Starting in the Fall 2024 semester, the College of Information and Communications will offer a new major in sports media.
Sports media is one of the fastest growing sectors in the communications industry.
In the last two years, CIC students with sports media interests have landed internships or jobs at ESPN, Major League Soccer, Gamecocks Online, various professional and amateur sports teams throughout the United States, and sports departments at local television stations and newspapers.
The sports media major will allow students to focus their studies, while still providing them with foundational journalism and communications skills. They will have a competitive edge when applying for jobs at companies that specialize in sports media.
The experiences of our alumni helped us to shape this new degree to meet industry needs.
“Over the past decade, CIC has gradually increased its offerings in sports media, and those classes consistently fill to capacity,” says Dean Tom Reichert.
“The creation of the sports media major has clear benefits for our students both in terms of their natural interests and in terms of helping them develop skills in a growing field.”
The South Carolina Commission on Higher Education approved the Bachelor of Arts in Sports Media on June 11, 2024.
At a glance
- 30 credits in the major
- 15 credits of supporting courses in data analytics, business, and law
- Flexible course sequencing, with plenty of opportunities to explore elective course options
Faculty perspective
Associate professor Kevin Hull will be the faculty lead for this new program. He teaches many of the college’s existing sports media courses and has been instrumental in developing the curriculum for the sports media major.
“We have so many students who love sports, who love the media aspect of it, but they don’t really know what job that is. This will introduce them to many different jobs in sports media,” says Hull.
“They can work with sports teams. They can work with media organizations. They can work with companies affiliated with sports leagues. The jobs are limitless, frankly, whether it’s on camera, creative or behind the scenes.”
Sample courses
- Sports Journalism
- Multimedia Sports Storytelling
- Sports Announcing
- Live Television Sports Production
- SEC Football and the Sports Media
How students can declare a sports media major
Incoming students will have the option to declare a sports media major as part of the orientation process.
Continuing USC students can declare the major through Exploratory Advising.
More details about program requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Sports Media can be found in the USC Academic Bulletin.