• Find a bachelor's degree




    Bachelors Degree Center is an advertising-supported site. Featured or trusted partner programs and all school search, finder, or match results are for schools that compensate us. This compensation does not influence our school rankings, resource guides, or other editorially-independent information published on this site.

top bachelor's in communications

Key Infor­ma­tion:

  • Stan­ford Uni­ver­si­ty has the #1 best com­mu­ni­ca­tion bach­e­lor’s degree.
  • Grad­u­ates can pur­sue var­i­ous roles such as pub­lic rela­tions spe­cial­ists, event plan­ners, jour­nal­ists, and social media man­agers.
  • The aver­age salary for bachelor’s degree hold­ers in com­mu­ni­ca­tion is around $66,320.
  • Com­mu­ni­ca­tion pro­grams empha­size skills in ver­bal, non­ver­bal, and writ­ten communication.

Earn­ing a bach­e­lor’s degree in com­mu­ni­ca­tion is an excel­lent path for quick-wit­ted sto­ry­tellers who are intrigued by the strate­gies behind great pre­sen­ta­tions. Com­mu­ni­ca­tion majors study how peo­ple express infor­ma­tion ver­bal­ly, non­ver­bal­ly, visu­al­ly, and in writ­ing. In this arti­cle, we name the best com­mu­ni­ca­tions schools in the nation!

Orig­i­nal­ly pub­lished: Novem­ber 2016
Last updat­ed: Jan­u­ary 2024

Accord­ing to the Prince­ton Review, com­mu­ni­ca­tions is among Amer­i­ca’s “Top 10 Col­lege Majors.” Hold­ing a com­mu­ni­ca­tion degree can segue into excit­ing careers like: 

  • Pub­lic Rela­tions Specialist
  • Event Plan­ner
  • Sales Man­ag­er
  • Tech­ni­cal Writer
  • Adver­tis­ing Manager
  • Jour­nal­ist
  • Inter­preter
  • Social Media Manager

BLS.gov reports that bac­calau­re­ate grad­u­ates in com­mu­ni­ca­tion reap aver­age salaries of $66,320. The Bureau of Labor Sta­tis­tics projects that media and com­mu­ni­ca­tion occu­pa­tions will also grow by 13 per­cent through 2032.

Methodology: Best Communications Schools

Since many stu­dents seek the tra­di­tion­al col­lege expe­ri­ence, we’ve done con­sid­er­able research to high­light the Top 10 Bach­e­lor of Com­mu­ni­ca­tions Degree Pro­grams avail­able on campus. 

  • We began by con­sult­ing with the U.S. News and World Report nation­al rankings.
  • We nar­rowed to the coun­try’s top 50 col­leges and searched each one for a bach­e­lor’s major in communication. 
  • Spe­cial con­sid­er­a­tion was giv­en to com­mu­ni­ca­tion schools rec­og­nized by PayScale for the best salary potential.
  • Each bach­e­lor’s degree had to be region­al­ly accred­it­ed and include face-to-face class time for speak­ing skills. 
  • Aver­age year­ly tuition for under­grad­u­ates was cal­cu­lat­ed using the NCES Col­lege Nav­i­ga­tor database.
  • Oth­er fac­tors were expe­ri­en­tial oppor­tu­ni­ties, class size, reten­tion rate, con­cen­tra­tions, fac­ul­ty cre­den­tials, and post-grad­u­ate success.

Here are our selec­tions for the Top 10 Bach­e­lor of Com­mu­ni­ca­tions Degree Programs:

1. Stanford University

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Arts in Communication

best communications schools

Ded­i­cat­ed to the late child of rail­road tycoon Leland Stan­ford in 1885, Stan­ford Uni­ver­si­ty is a pres­ti­gious pri­vate, non­prof­it RU/VH research insti­tu­tion car­ry­ing a $22 bil­lion endow­ment to edu­cate around 15,800 stu­dents in Cal­i­for­ni­a’s Sil­i­con Valley. 

  • Ranked #1 for Reuters’ “World’s Most Inno­v­a­tive Universities”
  • Stan­ford is the fifth Best Nation­al Uni­ver­si­ty and fourth Best Val­ue accord­ing to the U.S. News and World Report

From McClatchy Hall, the School of Human­i­ties and Sci­ences con­fers a Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion. The 60-unit major stud­ies the tech­niques and tech­nolo­gies that shape per­son­al inter­ac­tion. Stu­dents ben­e­fit from the Daniel Pearl Memo­r­i­al Intern­ship, Rebele Sym­posia, and Stan­ford in Wash­ing­ton Program.

2. Northwestern University

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Studies

Endowed for $10.1 bil­lion, North­west­ern Uni­ver­si­ty is a pri­vate, non­prof­it RU/VH pow­er­house his­tor­i­cal­ly affil­i­at­ed with the Unit­ed Methodist Church that’s enrolling over 20,900 stu­dents in Evanston, Illi­nois, along Lake Michi­gan’s shoreline. 

  • Forbes gave a finan­cial grade of A+ for Amer­i­ca’s 45th most grate­ful grads from North­west­ern University.
  • North­west­ern is ranked the 12th Best Nation­al Uni­ver­si­ty by the U.S. News and World Report.

The School of Com­mu­ni­ca­tion’s cut­ting-edge cur­ricu­lum offers a Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies. Stu­dents select from 14 mod­ules, includ­ing Cre­ative Writ­ing, Dig­i­tal Media, Music The­ater, and Sound Cul­tures. With­in the 120-cred­it pro­gram, majors could also study abroad at North­west­ern Qatar and con­duct research in the Social Media Lab.

3. Cornell University

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Communication

Affil­i­at­ed with 54 Nobel Lau­re­ates, Cor­nell Uni­ver­si­ty is a pri­vate, non­prof­it Ivy League insti­tu­tion hold­ing land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant sta­tus in Upstate New York’s South­ern Tier-Fin­ger Lakes region to serve the Big Red com­mu­ni­ty of 21,900 students. 

  • Accord­ing to the U.S. News and World Report, Cor­nell is Amer­i­ca’s 15th Best Uni­ver­si­ty and 14th Most Inno­v­a­tive School. 

The Col­lege of Agri­cul­ture and Life Sci­ences grants a Bach­e­lor of Sci­ence in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion. Tack­ling the 120-cred­it cur­ricu­lum involves pick­ing from four focus areas, such as Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Social Influ­ence. Majors also com­plete off-cam­pus practicum through the Itha­ca Col­lege Exchange, Cor­nell in Hol­ly­wood, or CALS Inter­na­tion­al Exchange programs.

4. Wake Forest University

Degree: Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Sci­ence, Media Stud­ies or Rhetor­i­cal Studies

Based on the Reynol­da Cam­pus around T.K. Hearn Plaza in Win­ston-Salem, North Car­oli­na, Wake For­est Uni­ver­si­ty is a pri­vate, non-sec­tar­i­an research insti­tu­tion serv­ing over 7,500 co-eds from a $1.16 bil­lion endowment. 

  • Rec­og­nized for the coun­try’s #3 “Best Career Ser­vices” on the Prince­ton Review.
  • Wake ties for Amer­i­ca’s 27th Best Uni­ver­si­ty accord­ing to the U.S. News and World Report. 

From Car­swell Hall, the Under­grad­u­ate Col­lege deliv­ers a B.A. in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion. The 30-cred­it major allows spe­cial­iza­tion in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Sci­ence, Media Stud­ies, or Rhetor­i­cal Stud­ies. Learn­ers in good stand­ing can com­plete 120-hour intern­ships and par­tic­i­pate in the Doc­u­men­tary Film Pro­gram (DFP).

5. Vanderbilt University

Degree: BS in Communication

best communications schools

Belong­ing to the elite Asso­ci­a­tion of Amer­i­can Uni­ver­si­ties (AAU), Van­der­bilt Uni­ver­si­ty is a pri­vate, non-sec­tar­i­an RU/VH research insti­tu­tion attract­ing over 12,600 stu­dents from 90+ coun­tries to study in the West End of Mid­town Nashville, Tennessee.

  • Placed #2 for the Prince­ton Review’s “Hap­pi­est Students” 
  • Van­der­bilt is named Amer­i­ca’s 15th Best Uni­ver­si­ty with the 10th Top Under­grad­u­ate Pro­grams by the U.S. News and World Report. 

The Col­lege of Arts and Sci­ence redesigned its 30-cred­it Major in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies in 2015. Bach­e­lor’s stu­dents sur­vey rhetor­i­cal tra­di­tions and improve their ora­to­ry skills. As an SEC Cham­pi­on in Debate, Van­der­bilt encour­ages majors to com­pete in the Frank K. Hous­ton Pub­lic Speak­ing Contest.

6. Washington University in St. Louis

Degree: BFA and BA in Stu­dio Art & Design, Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Design

Estab­lished in 1853 by Uni­tar­i­an min­is­ter William Green­leaf Eliot, Wash­ing­ton Uni­ver­si­ty in St. Louis is a selec­tive pri­vate, non-sec­tar­i­an research insti­tu­tion enrolling around 14,800 stu­dents with an accep­tance rate of 17 per­cent in Mis­souri’s sec­ond-largest city. 

  • Wash­ing­ton Uni­ver­si­ty in St. Louis is the coun­try’s 19th Best Uni­ver­si­ty and 10th Best for Vet­er­ans school accord­ing to the U.S. News and World Report. 

The Sam Fox School of Design & Visu­al Arts pro­vides a unique B.F.A. in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Design. With­in the 128-cred­it cur­ricu­lum, the “New Ivy” sur­veys infor­ma­tion con­veyance through emphases in Graph­ic Design, Illus­tra­tion, and Inter­ac­tion Design. Stu­dents com­plete a nine-week artis­tic sum­mer pro­gram in Flo­rence, Italy.

7. University of Southern California

Degree: Under­grad­u­ate Communication

Sit­ting between Jef­fer­son Boule­vard and Figueroa Street two miles south­west of down­town Los Ange­les, the Uni­ver­si­ty of South­ern Cal­i­for­nia is an esteemed pri­vate, sea-grant and space-grant research pow­er­house found­ed in 1880 that’s enrolling 42,400 Trojans. 

  • Uni­ver­si­ty of South­ern Cal­i­for­nia is deemed Amer­i­ca’s 23rd Best Col­lege and the 19th Most Inno­v­a­tive School by the U.S. News and World Report. 

The Annen­berg School for Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Jour­nal­ism grants a B.A. in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion for explor­ing rhetor­i­cal process­es. The 48-unit major offers elec­tives rang­ing from con­tem­po­rary sport to health com­mu­ni­ca­tion. USC stu­dents also intern with top-notch com­pa­nies like 20th Cen­tu­ry Fox and NBCUniversal.

8. University of California, Los Angeles

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Studies

As part of the Pac-12 Con­fer­ence, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Cal­i­for­nia-Los Ange­les is a pub­lic, land-grant APRU mem­ber insti­tu­tion opened in 1919 that’s edu­cat­ing over 43,300 Bru­ins from West­wood just south of Sun­set Boulevard. 

  • Placed 12th in the Shang­hai ARWU rank­ings, UCLA is crowned the 24th Best Nation­al Uni­ver­si­ty and sec­ond Top Pub­lic School by the U.S. News and World Report. 

With a 96 per­cent reten­tion rate, the Social Sci­ences Divi­sion bestows a Bach­e­lor of Arts in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies. Stu­dents in the 45-unit major often join the UCLA Speech & Debate team. Com­mu­ni­ca­tions fac­ul­ty have earned sev­en Dis­tin­guished Teach­ing Awards.

9. University of Pennsylvania

Degree: Bach­e­lor of Arts in Communication

best communications schools

Locat­ed in Philadel­phi­a’s Uni­ver­si­ty City dis­trict along the Schuylkill Riv­er, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Penn­syl­va­nia is a pri­vate, non-sec­tar­i­an Ivy League mem­ber affil­i­at­ed with 30 Nobel Lau­re­ates and over 24,800 high-achiev­ing students. 

  • Named the 12th “Hard­est Col­lege to Get Into” on Niche
  • UPenn is applaud­ed as Amer­i­ca’s eighth Best Uni­ver­si­ty and third Most Vet­er­an-Friend­ly school by the U.S. News and World Report

With a 6:1 stu­dent-fac­ul­ty ratio, the Annen­berg School for Com­mu­ni­ca­tion awards a Bach­e­lor of Arts. This 14-course major offers con­cen­tra­tions like Polit­i­cal Com­mu­ni­ca­tion, Media Effects, Mar­ket­ing Mes­sages, and Crit­i­cal Jour­nal­ism. Penn Quak­ers gain expe­ri­ence through the Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Pub­lic Ser­vice (ComPS) program.

10. University of Michigan — Ann Arbor

Degree: Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies Major

Char­tered in 1817 by Judge Augus­tus B. Wood­ward, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Michi­gan-Ann Arbor is the state’s old­est pub­lic, co-edu­ca­tion­al RU/VH research insti­tu­tion with enroll­ment sur­pass­ing 44,700 on its urban cam­pus sep­a­rat­ed by the Huron River. 

  • Hon­ored as Amer­i­ca’s #2 “Col­lege with the Best Stu­dent Life” on Niche 
  • The Uni­ver­si­ty of Michi­gan — Ann Arbor is the 27th Best Nation­al Uni­ver­si­ty accord­ing to the U.S. News and World Report. 

The Col­lege of Lit­er­a­ture, Sci­ence, and the Arts sup­ports a 40-cred­it Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies Major. Bach­e­lor’s stu­dents can ben­e­fit from research in the Media Psy­chol­o­gy Lab, join­ing the Michi­gan Asso­ci­a­tion of Com­mu­ni­ca­tion Stud­ies (MACS), and run­ning The Michi­gan Daily.

How Do You Find the Best Schools for Communications?

If you want to study mass media in high­er edu­ca­tion, com­mu­ni­ca­tions stu­dents have had good expe­ri­ences in col­leges like Pur­due Uni­ver­si­ty, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Flori­da, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Cal­i­for­nia, Berke­ley, the Uni­ver­si­ty of Wis­con­sin Madi­son, and the Uni­ver­si­ty of Texas at Austin. These have some of the best com­mu­ni­ca­tions schools.

Relat­ed: