Cinema Studies students will leave the UO with the ability to go on and build remarkable lives for themselves in a wide range of professions related to the media industry- as directors, as producers, writers, editors, curators, marketers, designers, events managers, K-12 teachers... even as professors.

Students in Cinema Studies at the University of Oregon learn to work both as creators and as scholars. They read, think and write but also direct, shoot and edit movies. As a result, they find they have a wide range of employment options when they come to start their careers.

In addition to acquiring many skills specifically related to moving images, our students develop important skills valuable to most businesses, primary among them creative research and problem-solving, good communication skills and the ability to work in and make important contributions to a team.

Our emphasis on interdisciplinary connections and cinema as a global medium means that our students are exposed to diverse ideas and peoples, and consequently, as graduates they are able to establish unique paths for themselves wherever they may go.

There is a surprisingly wide range of opportunities for work in film and media. Many students who graduate pursue further education or additional professional training, while others find first-stage positions and apprenticeships, or even create their own production companies as a way of gaining experience and building connections with potential employers and collaborators.

Jobs in the media industry are often freelance or ad hoc rather than full-time or continuing, which means that graduates in Cinema Studies are frequently surprised to find so many practical applications for the creative, academic and interpersonal skills they've acquired and gratified by their emerging abilities to design their own roles in life.

But don’t just believe us:

"Is a Cinema Studies Degree the New M.B.A?" — Article by ELIZABETH VAN NESS. Published in the March 6, 2005 New York Times.