The fall 2009 semester at Miami University will see the elimination of classes in the Interactive Media Studies (IMS) department in an effort to maximize cost efficiency.
According to Glenn Platt, director of the interactive media studies program, such cuts are necessary in order to cope with an ailing economy.
Platt said the courses eliminated from the curriculum had become fillers for upperclassmen in need of credit hours.
"What we were seeing more and more of was students having already taken these courses," Platt said. "These courses were once about trying to create a baseline level of skill, but you no longer need to teach people what a 'menu' is for."
Platt said the courses being cut from the IMS curriculum familiarize students with online tools such as Microsoft Word and Excel, but given the education students are receiving about these programs at the high school level, many of the 101-level IMS courses have diminished in importance.
Junior Olivia Otten said she took an IMS 101 course in digital video editing. She said it was a shame to hear the courses would no longer be offered.
As a creative writing and mass communication double major, Otten said she wanted the experience with Final Cut Pro the class offered and felt it put her ahead of other students in her communications courses.
"I thought it was very helpful," Otten said. "I really wanted an introduction to Final Cut, which is the program we learned. It just showed you the basics of the program."
Otten also said she liked that the course was offered as a sprint course because as a double major, it fit into her schedule.
Although Platt said discussion about IMS class cuts has been going on for the past two years, he said the current economic crisis did play a role in determining where cuts were to be made.
"I would be lying if I said that budget didn't have anything to do with it," Platt said, "but it was not the deciding factor."
According to Platt, the IMS department was no exception to the university's financial downturn.
While Platt said he has no plans to offer any of the cut courses online, he said a possible testing system for future incoming students could become available.
"We would use the money that went toward teaching those (cut) courses by hiring a lab attendant and creating entrance exams that require online tutorials," Platt said.
