Welcome to Cal! We are delighted you will be joining the University of California, Berkeley academic community and are interested in the Media Studies major.
In the beginning, you will be working with the L&S College Advisers in the L&S Office of Undergraduate Advising. Get to know their Berkeley L&S Advising website. It will be a valuable resource throughout your time at Cal. You will learn a lot through Golden Bear Orientation (GBO) and Golden Bear Advising (GBA) too.
While you may have expressed an interest in Media Studies when you applied to the University, we encourage you to explore all your major options to make the best, informed choice for you. We want you to study what sparks your individual academic interests and make the most of your time at Cal. Visit Explore Majors & Minors and Declare or Change Major on Berkeley L&S Advising.
Go Bears!
Laura Demir and Chelsea Prieto
Media Studies Student Academic Advisors
Recommended Classes for your First Year
Students intending Media Studies as their major should prioritize completing the Prerequisites for the Media Studies major. To become eligible to declare the major, all of the major prerequisites must be completed. Students cannot declare the major while concurrently taking any of the prerequisite courses.
Students should also incorporate general degree requirements into their schedules such as University of California Requirements and L&S Breadth Requirements.
Declaring Media Studies
To be eligible to declare Media Studies,
- All major prerequisites must be completed with a C or better.
- At time of declaration, your major GPA must be at least a 2.0. The major GPA will include any completed Media Studies-relevant courses (e.g. prerequisites, electives).
Once prerequisites have been met, students must submit the Media Studies Declaration Form to declare the major. The declaration form will only be open during specific declaration periods. Typically, eligible students will be able to declare the major in the term after they complete their prerequisite courses.
For full details on eligibility, steps to declare, and declaration periods, please visit Declaring.
Choosing a Media Studies Concentration
Students must choose a concentration when declaring Media Studies. The concentration options are:
Having a concentration in mind ahead of declaration also helps in mapping out what classes to take for their major electives. If you’re undecided as to which concentration to choose, carefully review the class options and see which set of classes relate to what you enjoy learning about.
Students can still change their concentration after they declare if they decide they want to switch. If you’re still unsure, consider taking an upper-division elective from two different concentrations you’re interested in to familiarize yourself with the respective topics.
Students can only choose one concentration — there is no option to do multiple.
FAQs
I want to get a head start with Media Studies requirements beyond the prerequisites -- what else can I take?
Students should prioritize their major prerequisites, but for those who have completed these or are near finishing them, they can start taking electives for their major. Knowing what concentration you want to pursue is helpful with choosing which electives to enroll into.
Remember that any prerequisites, core courses, and major electives that you complete before declaring will calculate into your major GPA. This major GPA must be at least a 2.0 in order to declare the major so be mindful of how you perform in these classes!
All classes applied to the Media Studies major must be taken for a letter grade, including prerequisites, core courses, and electives.
I have met UC Berkeley's American History and American Institutions requirements with exam credit - does that mean I've also satisfied the Media Studies prerequisites to declare?
Media Studies at UC Berkeley does not accept exam credit to count towards the Media Studies prerequisites. All prerequisites for the major must be completed with courses.
Students should also be mindful that not all classes that meet the University’s requirements also satisfy the Media Studies prerequisites. These are different sets of requirements that may not accept the same options. Please refer to Prerequisites for the list of options at UC Berkeley. Students can use ASSIST.org to see what options they can take at California community colleges.
Can I take Media Studies core courses and upper-division electives offered by Media Studies right now?
First-year students are not permitted to enroll into Media Studies 10 and other classes offered by the Media Studies program. These students may enroll in these classes only after completing their first two semesters at UC Berkeley.
