For over 25 years, academic leaders throughout the United States and employers in the northern Illinois region have recognized the high quality of Northern Illinois University's M.A. program in communication studies. Graduates also rate the program highly. Another index of the quality of the program is the professional success of alumni. Many M.A. graduates have been accepted and offered funding to attend prestigious Ph.D. programs.
Many graduates secure communication related jobs in business, industry, and government.
Some of these positions in the private sector include corporate video producer, public relations specialist, corporate training specialist, retail store manager, human resources specialist, media producer, script writer, television station manager, and personnel development manager. Among the private firms in which recent graduates hold positions are Arthur Andersen, Aetna Life and Casualty, Nalco Chemical, Marshall Field, Polaroid, and Motorola. Other recent graduates hold positions with governments or nonprofit organizations such as director of training for a municipal government, state legislative aide, administrator for Copley Memorial Hospital, program coordinator for the United Methodist Church, and fundraiser for Southern Illinois University. Fundamental to the quality of the M.A. program is the commitment of the graduate faculty to scholarship and teaching. Faculty serve on editorial boards for 19 other scholarly journals and hold 10 offices in professional associations.