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Bachelor of Science in Strategic Communication with PR and Advertising Certificate Online

Gain a strong understanding of how businesses utilize public outreach to adapt their communication strategies and influence opinions. Learn to identify, create and implement consistent, cohesive messaging while earning an additional certification from HubSpot in content marketing.

Next Apply Date: 2/24/25
Next Class Start Date: 3/10/25
Apply Now
Next Apply Date: 2/24/25
Next Class Start Date: 3/10/25

Program Overview

Explore the A-State online B.S. with PR and advertising certificate program

Take an in-depth look at the way people, groups and organizations connect in this 100% online B.S. in Strategic Communication with PR and Advertising Certificate. Prepare to achieve positive results by applying strategies and principles of communication through digital media and other evolving methods.

Flexible online coursework gives you the opportunity to develop a sales presentation and examine the structure of the advertising industry. Emphasize advertising sales and the methodical use of digital and social media while learning to identify, create and implement consistent, cohesive messaging.

Strong communication skills are necessary for virtually any project or industry, and this program helps you take those talents even further with a focus on crisis communication. You will explore how and when to implement public relations strategies in order to motivate, persuade and shape how audiences and consumers interact with your organization or client.

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Prepare for careers like these:

  • Advertising/Promotions Manager
  • Advertising Sales Representative
  • Media Planner/Buyer
  • Account Executive
  • Public Relations Manager
Prepare for careers like these:+
  • Advertising/Promotions Manager
  • Advertising Sales Representative
  • Media Planner/Buyer
  • Account Executive
  • Public Relations Manager

Learn industry-relevant skills that employers seek:

  • Understand and utilize communication tools to convey messages to an organization’s public constituencies and build relationships with them
  • Apply strategies and tools for an organization’s message through paid channels (advertising) and unpaid channels (PR)
  • Earn HubSpot certification in content marketing
Learn industry-relevant skills that employers seek:+
  • Understand and utilize communication tools to convey messages to an organization’s public constituencies and build relationships with them
  • Apply strategies and tools for an organization’s message through paid channels (advertising) and unpaid channels (PR)
  • Earn HubSpot certification in content marketing

Also available:

A-State offers a variety of undergraduate programs in a convenient online format. Explore our full range of online undergraduate programs.

Per Credit Tuition: $282
Transfer Credits: Up to 90 hours
Credit Hours 120
Apply Now

Need More Information?

Call 866-621-8096

Call 866-621-8096

Tuition

Financial aid packages are available to those who qualify

A-State's online programs are affordable and convenient. You may also qualify for financial aid. Learn more.

The B.S. in Strategic Communication online program offers the same low, pay-by-the-course tuition to all U.S. residents. All fees are included. Tuition may be subject to change on a yearly basis.

Tuition breakdown:

Per Credit Hour: $282
Tuition Per Course: $846

Transfer your credits for lower tuition

Use our Tuition Estimator to see how affordable your degree could be. Slide the notch to the number of credits you've already earned—which may qualify for transfer credit—to get an estimate of what your degree might cost.

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Transfer Credits: 0
Your Estimated Tuition: $Your Estimated Tuition:
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Transcripts sent from other colleges and universities will be evaluated, and accepted credits will be added to the student's A-State record. The Tuition Estimator is not a guarantee or predictor of the number of credit hours that will be accepted.

You may be closer to Graduation than you think!

A-State-approved credit for prior learning recognizes your previous accomplishments, reducing your tuition costs and time to graduation.

Calendar

Set a calendar reminder for these key deadlines

Our B.S. in Strategic Communication is a flexible online program featuring accelerated coursework and multiple start dates per year.

Please note Summer 1 and Summer 2 terms are 5 weeks in duration for this program.

View full calendar  + 

TermProgram Start DateApplication DeadlineDocument DeadlineRegistration DeadlinePayment DueLast Class Day
Spring 11/13/2512/16/2412/18/241/9/251/10/252/28/25
Spring 23/10/252/24/252/28/253/6/253/7/255/2/25

Now enrolling:

Next Apply Date 2/24/25
Start Class 3/10/25

Have questions or need more information about A‑State online programs?

Ready to take the next step toward earning your degree online from A-State?

Apply Now

Admissions

Preview the admission requirements for the online B.S. – Strategic Communication degree

Arkansas State University has a streamlined admission process that makes it easy for you to enroll in the Bachelor of Science in Strategic Communication with PR and Advertising Certificate online program. Enrollment specialists are available to walk you through the admission process, so you will be able to complete your application quickly.

Admission Requirements:

  • Online application
  • Official transcripts
  • 2.0 GPA for transferring credits
View all admission requirements +

There are several paths to admittance at A-State:

  • If you have 13 or more transferrable college credit hours, you would be admitted if you have a cumulative college GPA of at least 2.0 on previous college coursework
  • If you have 0-12 transferrable college credit hours and have been out of high school for five years or more, you would be admitted if you:
    • Have a high school diploma or state-approved equivalent
    • Have completed 12 or fewer earned college hours
    • Have never enrolled as a student at A-State
    Note: If you’re admitted as non-traditional first-time freshman, you may be required to successfully complete a predesignated curriculum of 12 hours (Certificate or Non-Degree). Upon successful completion, you will be transitioned to a degree seeking program.
  • If you have 0-12 transferrable college credit hours and have been in high school within the last 5 years, you would be admitted if you have one of the following:
    • 3.0 cumulative high school grad point average (or GED test score equivalent), OR
    • 19 minimum ACT super score or minimum 990 combined SAT super score, OR
    • Class rank in the top 20% of your graduating class

​Application Submission Requirements

Submitting your application takes three easy steps: filling out the application, submitting your documents and paying the application fee.

  1. When completing the online application, select 100% online student and then complete all the steps on the online application.
  2. Pay $30.00 non-refundable application fee.
  3. Submit all official college transcripts.
  4. Submit official high school transcripts (if applicable).
  5. Submit official ACT/ SAT test scores (if applicable).

Note: If you have 0-12 transferrable college hours, test scores will still need to be submitted for reporting purposes to the Arkansas Department of Higher Education (ADHE); however, they are not needed for an admission decision. Accuplacer test scores are an acceptable alternative to ACT/SAT scores.

If you have any questions along the way, call us at 866-621-8096 and we’ll be happy to help answer questions.

Document Submission Address

Submit all documents to:

A-State Online
P.O. Box 2520
State University, AR 72467

Fax: 870-972-3548
Email: [email protected]

For Non-US Postal Mail Overnight Delivery Only:

A-State Online
c/o Central Receiving
2713 Pawnee St.

Ranked #4 for "Communication" by Niche.com

A-State is ranked #4 among the "Best Colleges for Communication in Arkansas" by Niche.com, 2024

Courses

A look at the online bachelor's degree in strategic communication curriculum

To earn your Bachelor of Science in Strategic Communication with PR and Advertising Certificate, you need to complete 120 credit hours of coursework. The program includes 38 credit hours of general education courses, 45 credit hours of major courses, and 37 credit hours of electives. You can finish faster by transferring previously earned credit hours. Transfer credit hours will be evaluated during the admission process.

Visit the Course Registration page to view the course schedule for this degree.

Expand All

These courses must be taken to complete your degree. You may choose between STCM 3003 and STCM 3043.

Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Fundamentals of the distinct writing requirements, styles, and formats of social, online, broadcast, print and other platforms used in strategic communication; emphasis on context, storytelling, and audience understanding. Fall, Spring.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Broad survey of strategic communication practice, emphasizing advertising and public relations in the context of integrated brand promotion.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Course introduces students to the world of interactive online advertising. It surveys a variety of important topics, from integrating social media initiatives into the overall marketing communications plan to online display ads to developing an effective search engine advertising/marketing strategy.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Study of the structure of the advertising industry, with emphasis on strategic legacy, digital and social media selection and planning, as well as the basic methods of advertising sales.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Advanced strategic writing forms and styles. Practice in preparation of strategic messages for various platforms of communication, including paid, earned, shared, and owned. Students will develop skills in information gathering, writing styles, editing, critical thinking, storytelling, and audience analysis. Prerequisites: STCM 2143 & STCM 3003, STCM 3023, or STCM 3043.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
An advanced course focusing on the theoretical, contextual and practical natures of persuasive images in the context of strategic communication.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Study of recent advertising cases and campaigns involving business, industry, institutions and government. Students create a comprehensive advertising campaign for a given client.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Analysis of laws, regulations, and ethical considerations affecting the strategic communication industry.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Focuses on the strategic integration of various channels and methods of communications for the purpose of delivering key messages to diverse target audiences in order to elicit specific responses, create a dialogue and engender relationship building.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Course examines concepts and applications of social media within mass communications, news, advertising and public relations industries. We will explore and apply social media tools, integrating them into an organization's overall communication strategy.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Social media strategies are grounded in the generation of meaningful, tangible data and the ability to prove positive Return on Investment (ROI) based upon insights garnered from the analysis of social media metrics. It is essential to measure and improve social media ROI while developing advertising, public relations and integrated marketing communications campaigns on social media. This course is aimed to build and maintain your case through learning what kind of measurement mechanisms to employ, identifying what data points are meaningful, manipulating social media data, and examining the impact of social media analytics on the development of social media strategies.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
An investigation of communications during crises, focusing on public relations, advertising and other persuasive efforts by institutions, corporations, movement leaders, and citizens to describe, persuade and shape human interactions with their environment during a crisis.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Course is a study of recent strategic communication cases involving business, industry, institutions and government. Students conduct a comprehensive strategic communication case study for a given client.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Field-based experience in a supervised setting that will enhance strategic communication knowledge and skills.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Nature and theoretical foundation of public relations, its role in society, practitioners and dynamics of the process.

You must complete 37 credit hours of electives to satisfy the 120 credit hours required for this program. Courses may be chosen with the assistance of an advisor and per your degree plan. Electives can come from any courses offered as long as prerequisites are met.

Students must take the following courses.

First-year course - Students must take the following Making Connections online course. If you transfer in more than 12 credit hours, you will not be required to take the Making Connections course. You may replace that 3-hour course with a 3-hour elective course.

First-year course (3 hours)
UC 1013

Communication Requirement (6 hours)
ENG 1003
ENG 1013

Mathematics Requirement (3 hours)
Students must take MATH 1023 or any MATH course that requires MATH 1023 as prerequisite.

Arts and Humanities Requirement (6 hours)
MUS 2503
ENG 2003
ENG 2013

Social Sciences Requirement (9 hours) 

MDIA 1003 is required 
POSC 2103
SOC 2213
PSY 2013

Life Science Requirement (4 hours)
Students must complete BIO 1003 with BIO 1001 lab.

Physical Sciences Requirement (4 hours)
Students must complete CHEM 1043 with CHEM 1041 lab.

Departmental Requirement (3 hours)
COMS 1203

Course Descriptions

Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 1
Laboratory, must be taken with BIO 1003. There will be a fee when purchasing the LabKit. Please visit the tuition and fees page for pricing.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The major characteristics and processes of life emphasizing the human organism. Promotes understanding of diversity and unity among living organisms with focus on ecological interactions and responsibilities of people within their social and natural environment. Lecture three hours per week. Special course fees may apply. Must be taken with BIO 1001.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 1
Special course fees apply. Prerequisite or co-requisite of CHEM 1043. Fall only.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
An introduction to selected fundamental concepts including dimensional analysis, mole concept, atomic and molecular structure, nomenclature, chemical reactions, thermochemistry, intermolecular interactions, gases, mixtures, kinetics, equilibrium and acid base chemistry. Fall only.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The theory and practice of communication in interpersonal, small groups, and public speaking contexts, emphasizing proficiency in message organization, delivery, and critical thinking.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Study and practice of fundamentals of written communication, including principles of grammar, punctuation, spelling, organization, and careful analytical reading. Prerequisite, with grade of C or better, for ENG 1013.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Continues the practice of ENG 1003 to develop further the skills learned in that course. Based on reading and discussion of various types of writing, the students’ essays will provide practice in different kinds of rhetorical development, including research and documentation.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Introduction to the analysis and interpretation of literary works from several historical periods ranging from early civilizations through the Renaissance.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Introduction to the analysis and interpretation of literary works from several historical periods ranging from the Renaissance to the present.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Equations and inequalities, functions and graphs, polynomial and rational functions, exponential and logarithmic functions, systems of equations and inequalities, matrices, and miscellaneous topics. No credit given if taken following MATH 1054.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
A study of the interaction between society and mass communication through the lenses of history, theory, economics, culture, law, and technology.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course is an introduction to music for the listener who has had no formal training or experience. By exploring the history of Western Art music, learners will begin to connect the development of music with the changing of society and culture.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
American politics. The constitution, government, and politics of the United States.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Study of the important scientific, principles of individual human behavior from biological, cognitive, social, and behavioral perspectives.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Human society and social behavior.
Duration: 7 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Required course for all first semester freshmen. Course content is centered around the skills and knowledge needed to be a successful ASU student, including academic performance, problem solving, critical thinking, self-management and group building skills, university policies and other relevant issues.
"I realized that for me to continue to excel in my profession, the bachelor’s degree was an important piece."
Ashley Huckaby

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