Technological innovation is reshaping career paths almost daily, with artificial intelligence and digital media creating new jobs and drastically changing existing ones. Rising professionals understand they will need a broad knowledge base and skills to navigate the new job landscape. This reality has led many to pursue degrees in interdisciplinary professional studies.
Through the University of Mount Saint Vincent (UMSV) online Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Professional Studies program, students design a degree that lends itself to various vocations, from communications and media to organizational leadership. Graduates have the tools to pursue a wide range of roles, from accounting assistants and bookkeepers to marketers and project managers.
What Is a Professional Studies Degree?
By pursuing a professional studies degree, students join a long legacy of independent thinkers seeking to learn about two or more academic fields. According to Indeed, the program allows students to personalize their educational experience and deepen research skills in multiple areas. Perhaps most importantly, program participants learn how to make connections between seemingly unrelated subjects and approach problems from a different perspective than their peers.
Because professional studies degrees are more customized to student interests than a traditional degree program, students are often highly motivated to pursue knowledge and connect their academic pursuits to their long-term career goals. Graduates of this program have fully developed their critical-thinking skills and know how to synthesize information from different fields to serve a common purpose.
Exploring the Communication and Media Studies Track
As part of UMSV’s program, students must complete core courses in communication, psychology, writing, and government to meet general education requirements. From there, they can pursue one of two tracks customized to their interests: Communication and Media Studies or Organizational Leadership.
The Communication and Media Studies track gives students a wide-ranging background in fields like advertising, writing, and digital media. Students develop their communication skills in courses like Public Speaking, where they research, organize, write, and present speeches to inform and persuade audiences. Professional studies students also dig into the basics of news reporting, public relations, and advertising writing in their Media Writing course.
Students also discover the connections between media and legal issues as part of the Communication and the Law course, which explores First Amendment protections, intellectual property, censorship, obscenity rules, and evolving internet regulations. Participants interested in history will find a home in the Survey of Experimental Media & Digital Arts course, which examines the expansion of electronic art since the 1960s and its evolution over time. Students gain a greater understanding of data visualization, interactivity, digital video art, sound art, and immersive virtual reality.
The job market for media and communication occupations is projected to grow at the same pace as all occupations in the U.S. over the next decade, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). About 114,300 media and communication openings are projected each year through 2032, with a median annual wage of $66,320—significantly higher than the median annual wage of $48,060 for all occupations in the U.S.
Focus on Organizational Leadership Skills
The other track available to students enrolled in UMSV’s online Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Professional Studies program is Organizational Leadership. The concept of organizational leadership consists of the qualities and skills necessary to run a company or a large division.
Rather than managing individuals, organizational leaders drive enthusiasm around the company’s vision and forge systems that make groups of employees successful. Harvard Business Review notes that effective organizational leaders motivate team members; promote problem solving and decision-making; foster open communication; and help leaders be goal oriented.
UMSV’s program creates effective leaders through coursework like the Organizational Psychology course, which covers the analysis of human behavior in organizational structures and dynamics, motivation, job satisfaction, management styles and human relations issues. Students dig into the nature of political power and social change as part of the Power and Conflict course. Through the Group Dynamics course and Small Group Communication course, aspiring leaders learn how to effectively drive problem-solving and decision-making processes within their workplaces.
The Organizational Leadership track prepares students for careers in project management, human resources, and talent recruitment, according to Indeed. However, the skills mastered through this program are transferable to nearly any career interest, from business and finance to hospitality and government.
Pursue Unique Academic Interests With the University of Mount Saint Vincent
Graduates of UMSV’s online Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Professional Studies program develop problem-solving and critical-thinking skills that are in high demand among employers. Graduates’ training in communications or organizational leadership will guide them toward fulfilling careers in whatever field they choose.
Learn more about UMSV’s online Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Professional Studies program.
