Womens' progress in journalism and mass communications education programs was assessed in 1983 as a follow-up to a 1972 study. Objectives were to determine: the perceptions women have of communications education as a profession; the extent to which women are engaging in scholarly activities in the field; and how leaders in communications education react to perceptions of female communications educators and how they assess the field with respect to opportunities for women. A content analysis of scholarly journals in the communication field was undertaken, and statistics were collected on women in communications education as well as on employment, enrollments, and salaries in American higher education. Interviews were conducted with leaders in the field, and questionnaires were sent to 810 women serving as current faculty, current doctoral students, or doctoral graduates in the journalism and mass communications education field. Of these questionnaires, 199 were returned, for a response rate of 39%. In addition to identifying respondent characteristics, the questionnaire covered the progress and attitudes of female doctoral students, discrimination experienced by women students and faculty, the experiences of female administrators, salaries, teaching loads, promotion and tenure, recruitment of women faculty, and job satisfaction. (SW)