Professional Communication (BS) Military Pathway
Bachelor of Science in Communication
For Catalog Years 2024-2027
This military pathway outlines degree requirements that may be satisfied by military training and experience or exams, as well as requirements that must be satisfied through courses taken at Old Dominion University.
Download a PDF of the Professional Communication pathway
Have questions? Contact us today!
Requirements Potentially Met Outside the Classroom
Where indicated, a passing CLEP or DSST examination score will satisfy the ODU course requirement.
- CLEP Exams - College Board
- DSST Exams - GetCollegeCredit.com
- ODU CLEP and DSST Credits
- CLEP Preparation - ModernStates.org
A student may forego the CLEP or DSST option and satisfy the requirements by taking the actual courses. If a course is taken elsewhere, check first for transfer equivalency in ODU's Transfer Equivalency Tool.
Prior learning credit is also available in specific situations at a cost of 20-50% of the current tuition rate. Prior learning credit may not be paid for by military tuition assistance (TA). Prior learning credit cannot exceed 60 credit hours.
Lower Division General Education Requirements
| Military Course, Certification, Experience or Exam | ODU Equivalent Course | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CLEP College Composition (not Modular) | ENGL 110C English Composition | 3 |
| DSST Technical Writing | ENGL 231C Writing, Rhetoric, and Research: Special Topics | 3 |
| Instructor, recruiter, career counselor, select specialties | COMM 101R Public Speaking | 3 |
| DSST Principles of Statistics | STAT 130M Elementary Statistics | 3 |
| CLEP Foreign Languages or military linguist or DLIFLC grad | Language and Culture requirement* | 6 |
| CLEP Any Social Sciences exam except Educational Psych | Human Behavior requirement | 3 |
| CLEP Any History exam | Interpreting the Past requirement | 3 |
| CLEP American or Analyzing & Interpreting Literature | Literature requirement | 3 |
| CLEP Biology | Nature of Science requirement | 8 |
| Subtotal: 35 credits | ||
*ODU’s Language and Culture requirement can be satisfied by three years of a foreign language or two years of two foreign languages in high school. Students whose native language is not English are exempt from taking a foreign language for general education.
Credit for Rating:
- E7 earns SEPS 302 and MGMT 325.
- E8 earns SEPS 302, MGMT 325, and MGMT 330.
- E9 earns SEPS 302, MGMT 325, MGMT 330, and MGMT 410.
Department or Major Requirements
| Military Course, Certification, Experience or Exam | ODU Equivalent Course | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CLEP or DSST multiple choices | Upper- or Lower-Division General Education or Social Science requirements | various |
| CLEP Introductory Business Law | FIN 331 Legal Environment of Business | 3 |
| CLEP Principles of Management or current/previous E7-E9 | MGMT 325 Contemporary Organizations & Mgmt | 3 |
| CLEP Principles of Marketing | MKTG 311 Marketing Principles & Problems | 3 |
| DSST Human Resource Management | MGMT 340 Human Resource Management | 3 |
| Faculty review of exam scores and military/college transcripts | Elective requirements to meet 120 credit minimum | various |
| Mass Communication specialty | COMM 200S Introduction to Human Communication | 3 |
| Mass Communication specialty | COMM 260 Understanding Media | 3 |
| Mass Communication specialty | COMM 272 Digital Literacy (meets Information Literacy & Research req) | 3 |
| Mass Communication specialty in communication-related billet | COMM 368 Internship (requires department approval) | 3 |
| Subtotal: 24+ credits | ||
Total requirements potentially met outside classroom: 59+ credits
Requirements Met at ODU or Elsewhere
A minimum of 30 credits must be taken at ODU and 120 credits gained in total to earn this degree.
Professional Communication Lower-Division General Education or Core Requirements
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| COMM 280T Entertainment Technologies or COMM 372T Introduction to New Media Technologies or CS 300T Computers in Society (meets Impact of Technology req) | 3 |
| COMM 301 Critical Methodologies | 3 |
| COMM 302 Communication Research Methods I | 3 |
| One Communication "W" writing intensive requirement | 3 |
| Human Creativity requirement (cannot be COMM or THEA 270A) | 3 |
| Philosophy and Ethics requirement (PHIL 303E meets requirement) | 3 |
| Subtotal: 18+ | |
Professional Communication Major Requirements
| Course | Credits |
|---|---|
| Select two Communication Foundation courses from catalog; one may be met by COMM 372T above | 3-6 |
| Select five Applied Theories courses from catalog; one may be met by COMM 368 above | 12-15 |
| Select four Organizational Foundations courses from catalog; may be met by CLEP/DSSTs | 0-12 |
| Up to two Social Science 300/400-level requirements; may be met by DSSTs | 0-6 |
| Elective requirements not satisfied elsewhere to meet 120 credit minimum | various |
| Subtotal: 15+ | |
Total requirements met at ODU: 33+ credits
Total credits for degree: 120
Next Steps
-
Review Program Information
Learn more about our Communication bachelor's online degree program.
-
Explore Military Pathways
ODU has dozens of pathways for a wide variety of degree programs.
Explore more pathways on our Military Pathways page.
-
Contact Us
Whether you're ready for an unofficial transcript evaluation or you still have questions, we're here to support you.
-
Military Student Services
From credit for your experience to flexible learning options, ODUGlobal can help fit education into your life. Learn more about how we support active-duty military and veteran students.