and Agricultural Communication. This program prepares students for a variety of technical communication roles, and includes core courses on theory and research in professional writing, the rhetoric of science and technology, publication management for technical communicators, and advanced technical writing and editing. Elective courses include verbal data analysis, usability studies, science media writing, information design, and design of instructional material. Students complete a professional project as part of a final capstone course in the program.

Queens University of Charlotte’s James L. Knight School of Communication offers a Master of Arts in Communication with optional specializations in Strategic Communication, and Organizational Communication. This program features a core curriculum that prepares students to apply communication theory and ethics, intercultural communication competencies, and communication research methods to a wide variety of internal and external-facing communication challenges and initiatives. After the core curriculum, students can either specialize in one or both of the aforementioned areas, or they can tailor their own course of study by choosing their own electives. Students of the Strategic Communication specialization learn how to optimize public relations communications and design multimedia communication campaigns for organizations in the public and private sectors. Students of the Organizational Communication specialization take courses on the principles and processes of organizational communication, group and team dynamics, and leadership in communication.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media offers two campus-based master’s programs in communication: a Master of Arts in Strategic Communication, and an Master of Arts in Theory and Research. Students of the MA in Strategic Communication program take courses in data insights and analytics, strategic communication writing, creating digital content, communication leadership, client-tailored campaigns, personal branding, and networking. Their final graduation requirement is a capstone course where students develop a final project, receive peer and instructor feedback, write a reflective report, and present their capstone project to a faculty panel. The MA in Research and Theory is geared towards students who are interested in advanced communication scholarship. The program features courses in mass communication research and theories, media law, media processes and production, media effects, regulatory and legal issues in communication, sociopolitical communication, mediated health communication, and health campaigns and marketing. Students’ culminating experience in this program is a master’s thesis. Note: The Hussman School also offers a Master of Arts in Journalism, featuring courses in journalism methods, reporting fundamentals, visual journalism, investigative reporting, and data-driven journalism, among other areas.

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s Department of Communication Studies offers a Master of Arts in Communication Studies that allows students to craft their own area of focus through their selection of electives in dedicated Interest Areas that include Organizational Communication; Rhetoric, Culture, and Social Change; Health Communication; Public Relations; and Media and Technology Studies. Students take core courses in communication studies for professionals, communication research methods, and contemporary perspectives in communication theory, followed by their choice of electives in areas such as communication and leadership, gender and communication, interpersonal health communication, the rhetoric of social change, global media, health-related media and messaging, international public relations, and organizational communication. Students of this program can choose from three Capstone Experiences for their final graduation requirement in the program: a master’s thesis, a directed project that involves applied professional research, and a comprehensive examination (students choosing the exam for their final graduation requirement must also complete two additional electives).

The University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Department of Communication Studies offers a Master of Arts in Communication Studies, which is a generalist program with electives that focus on three areas of study: Culture and Identity, Community Engagement and Public Advocacy, and Organizational and Relational Communication. Students take core classes in communication theory and research methodologies, followed by electives covering topics such as communication for social change, communication ethics and social justice, risk communication, communication pedagogy, culture and communication, and relational communication. Students must also complete a final research project that investigates a communication practice or phenomenon.

Wake Forest University’s Department of Communication, located in Winston-Salem, offers a Master of Arts in Communication that is a flexible generalist program with diverse courses that students can choose according to their interests. Students take core classes in rhetorical theory and criticism, and quantitative research methods in communication studies, followed by electives in areas such as health communication, democratic theory, argumentation, public address, media effects, international communication, social movements, communication technologies, screenwriting, film history, communication in popular culture, and the rhetoric of science. At the end of their first year, students collaborate with their advisor and the director of graduate studies to develop a research question for their master’s thesis, which their final requirement in the program.

Online Master’s in Communication Programs in North Carolina

Online master’s in communication programs may be a good option for students who do not live in close proximity to a university that offers a master’s in communication program. For example, residents of Asheville, Fayetteville, Jacksonville, or Wilmington who do not want to or cannot relocate for graduate school. (Note: Currently, Fayetteville State University, UNC Wilmington and UNC Asheville do not offer master’s programs in the field of communication). Online programs may also be a good option for students who do not want to commute to Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, or another city that houses a campus-based program.

There are currently four schools in North Carolina that offer online master’s in communication programs. East Carolina University’s School of Communication offers an Online Master of Arts in Communication with a concentration in Strategic Communication. This program is equivalent in graduation requirements and curriculum to the campus-based version of the school’s program, with electives that emphasize organizational communication, health communication, and social influence through communication. Queens University of Charlotte’s James L. Knight School of Communication offers an online Master of Arts in Communication with optional concentrations in Strategic Communication and Organizational Communication. This program is equivalent in curriculum content and structure to the campus-based version of the program. Students engage with course concepts through video conferences, instant messaging, online community tools, and shared blogs.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media offers an Online Master of Arts in Digital Communication that explores how digital media intersects with culture, society, and economics. After attending an on-campus orientation at the start of their enrollment, students take online classes covering areas such as audience psychology, multi-platform storytelling, media analytics, media’s economic effects, communication research methods, user experience and visual literacy, strategic communication, reputation management, media law, organizational leadership and entrepreneurship, and media innovation. During the spring of their first year, students also attend a five-day residency during which they collaborate with classmates and faculty to develop an audio-visual narrative project. Students must complete a final comprehensive examination, as well as a non-traditional thesis that involves investigating an issue or a digital media challenge facing an organization, developing a proposal to solve it, and building and presenting the completed solution to faculty and peers.

Wake Forest University’s School of Professional Studies in Winston-Salem offers an online Masters of Communications that prepares students for careers in strategic, organizational, and/or digital communications. This program is comprised of a set curriculum of 10 courses that cover topics in communications research, contemporary communications concepts and applications, digital communications engagement, crisis communications, strategic communications, public relations principles and strategies, organizational culture and leadership, and intercultural communications. Students select one elective to tailor their professional training according to their interests, and can choose from courses in areas such as corporate branding, social media marketing, digital branding and storytelling, and change leadership and management. For their culminating experience, students complete a capstone project, which involves solving a real-world communications challenge for an existing organization by developing a comprehensive communications plan, utilizing skills and principles learned in the program.

In addition to the aforementioned in-state online programs, numerous out-of-state schools offer online master’s in communication programs that admit students from North Carolina. Depending on the program, students may need to attend one or more on-campus intensives, or events, exams, and/or other program requirements at a satellite location. Students should consult with program admissions advisors to gain more information about potential travel requirements for out-of-state online programs. Additionally, some out-of-state schools are not authorized to accept students who are residents of North Carolina. For more information about online master’s degree programs in communication, including campus visit requirements and geographical admissions restrictions, please reference our Online Master’s in Communication Programs resource page.

Directory of Master’s in Communication Programs in North Carolina

Featured Online Master's in Communication Programs
Johns Hopkins University	Online Master of Arts in Communication with Concentrations in Public and Media Relations, Political Communication, Health Communication, Digital Communication, and Corporate and Non-Profit Communication	Program Website
Wake Forest University	Online Master of Communications	Program Website
Syracuse University	Online Master of Science in Communications with Specializations in Strategic Communications, Journalism Innovation, and Media Management	Program Website
Southern New Hampshire University	Online Master of Arts in Communication with Optional Concentrations in New Media & Marketing, and Public Relations	Program Website
Georgetown University	Online Master of Professional Studies in Public Relations & Corporate Communications	Program Website
West Virginia University	Online Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications with Specializations in Creative Strategy, Data Marketing Communications, Digital and Social Media, Healthcare Communication, Higher Education Marketing, Management, and Public Relations Leadership	Program Website