Many professional roles revolve around communication, with understanding audiences and delivering effective messages being the core responsibility for a variety of career paths.
Marketing and strategic communication are two such areas. Pursuing a bachelor’s degree in either subject will teach you how to craft impact-focused, persuasive messages, but the applications differ. Marketing usually focuses on promoting products or services to customers, while strategic communication aims to maximize internal alignment within an organization for better performance across all departments.
If you’re considering a bachelor’s degree in strategic communication or marketing, this article will explain the differences between each degree to help you decide which is better for your career goals.
Cal Lutheran’s BA in Strategic Communications is part of the Bachelor’s Degree for Professionals program. Flexibly designed for working adults and lifelong learners who already have some college credits, this program empowers professionals to complete their bachelor’s and advance their careers. Learn more about how a bachelor’s degree can benefit you.
Focus
Strategic communication emphasizes supporting long-term organizational and digital communications goals through clear, coordinated messages. A bachelor’s degree in this field aims to strengthen students’ critical thinking and writing skills, while also helping them understand how communication shapes relationships, culture and decision-making.
The field draws from traditional communications fields — such as PR, marketing and media studies — and leadership strategies to develop consistent messaging that helps connect an organization’s employees with its mission.
Professionals working in strategic communication usually focus on internal messaging. They are leaders with important responsibilities like:
- Supporting change management initiatives
- Strengthening employee engagement
- Improving ethical and cultural awareness
Strategic communications focus on interdisciplinary knowledge that can also be applied to external audiences, with relevant skills in marketing, communication planning and media strategy.
Curriculum
The curriculum of a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Communication program prepares students to plan and execute internal and external communication strategies, then evaluate the efficacy of them. Coursework will usually blend hard skills development, like writing, research and media planning, with soft skill development in leadership and ethics.
At Cal Lutheran, courses include:
- Research Writing for Professionals
- Advanced Research Writing for Professionals
- Essentials of Statistics
- Persuasion and Influence
- Principles of Strategic/Professional Communication
- Research Methods
Skills You’ll Build With a Strategic Communication Degree:
- Writing for varied audiences and channels
- Developing communication plans aligned with organizational goals
- Analyzing data to measure communication effectiveness
- Managing projects and campaigns from planning to execution
- Handling sensitive topics professionally and ethically
- Leading conversations around change and collaboration
Career Outcomes With a Strategic Communication Degree
Strategic communication careers have a focus on how words, visuals and tone can influence understanding and messaging reception. Many career paths combine communication expertise with leadership or relationship management responsibilities. Common positions include:
- Public relations specialist
- Corporate communications manager
- HR manager
- Director of strategic communications
- Internal communications specialist
Graduates will have a strong foundation to prepare for broader leadership roles in HR, nonprofit advocacy, law and internal communications. Through coursework in media theory, campaign development and ethical messaging, students gain adaptable skills that support high-impact organizational strategy.
Career Prospects: Salary and Job Outlook
According to self-reported data from Payscale, BA in Strategic Communication graduates earn an average salary of $64,000 per year. While this may not be as high of an average starting salary as some other degrees, strategic communications graduates benefit from more upward potential, versatile skills and a strong foundation for earning a master’s degree.
The job market is also strong for communications professionals. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 104,800 openings for media and communication occupations per year through 2034. However, strategic communications graduates can find roles in nearly any industry — not just traditional media and communications roles.
What Is a Marketing Degree?
Marketing degrees allow students to pair creativity with analytics. A bachelor’s in marketing will teach strategic thinking, specifically through the lens of understanding consumer behavior, developing brand strategies and creating engaging campaigns for specific audiences.
Focus
Marketing programs are specialized degrees that teach students to support business needs by promoting products or services. Marketing pairs creativity and data analysis to develop campaigns that attract customers and secure them long term. Essentially, a bachelor’s in marketing focuses on each stage of the promotion process:
- Initial analysis (discover audiences, appropriate channels)
- Plan creation (writing copy, developing designs)
- Ongoing improvement (analyze performance, find areas to improve)
Marketing also involves communication, but the emphasis is much narrower. Students will focus primarily on creating the best marketing strategies possible for external audiences, which involves more market positioning and consumer behavior trends.
Curriculum
Marketing curricula blend business and communication courses. Students develop both their analytical and creative skills in this field, balancing data-driven decisions with persuasive storytelling capabilities. Core topics often include:
- Consumer behavior
- Market research and analysis
- Advertising and promotion
- Digital marketing strategy
- Brand management
Skills You’ll Build With a Marketing Degree:
- Market research and data interpretation
- Brand strategy and campaign development
- Copywriting and digital content creation
- Social media management and analytics
- Customer relationship management
Career Outcomes With a Marketing Degree
Marketing graduates tend to work in advertising and digital media. A few common roles include:
- Marketing coordinator
- Brand manager
- Digital marketing specialist
- Advertising account executive
- Social media manager
- Product marketing analyst
Marketing degrees also provide professionals with a foundation for marketing, management, advertising and sales leadership.
Career Prospects: Salary and Job Outlook
Self-reported data from Payscale notes that BA in Marketing graduates earn an average salary of $70,254 per year. While marketing graduates benefit from this strong average salary immediately after their bachelor’s degree, they may find it slightly more difficult to climb the corporate ladder.
Most marketing positions only require a bachelor’s degree, but leadership positions typically require a master’s degree. These leadership positions also tend to benefit more from a Master of Business Administration degree, meaning that marketing professionals would need to gain business skills.
Marketing professionals benefit from a strong job marketing. With advertising and marketing proliferation throughout the larger media industry, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects a 6% growth rate for advertising, promotions and marketing managers through 2034. While a master’s degree may be better for a management role, these roles are strong representatives for the entire marketing industry.
Marketing vs. Strategic Communication: What Are the Key Differences?
| Marketing | Strategic Communication | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Promote products or services to customers, drive sales and engagement | Align organizational stakeholders, develop consistent goals and support long-term strategy |
| Audience | External: consumers, clients, partners | Internal and external: employees, stakeholders, clients, partners |
| Core Topics |
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| Skills Developed |
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| Career Paths |
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| Leadership Preparation | Prepares for leadership in business development, sales and entrepreneurship | Prepares for leadership in organizational management, consulting, HR, nonprofit and cross-industry roles |
How Do You Choose the Right Degree for Your Career Goals?
Both degrees are strong choices for individuals looking to gain a foundation in communications and can lead to similar outcomes at the entry level. However, marketing and strategic communications build a foundation for different senior-level and leadership opportunities, so choosing which one is better for you largely depends on your long-term career goals.
Marketing programs best suit individuals who are interested in digital marketing and consumer engagement. Strategic communication programs provide broader preparation for leadership, organizational development and advocacy roles.
At Cal Lutheran, the BA in Strategic Communication gives adults looking to go back to school the skills to handle diverse communication challenges in leadership roles across sectors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Communications is a very broad field, and a communications degree is similarly broad. Generally, communications degrees cover professional interaction, media studies, marketing and some aspects of strategic communication.
A strategic communication degree is more specialized, aimed to enable future leaders to develop communication strategies that align stakeholders and improve operations across organizations of all sizes.
Some universities misname their communications programs as strategic communications degrees, so it is important to review course content carefully before applying.
Yes. Strategic communication graduates have strong writing, analytical and leadership skills applicable to marketing roles in content marketing, brand management and public relations.
Marketing degrees can lead to leadership opportunities, but these will mostly be in marketing roles.
Strategic communication prepares graduates to manage people and processes across industries, particularly due to coursework in management, ethics and change management.
About the BA in Strategic Communication at Cal Lutheran’s School for Professional and Continuing Studies
Continue your education and transform your career with our Bachelor’s Degree for Professionals, designed for working adults and lifelong learners with some college experience. This affordable degree completion program with flexible online options offers a focused major in strategic communications that teaches students the essentials of media theory, effective communication strategies and the creation of powerful communication campaigns.
Cal Lutheran’s School for Professional and Continuing Studies serves individuals who desire to grow educationally, personally and professionally. Our work is grounded in the assessment of students’ needs and expectations. We meet these individuals where they are in order to provide tailored programs and resources that will help them clarify and deepen their purpose so that they can transform their communities — and the world.
Download a program brochure or start your application for the Bachelor’s Degree for Professionals program.
