BIS: Arts, Communication Studies,

Management
I have always been a Renaissance woman, with many talents and interests in
varying fields, so when it came time to declare my major, I found myself at a loss.
As I hopelessly searched for one perfect major, I stumbled upon the Bachelor of
Individualized Studies (BIS). I immediately loved the idea of creating my own,
personalized program. The BIS would allow me to combine all my strengths and
interests into one unique degree.
I began investigating possible career choices and gravitated to that of
creative director. With that goal in mind, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to
combine Arts, Communication Studies, and Management. My confidence in this
choice was strengthened when I took Introduction to U.S. Electronic Media, in which
we watched a film about brand development, and I realized that was my niche. I
loved the idea of creating a brand and all the little details that go into brand
recognition and development. It is the perfect balance of business and creativity. I
want to combine the aesthetic skills and theories from my art background, with the
practicality and efficiency of business, to create my own spin on a marketing degree
with a twist.
I believe the three aspects of my BIS will allow me to have flexibility
throughout my career to branch out into various fields, as well as set me apart from
other candidates. My program allows me to have multiple facets to draw upon,

giving me a competitive advantage. The Arts portion of my BIS will allow me to

further develop my skills and understandings of how ideas are communicated
through images, colors, and other artistic techniques. The Communications aspect
of my BIS will teach me how to effectively promote ideas and communicate them to
others. The Management piece of my BIS will give me a strong business core and
help me understand how to apply my Art and Communications knowledge within
the consumer business world.

Arts
The Art portion of my BIS is particularly important to me and my proposed
program. It is something that I believe will set me apart as I venture into the world
of business. Art not only teaches aesthetics and technique, but it is a universal
language. Art evokes emotions and expresses ideas through images, colors,
associations, aspects I believe are critical to any marketing venture. Art promotes
creativity, ingenuity, and inventiveness, which is important in any field. Being
creative is not limited to the Art world, but rather, it is a way of thinking, a way of
viewing the world. For me, Art has been a continual learning experience of how to
approach problems in numerous ways, which I hope to apply to my future career.
With this goal in mind, I chose the following classes which I believe will complement
my Communications and Marketing classes.
In choosing Art classes, I wanted to find courses that focused on concepts
and real world applications. Art 3490 -Workshop in Arts is devoted to teaching
Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator, but it also involves projects such as
managing a personal website and creating a resume. This class provides a basic
understanding of these programs and how they can be utilized in advertising and

various marketing promotions. My hope for this class is to gain an awareness of

what is possible to create with these programs and how to set realistic timelines to
expect when producing projects since marketing works alongside designers to
create promotions.
I chose- ArtS 3401W Critical Theories and Their Construction from a
Studio Perspective for its focus on the significance of aesthetic experience, and
aims to answer the question: Why do we look at and make art? My intent with this
class is to better understand why people are drawn to art, what type of art are they
drawn to, and to apply those concepts to advertising in order to attract consumers.
Next I looked to Art History classes, because I believe we can learn a lot
about from past people and events. ArtH 3315 -The Age of Curiosity: Art and
Knowledge in Europe, 1500-1800 is an introduction to the ways in which the
making of art and the making of science intersected in early modern Europe. With
this course, I am hoping to learn how great artists, such as Leonardo da Vinci, not
only produced masterpieces, but were great visionaries as well. I believe this class
will inspire me to see a greater scope for the application of art in the world. I believe
this class will be a great transition into ARTH 3401 - Art Now, which is an analysis
of visual representations in fine arts and popular media, in the context of social
issues. I believe this class will assist me in recognizing how art can be used in
reaction to, and in the creation of movements, trends and branding.
Lastly, ARTS 3107 Drawing Using Digital Media as an Essential Tool
introduces how to incorporate technology as a tool or component into creative
drawing practice. With this class, my goal is to strengthen my personal artistic skills.

Traditionally, I do art work by hand, but in an ever-increasing technology centered

world, I hope to learn how to better use digital tools.

Communications Studies

Communications is a vital portion of my BIS, it bridges the gap between the

Arts aspect and the Marketing portion. Marketing is the mechanics of selling and
finding your target audience; art is the creation of a message or image to portray
your ideas; and communication is the means of getting that message across to your
target audience. Communications plays a dynamic role in our lives and society as
the means to spread ideas. Though we may not appreciate it, it is the way we
interact with others, persuade, promote, encourage and so much more. In todays
world, the number of communication channels is ever growing, and it is increasingly
important to have clear and effective communications. I hope to learn from the
following courses how to communicate effectively, efficiently, and clearly.
COMM 3211- Introduction to U.S. Electronic Media discusses the
development of, and current issues with, electronic media technologies; as well as
how government and public organizations affect message content. I will strengthen
my awareness of media, and the messages it portrays. I will learn who creates and
promotes these messages as well as how and why they are effective. This will
strengthen my abilities to use media within the marketing world. Introductions to
U.S. Electronic Media will be a great stepping stone towards COMM 3645W - How
Pictures Persuade, which explores how words and pictures interact in graphic
memoirs, political cartoons, and science to create and communicate meaning. This
class will be a great transition from art to the business of marketing, learning how to

use images to promote an idea or more specifically, a brand. I believe How Pictures
Persuade will complement COMM 5431 - The Process of Persuasion focuses on
mainly advertising and political communication campaigns, illustrating persuasive
processes and theories.

Once I understand how powerful images can be within communications, I

hope to learn the science and psychology behind them, which is why I chose COMM
3263W - Media Literacy: Decoding Media Images and Messages and COMM
3401-Introduction to Communication Theory. Media Literacy: Decoding Media
Images and Messages analyses the effects, identity and content of the media. This
class will teach me to identify the messages portrayed by the media and in turn,
learn how to create effective marketing messages using media outlets. Introduction
to Communication Theory presents the logic of communication theories within
different groups. I will learn multiple theories within human communication, which
will help me understand why humans communicate the way they do, and how to
apply such theories to become a better communicator.

Management
Within the Carlson Management program, I plan on concentrating on
marketing classes. Why marketing? It is the most influential division of business
giving corporations clear direction and targets. The essence of marketing is that
firms gain loyal customers by providing unique value. I believe my program kindles
that unique value. While traditionally, Art and Communications may not have come
to mind when thinking of Marketing, I believe the three truly work hand in hand.

Marketing is the research, analysis and identification of a target audience for a

product. It takes a creative thinker to predict the market and what products
consumers will want in the future. It takes a strong and effective communicator to
convey marketing messages to consumers, as well as internally heading and
completing projects to meet sales, branding and other objectives. Furthermore, by
taking classes in these three different departments, I will have exposure to a diverse
group of students and teachers. This allows me to have a multidisciplinary approach
in my future career, as I will have multiple channels from which to pull examples,
ideas and context. I believe the skills I learn from my Art and Communication
classes will be a great asset to the following Marketing courses.
I will begin my marketing discipline with MKTG 3001 - Principles of
Marketing as an introduction to terms, concepts, and skills for analyzing marketing
problems. This class will be a foundation for all subsequent marketing classes. I
hope to gain a firm understanding of basic marketing principles as framework to
build upon. With the basics under my belt, I hope to explore the world of Marketing
Research. MKTG 3010 - Marketing Research teaches methods for collecting and
analyzing data to solve marketing problems. Research is the key to success with any
marketing agenda, I will be able to use analytical skills developed from this class to
determine correct methods and targets for marketing campaigns.
MKTG 3040 - Buyer Behavior discusses the application of behavioral
sciences to buyer behavior. I believe this class will be complemented by the
communications theory classes I will have taken. I hope to apply communication
theories alongside the behavioral sciences to understand buyer behavior. I believe
this class will be a great transition into MKTG 4050 - Integrated Marketing
Communications, which is about managing and integrating communication

aspects of marketing. This class will strengthen the communication skills I will have
learned from my communications classes and will give me the opportunity to
directly apply them to marketing endeavors. This class also discusses how
communications can be applied to advertising and sales promotions, which will be a
great opportunity to apply my art skills. Lastly, I MKTG 4082W - Brand
Management, which encompasses all aspects of brand asset management
including measuring brand knowledge, building and leveraging brands and
managing brands globally.
My goal with this program was to create a marketing degree like no other. I
believe the combination of Arts, Communications, and Management will give me a
unique and diverse skill set that will set me apart in the business world. I have
confidence that each component will strengthen my weaknesses and promote my
current assets, so I can reach my full potential. I am no longer apprehensive to what
the future holds, but excited knowing that I will have a degree that is truly my own.