Imo State University (IMSU), Owerri, has officially restructured its Mass Communication Department into six distinct departments.
Dr. Mrs. Adeline Nkwam-Uwaoma, the Head of the Department of Film and Multimedia Studies within the newly established Faculty of Communication and Media Studies, explained that students will no longer study Mass Communication as a single course. Instead, the former department has expanded into a full faculty offering specialized degrees.
“The six departments are Film and Multimedia Studies, Advertising, Public Relations, Development Communication, Journalism and Media Studies, and Broadcasting,” Dr. Nkwam-Uwaoma stated, noting that IMSU is the first university in the Southeast region to achieve this significant milestone.
This development aligns with a broader national directive issued in 2020 by the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Abubakar Rasheed. As part of efforts to enhance and modernize university education in Nigeria, the NUC unbundled Mass Communication into separate degree programs, allowing universities to establish full faculties for communication studies.
The reform, aimed at addressing global trends and best practices, followed recommendations from stakeholders and professionals during a national conference in 2018. Facilitated by Bayero University, Kano, with support from the McArthur Foundation, this conference reviewed the Mass Communication curriculum and advocated for the division of the discipline, which had been deemed too broad under a single degree program.
This reform seeks to better equip students by providing focused education in the various branches of communication, aligning with global standards and developments.
