Major / Minor Information
F&M does not currently offer an official major in Film & Media Studies, yet there are several current students who are de facto Film & Media Studies majors. How is this possible? There are three avenues to a do-it-yourself Film & Media Studies major.
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Special Major: A special major consists in specially selected courses from three different departments. Examples include Media and Marketing, Film Music, Film and Literature, Italian Art and Cinema. There are of course many other possibilities. The two stipulations are (1) that it sounds like a legitimate academic major and (2) that it not be called Film & Media Studies (since we nave no official major in that program).
A special major is simple to create. You simply define it (typically with a paragraph), give it a name, and compile the list of courses you want it to consist of, with alternatives in case some of those courses are not offered when you need them.
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Joint Major: This is essentially a mini-major in another department and a maxi-minor in Film & Media Studies. You might do a joint major in History and Film & Media Studies, for instance. You would typically take between 7 and 9 courses in both departments. Both departments would need to sign off on your plan of studies. The drawback of this option is that it has more requirements than a Special Major.
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TDF Major with Film Concentration: This is essentially a Theatre major, with most of the regular requirements of a theatre major, including Performance Seminar (i.e., invovement in theatre productions). This is a terrific option for a theatre student with a strong interest in film.
Whichever of these options you mioght choose, the film component of your major must include at least one course in each of the four categories listed above, plus two additional courses from any of the categories (for Special Major) or four courses (for a Joint Major).
If you have any questions, just call or email the head of the Film & Media Studies program, Dirk Eitzen, at 291-4297 or deitzen@fandm.edu
A minor consists of one course in each of the above four categories plus two additional courses from any of the categories - for a total of six courses. Simple.
