The Media Studies Department at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville has recently expanded its program opportunities, offering a new minor to students: social media.

Led by Dr. Robert Snyder, the newly designed social media minor is the first and only minor of its kind offered within the UW System.

When the minor was approved in 2012, the only other university to offer a social media major or minor was a small, private school in North Carolina.

“We are a media studies program, and social media is too big to ignore. There has been an explosive growth in jobs, particularly in the area of social media content production,” Snyder said.

Emphasizing the importance of “cyber literacy,” students will study the use of social media in a wide variety of settings.

Through in-depth exercises in writing, photography and video, students will also develop the necessary skills to function as a social media communication specialist in multiple professional settings.

“It gives a better understanding on how you would use social media on behalf of a company rather than personal use,” Janessa Ryan, senior public relations and history major, said.

Along with nine other required courses, the minor also includes two new courses: Social Media and Society and Social Media: Applied Communication.

Students would also be required to complete two elective courses, which contribute towards the 24 total credits necessary to complete the minor.

“We are a professionally-oriented program. One key trait running throughout media history is ‘evolve.’ We needed to evolve,” Snyder said. “The challenge was to design a curriculum that would fit our mission: professional development at a liberal arts university.”

Students from a variety of different majors have enrolled in this course in order to meet various degree requirements.

Senior media studies major Megan Williams will be graduating in May with a minor in social media.

“This minor will be beneficial, since social media is a growing market and necessary in nearly all businesses. Hopefully, having this minor will set me apart from other candidates when applying for positions,” Williams said.

“The social media minor has been growing. There is a lot of interest within the major, and interest is now growing outside of the media studies major,” Media Studies Department Chair Dr. Art Ranney said.

With favorable exposure and an increase in demand, Ranney hopes to see the program expand and become an emphasis within the next five years.