Founded in 1846, the University at Buffalo (UB), The State University of New York (SUNY) is one of the leading public universities in the northeastern US. Within the 64-campus SUNY system, UB is the flagship campus.

University at Buffalo in partnership with the Singapore Institute of Management Pte Ltd – Bachelor of Arts (Communication):

• SIM is the only offshore institution in the world to offer the accredited undergraduate programmes from University at Buffalo (UB)
• Entry with minimum 5 GCE ‘O’ level passes or equivalent
• Advanced standing credit may be granted for applicants with ‘A’ levels or polytechnic diplomas
• More than 50% of programmes are taught by overseas visiting faculty
• 60% lower costs than studying in the US
   

Objectives

The Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication is designed to provide students with a comprehensive knowledge of the nature of human communication, its media, and its effects. You will be introduced to the finer points of interpersonal communication; challenged to apply critical thinking to their consumption of the mass media; exposed to the complexity of delivering information in organisational and mediated communication situations; and, able to broaden your horizons through the study of international and intercultural communication.

Programme Nature

The Communication major at UB is a general communication degree with a liberal arts concentration. The main focus in the Communication major is advertising, marketing, and public relations.

Rankings
The undergraduate programme at the UB Department of Communication is a highly ranked, reputable programme among thousands of communication programmes in US. It has several world renowned scholars conducting cutting edge communication research. It is one of the very best communication programmes; its intercultural communication, organisational communication, communication technology, and health communication programmes are ranked among the top 25 programmes by the National Communication Association (NCA).

Why Study Communication?
You will learn how to analyse, interpret, and research the process by which human beings relate to one another. The study of communication embraces the most fundamental aspect of human interaction – from the subtleties of interpersonal communication, the influences and effects of mass media, the most effective distribution of information through organisations, to the cutting edge of the new communication technologies and information studies.

Duration

The programme is offered full-time over nine semesters and can be completed within three years.

The academic year is divided into three semesters. Each semester is typically 12 to 15 weeks in length.
• Summer semester: May to August
• Fall semester: August/September to December
• Spring semester: January to April
 
Please click here to get a copy of the tentative schedule.

Programme Structure & Curriculum

Acceptance Criteria:

• Successful completion of the five prerequisite modules with a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 (COM 101, two other COM modules listed under prerequisite courses, CSE 111 and PSY 207 / SOC 294).
• Completion of PSY 207 / SOC 294 (with a minimum grade of "C").
• Completion of the university's writing skills requirements.

Note: A minimum GPA of 2.5 in Communication modules at UB is required for graduation.

Prerequisite Modules

1. COM 101 Principles of Communication (3 credits) ¹

2. COM 217 Communication in Organizations (3 credits)

3. COM 225 Interpersonal Communication (3 credits)

4. COM 240 Survey of Mass Communication (3 credits)

5. CSE 111 Great Ideas in Computer Science (4 credits) ¹

6. SOC 294 Basic Statistics for Social Sciences (3 credits) ¹


Required Modules

7. COM 125 Introduction to the Internet (3 credits)

8. COM 300 Written Communication (3 credits)

9. COM 337 Communication Theory (3 credits)

10. PSY 101 Introductory Psychology (3 credits) ¹

11. SOC 293 Social Research Methods (3 credits

12. PSY 323 Community Psychology (3 credits) or
       PSY 331 Social Psychology (3 credits) or
       PSY 333 Psychology of Work in Organizations (3 credits) or
       PSY 341 Cognitive Psychology (3 credits) or
       PSY 342 Introduction to Cognitive Science: Concepts of the Mind (3 credits) or
       SOC 371 Individual And Society (3 credits)

13. SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology (3 credits) ¹  

14 – 21. 8 Communication Electives (24 credits)


General Education

22. ESL 407 Advanced Written English and Reading I (3 credits)

23. ESL 408 Advanced Written English and Reading II (3 credits)

24. MUS 116 Theory of Music for Nonmajors (3 credits)

25. NTR 108 Human Nutrition (3 credits) ²

26. NTR 109 Nutrition in Practice (3 credits) ²

27. NTR 110 Nutrition in Practice Lab (1 credit) ³

28. PHI 115 Critical Thinking (3 credits)

29. UGC 111 World Civilizations I (3 credits)

30. UGC 112 World Civilizations II (3 credits)

31. UGC 211 American Pluralism and the Search for Equality (3 credits)


Free Electives

28 credits

Please click here to retrieve the module descriptions.

^1. Meets general education requirements.
^2. These are online modules. Local resource persons may conduct weekly sessions for selected modules.
 

Lectures, discussions, presentations, activities and consultations.
 

Assessment

Continuous assessment comprise tests, quizzes, assignments, projects, presentations, participations and activities which are scheduled throughout the semester.
The final examination is held during the two weeks after the semester ends.
 

Teaching Faculty

To ensure parity in standards, rigours of the programme, integrity of the UB degree, and to comply with US. accreditation requirements, more than 50% of the modules are taught by UB faculty and the remaining modules will be taught by qualified local faculty who must be approved by UB.

Average teacher-student ratio = 1:95.

Lecturers & Their Teaching Modules (as at 21 May 2010)

Click for pdf 

Academic Progress

The normal module load for students is 12 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Students may register for modules and make changes to their class schedule. Students who choose to drop or resign from any modules, are on official leave of absence or have to repeat any failed modules, may take more than three years to complete their studies.

Students are allowed to progress through each semester till they satisfactorily complete the conferral requirements.
 

Attendance Requirements

SIM requires all students (both local and international) to attend all scheduled lessons and activities unless they have valid reasons supported by document such as medical certificates. Under this policy, all full-time local students are required to attain a minimum attendance rate as stipulated by the partner universities/institutions or 75%, whichever is higher. For all international students, the minimum attendance requirement is 90% as mandated by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority of Singapore (ICA).
 

Degree Conferral

Students must complete a minimum of 120 credits with a minimum overall and UB GPA of 2.0 to be awarded the degree.

Students who successfully complete all the requirements of the programme will be awarded the Bachelor of Arts (Communication) degree by the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, US.
 

Job Prospect/Opportunity for Further Study After Graduation

Strong communication skills are prerequisites to positions in virtually any organizational and industrial institutions. Employment opportunities exist in public relations and advertising agencies, media and technology centers, sales and marketing, the mass media, civil and social agencies and other professions. Graduates have also gone on to graduate schools for further studies. 

Admission Criteria

Applicants will be assessed based on ALL the qualifications which they have submitted ie. the holistic academic experience.  Meeting the minimum requirement does not mean automatic admission.

Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents

• GCE ‘O’ level with minimum of five credit passes (6 or better) with suitable academic preparation for the intended major.
   
• Applicants with GCE ‘A’ level or polytechnic diplomas may be considered for admission with advanced standing credit.

• All applicants who are not native speakers of English must demonstrate proficiency in English by means of TOEFL, IELTS or the SAT I with the minimum score indicated below:

  • Paper-based TOEFL 550
  • Internet-based TOEFL 79
  • IELTS 6.5 (no subsection score below 6.0)
  • SAT I Critical Reading 450

• Only scores from tests taken within two years prior to the time of enrolment are acceptable.

Note: Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents who have had all their primary and secondary education in Singapore in an English-medium government school, and completed their GCE ‘O’ level with a grade of "C" (6 or better) in English as a first language, are exempted from the English Language proficiency requirement.


UB Programmes offered at SIM

 Bachelor of Arts (Communication) (full-time)

Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) (full-time)

Bachelor of Arts (Sociology) (full-time)

Bachelor of Science (Business Administration) (full-time)

Double Degree in Bachelor of Science (Business Administration) and Bachelor of Arts (Psychology) (full-time)

Double Major in Bachelor of Arts (Communication and Psychology) (full-time)

Executive MBA (part-time)