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B.S. IMC + Military Public Affairs

A fully online, asynchronous bachelor's degree is the perfect option for military public affairs and communications personnel that are on the move and need to balance pursuing their education with the demands of active duty service.

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Online Courses

Students in the IMC bachelor's degree program take IMC-focused courses, General Education Foundations courses, as well as choosing an IMC track.

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Transfer Credits

Service members are able to be awarded credit for military experience through ACE credits, allowing you to graduate sooner!

Learn more about Transfer Credits

Flexible Format

All courses are asynchronous, enabling you to balance your studies with your military lifestyle, as well as family and work obligations. And there are no required on-campus residencies or weekend commitments to complicate life.

Course Structure

Military Rate

We're offering military public affairs service members a special discounted rate of $250 per credit, as well as transfer credit based on ACE recommendations for Joint Services Transcripts (JST) and prior learning.

Learn About the Partnership

A UNIQUE PARTNERSHIP

The WVU College of Creative Arts and Media has an established partnership with the Defense Information School that enables DINFOS alumni to transfer select credits earned in their Department of Defense training into our Bachelor of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications program.

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We Made the List!

Best for Vets College - 2023 Military Times

Voted "Best for Vets Colleges 2023" by the Military Times.

Gain a Competitive Advantage

Marketing Communications professionals are hired in every industry all over the world. The knowledge and skills you gain in the IMC program are transferable – there are endless opportunities for people who know how to communicate, market and raise awareness for a brand or organization.


Ian Carver

“I appreciate the program and one of my main factors for applying to the program was how it was in partnership with the Defense Information School where I attended my Navy A-School training.”

— Ian Carver (DINFOS 2010, IMC 2019)

In the Integrated Marketing Communications bachelor's degree program, you get a healthy mix of courses in marketing, public relations, social media strategy, audience behavior, media planning and advertising. You’ll exercise the creative, writing and analytical parts of your brain, experiment with new media tools, and work on real projects for real clients that will beef up your portfolio.

WVU B.S. IMC for military communicators

Transfer Credits

Service members and veterans who enter the IMC program can receive credit for their qualified transfer ACE credits for JST and prior learning to graduate sooner.

Program Flexibility

How, where and when you complete coursework is completely up to you. There are zero in-person commitments – which means no relocation or travel – and course delivery is asynchronous, meaning no virtual class meetings.

Special Military Rate

West Virginia University offers a discounted rate of $250 per credit hour for active duty military personnel and veterans, a 70% discount!

Additional Learning Opportunities

Members of the DINFOS community are encouraged to attend the in-person Integrate conference. These events enable current and future DINFOS IMC students to meet their classmates, many of their instructors and other industry professionals, as well as experience WVU’s campus.

Course Options

Students in the IMC bachelor's degree program take courses through the College of Creative Arts and Media, in addition to general foundation courses, entirely online. To graduate, all Reed School of Media and Communications majors must complete a minimum of 120 credit hours.

Here's a look at the projected course schedule:

First Year

Term One

First Year Seminar
Principles of IMC
Introduction to Composition and Rhetoric
Media & Society
Elective
Elective

Term Two

Media Writing
GEF 2 – Example: GEOG 101 – Planet Earth
Select one of the following (GEF 4):

  • Intro to Psychology
  • Intro to Sociology

Elective
Elective

Second Year

Term One

ENGL 102
Principles of Marketing
Strategic ADV and PR Writing
Elective
GEF 2 – Example: GEOG 103 – Earth Through Time

Term Two

Strategic Social Media
Business Ethics
GEF 3 – Example: STAT 111 – Understanding Statistics
IMC Track Course #1
Elective

Third Year

Term One

ADV & PR Audience Insight/Analysis
GEF 5 – Example: HIST 101 – Western Civilization: Antiquity to 1600
IMC Track Course #2
Elective
Elective

Term Two

Media Planning/Strategy
GEF 6 – Example: COMM 305 – Appreciation of Motion Picture
Audience Psych & Buyer Behavior
Elective
Elective

Fourth Year

Term One

Branded Content & Narrative
IMC Track Course #3
Elective
Elective
Elective

Term Two

Media Ethics and Law
IMC Capstone
GEF 7 – Example: GEOG 108 – Human Geography
Elective
Elective

IMC Tracks

ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA TRACK

  • Promotion for Entertainment Media
  • Entertainment Media Branding
  • Entertainment Media Campaigns

EVENT PLANNING TRACK

  • Event Planning
  • Event Promotion
  • Event Execution

HEALTH PROMOTION TRACK

  • Writing for Health Promotion
  • Applied Health Promotion
  • Health Promotion Campaigns

SPORT COMMUNICATION TRACK

  • Media Relations In Sport
  • Sport Journalism
  • IMC for Sport

STRATEGIC SOCIAL MEDIA TRACK

  • Social Media Strategy
  • Social Media Applications
  • Social Media Campaigns

Get in touch

We're here for you every step of the way ... we'll answer your questions, help with your applications for college and financial support, schedule your classes, provide tech support, welcome you for graduation and keep in touch once you cross the finish line.

brynne.myers@mail.wvu.edu

(304) 293-6278

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Accreditation and Accolades

WVU Marketing Communications programs are accredited by The Higher Learning Commission which is one of six regional institutional accreditors in the U.S. by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) and is also recognized with the U.S. Department of Education (USDE). The Higher Learning Commission accredits degree-granting post-secondary educational institutions in the North Central region.

In 2022, the WVU Reed College of Media (now the WVU Reed School of Media and Communications) was one of 35 institutions named to the 2022 PRNEWS Education A-List, which recognizes the best institutions of higher education for career advancement in public relations and marketing communications. It was named to the PRNEWS Education A-List again in 2023. Our Integrated Marketing Communications online graduate program was named a "Program of Excellence" by the WVU Board of Governors in 2020 and was a finalist in the PRWeek US Awards 2016 “Education Program of the Year” category. WVU IMC was also named the “Outstanding Online Program” for 2015 by the Online Learning Consortium, the leading professional organization devoted to advancing the quality of online learning worldwide.

Higher Learning Commission
OLC
PRNEWS A-List Seal
PR Week Logo
Program of Excellence