Home » For Prospective Students: Communication and Digital Studies

For Prospective Students: Communication and Digital Studies

Thank you for your interest in UMW!

The Department of Communication and Digital Studies (CDS) at the University of Mary Washington offers a wide range of courses for both majors and non-majors.

UMW Communication and Digital Studies Programs

The CDS department is delighted to support an array of programs for students who wish to learn about the many different aspects of these disciplines.

UMW CDS Majors and Minors

UMW CDS Course Offerings

Want to learn more about the courses in each of these areas? See these course descriptions in the university catalog:

If you are interested in declaring the CDS major, or have questions about the major/department, please contact Dr. Anand Rao, CDS Department Chair (arao [at] umw.edu).

Learn More about CDS Studies through Our Virtual Webinar

    • See why CDS was featured as one of UMW’s distinctive opportunities as referenced in this video from the university:

    • See what a day in the life of a UMW student is like in this video featuring CDS major AJ:

A CDS student presents her research to a class

A Sample First-Year Schedule

Below please find some examples of first semester schedules for a Communication and Digital Studies major. There are many variations of a first semester schedule; the examples are just meant to help you see that there are many ways to reach the same goals.

Example 1:

Course (credits) Requirement(s) Met

1.     COMM 205 – Public Speaking

2.     DGST 101 – Intro to Digital Studies

3.     PHYS 101 – Gen Physics with Lab

4.     SPAN 101 – Beginning Spanish

5.     FSEM 100M7 – Beyond the Selfie

Major, SI

Major

NS

Language

FSEM

Example 2:

Course (credits) Requirement(s) Met

1.     FSEM 100E – Part Game, Part Play

2.     EESC 111 – Our Dynamic Earth with lab

3.     COMM 206 – Small Group Communication

4.     FREN 101 – Beginning French

5.     CPSC 106 – Digital Storytelling

FSEM

NS

Major, SI

Language

Major

The University of Mary Washington

The University of Mary Washington was founded in 1908. Located in Fredericksburg (VA), it is just an hour away from Northern Virginia, Washington D.C., and Richmond. The University offers a liberal arts curriculum, Division III NCAA athletics, and over 150 student clubs. UMW offers a great combination of high quality academics, out of class events and clubs, and a great location. UMW has been ranked in 2016/2017:

  • Fiske Guide to College, 2017: “Best Buy School” (One of only two colleges in Virginia and D.C.)
  • US News & World Report 2-17: “America’s Best Colleges,” sixth in the “Top Public regional Universities-South” category
  • Forbes, 2016: “America’s Top Colleges,” 275th of 660 undergraduate institutions
  • The Princeton Review, 2017: “The Best 381 Colleges”
  • Money Magazine, 2016: 252nd among 705 schools listed as Best Colleges

More About UMW

More information about UMW that may be helpful to interested students can be found: