VCU Brandcenter

Graduate Program

VCU Brandcenter offers a two-year graduate program which provides an intensive, real-world education for future advertising leaders.

We offer a Masters degree in Mass Communications with a concentration in one of four tracks.

Art Direction

You love design and photography. You comment on fonts and color choice. You think in visuals or words, but most importantly in ideas. Plus, you don't mind using a Mac to produce the concepts you

come up with. You love letting your creative spirit run wild. And that's why you have a copywriting partner to bring you back in focus.

1

    -  Business of Branding
    -  Creative Thinking
    -  Visual Concepts & Execution I
    -  Visual Storytelling
    -  Technology

2

    -  Digital Engagement
    -  Concept Development
    -  Visual Concepts &
         Execution II

3

    -  Brand Campaigns
    -  Culture
    -  Portfolio Development

4

    -  Building Global Brands
    -  Presentation Skills
    -  Advanced Portfolio
         Development
    -  Digital Portfolio

Download Full 2011 Course Catalog (pdf)

Copywriting

As soon as you learned to write, you made up stories. Jokes. Poems. You're a wordsmith whose mere utterances make people laugh. Or cry. Or smile.

You're an idea maker who thinks big but also has the ability to take a huge thought and make it simple.

1

    -  Business of Branding
    -  Creative Thinking
    -  Conceptual Thinking
    -  Visual Storytelling
    -  Technology

2

    -  Digital Engagement
    -  Concept Development
    -  Conceptual Thinking II

3

    -  Brand Campaigns
    -  Culture
    -  Portfolio Development

4

    -  Building Global Brands
    -  Presentation Skills
    -  Advanced Portfolio
         Development
    -  Digital Portfolio

Download Full 2011 Course Catalog (pdf)

Communications Strategy

You've mastered the art of knowing how to speak to people in a way that moves them. You are deeply curious and wonder how everything ticks.

You can boil market research and analysis down to concise, meaningful conclusions. It is your insights that serve as a blueprint for creating a great campaign.

1

    -  Business of Branding
    -  Creative Thinking
    -  Contemporary Research
        Methodologies
    -  Strategic Thinking

2

    -  Digital Engagement
    -  Principles of Modern
        Media
    -  Visual Storytelling for 
        Strategists

3

    -  Brand Campaigns
    -  Investigating Consumer
        Culture
    -  Strategies of Modern
        Media
    -  Presentation Skills

4

    -  Building Global Brands
    -  Insights & Implications
    -  Leading Innovation

Download Full 2011 Course Catalog (pdf)

Creative
Brand Management

You want to produce smart, breakthrough creative work for your company. You are not afraid to take risks, yet you have the business knowledge necessary to make sound decisions on behalf of the brands you manage.

You possess strong strategic skills, enjoy managing people and projects, and understand the need for accountability.

1

    -  Business of Branding
    -  Creative Thinking
    -  Contemporary Research
        Methodologies
    -  Strategic Thinking

2

    -  Digital Engagement
    -  Principles of Modern
        Media
    -  Accounting for
        Communications
        Professionals
    -  Introduction to Brand 
        Management

3

    -  Brand Campaigns
    -  Culture
    -  Advanced Brand
        Management

4

    -  Building Global Brands
    -  Presentation Skills
    -  Supervised Business Study
    -  Applied Brand Management

Download Full 2011 Course Catalog (pdf)

Creative Technology

Creative Technologists work as leaders and members of expanded creative teams in agencies and production companies, as interactive designers, creative directors, producers, as directors of interactive

media, as members of account teams, as entrepreneurs, as digital and interactive generalists, and in creative technology positions emerging forward-thinking agencies.

1

    -  Business of Branding
    -  Creative Thinking
    -  Information Architecture
    -  Creative Computational Media
    -  User-Participation Platforms

2

    -  Digital Engagement
    -  Mobility
    -  Creating Gravitational Pull

3

    -  Brand Campaigns
    -  Data Cultivation
    -  Adaptive Experiences
    -  Presentation Skills

4

    -  Building Global Brands
    -  Futurology
    -  Applied Creative Technology

Download Full 2011 Course Catalog (pdf)

Career Opportunities

Hello crazy, exciting work world. VCU Brandcenter helps students gain work experience and provides career guidance every step of the way. Our unique internship program gives students a taste of the agency - and client-side - life before they graduate. Second-year students are matched with mentors, industry professionals who keep in touch with their assigned student through phone, email and visits.

The recruiter session is held each spring soon after graduation. Agencies interested in participating in this talent search should contact Ashley Sommardahl at asommardahl@vcu.edu, or Katherine Keogh at kakeogh@vcu.edu.

Our placement rate eight months after graduation is 95 percent. And if you're curious to see what the salaries are, check out this salary guide.


+ Internships
+ Mentorships
+ Recruitment Sessions