MA in Communication Studies

Program Highlights

Graduates of the Communication Studies MA program have gone on to successfully pursue diverse career paths with their MA degree. Many have developed exciting careers in both Higher Education and other professions and fields. Please see the lists below for examples. Our graduates have also successfully gone on to pursue a PhD in some of the top schools in the country. Please see the list below of doctoral programs where out MA graduates have gone.

While here as a student in the Communication Studies MA program, our students have been consistently successful in scholarly achievements. Below is a samples of the works our students have presented in competitions, at regional conferences, as well as co-publishing their work with their faculty or working with faculty on their scholarship.

CMST MA Distinguished Alumni

Jasmine Linabury, MA graduate (‘13) received the Association of American Colleges & Universities K. Patricia Cross Future Leaders Award. Chosen from a pool of 275 nominations from 137 institutions, the recipients were recognized as students who “show exemplary promise as future leaders of higher education; who demonstrate a commitment to developing academic and civic responsibility in themselves and others; and whose work reflects a strong emphasis on teaching and learning.”

CSU, CHICO STUDENT RESEARCH COMPETITION – CMST Top Performers for last 5 Years.

Top 10 Competition Presenters Selected for CSU, Chico Team to Compete at Statewide Competition, as well as Runner-up to Top Ten.

Erika Anderson, MA Communication Studies – Spring 2017
Mentor: Dr. Stephanie Hamel

Kelsey Caldwell, MA Communication Studies – Spring 2016
Mentor: Dr. Jennifer Malkowski

Maria Olson, MA Communication Studies – Spring 2016 (Runner up to Top Ten)
Mentor: Dr. Stephanie Hamel

Kelsey Beers Caldwell, MA Communication Studies – Spring 2015
“Domestic Violence; Not a Deal Breaker: An Analysis of #WhyIStayed Tweets”
Mentor: Dr. Susan Avanzino

Chaz Kelley, MA Communication Studies – Spring 2014
“Storm Censors: Framing of Female Sexual Identities through Obscenity Prosecution”
Mentor: Dr. Zachary Justus

Millicent Mattor, MA Communication Arts & Sciences – Spring 2014 (Runner up to Top Ten)
“Tweets Won’t Stop: How Twitter Influences Communication about Pop Culture Controversy”
Mentor: Dr. Susan Avanzino

Gail A. Kirk, Communication (MA). – Spring 2013 (Runner up to Top Ten)
"The Mirror: Facing Self-Stereotypes and Their Impact on Veterans."
Mentor: Dr. Susan Avanzino

Jasmine Linabary, Communication Studies (MA). – Spring 2012
"Some Day My Prints Will Come: An Exploration of Female Journalism Students‟ Vocational Expectations."
Mentor: Dr. Susan Avanzino

REGIONAL COMPETITIVE CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

Western States Communication Association

Spring 2017 – Two MA students presented competitively selected papers in Salt Lake City, UT.
Spring 2016 – Five MA students presented competitively selected papers in San Diego, CA.
Spring 2015 – Three MA students presented competitively selected papers in Spokane, WA.
Spring 2013 – Four MA students presented competitively selected papers in Reno, CA.

Student and Faculty Co-Publications (Students in Bold)

Bloom, C. & Avanzino, S. (2010) The communication of community collaboration: When rhetorical visions collide. Communication Quarterly, 58(4), 1-22. doi: 10.1080/01463373.2010.525701

Cohen, M. & Avanzino, S. (2010). We are people first: Framing organizational assimilation experiences of the physically disabled using co-cultural theory. Communication Studies, 61(3), 272-303.doi: 10.1080/1-510971003791203

Justus, A., Webber, L., & Mattor, M. (2016). Student Voice in a Campus Civic Engagement Program: A description and assessment. Communication Teacher, 30(2), 106-119. Doi 10.1080/17404622.2016.1139147

Linabary, J. R., & Hamel, S. A. (2017). Feminist Online Interviewing: Engaging Issues of Power, Resistance, and Reflexivity in Practice. Feminist Review, 115(1), 97-113. doi: 10.1057/s41305-017-0041-3.

Linabary, J. R., & Hamel, S. A. (2015). At the heart of feminist transnational organizing: Exploring postcolonial reflexivity in organizational practice at World Pulse. Journal of International and Intercultural Communication, 8(3), 237-248. doi:10.1080/17513057.2015.1057909