Julianna Kirschner teaches a broad range of courses, including small group communication, argumentation, sports communication, and communication management. 

Kirschner’s research is focused on improving communication in multiple contexts, including health dynamics and social media technology. Her master’s thesis explored grief and loss, with a focus on caretaking practices. Kirschner’s dissertation critically assessed social media posts that created, gave life to, and finally abandoned trending topics on Twitter. Her dissertation was selected for the Outstanding Dissertation Award from the National Communication Association. Kirschner has also published work in performance communication, and her book chapter on memory preservation won an award from the National Communication Association. 

Kirschner has created Visions and Voices programming to highlight marginalized athletes and their stories. She has developed several conference programs for the USC Annenberg Institute of Sports, Media, and Society. She has served as program planner for the Language and Social Interaction Division of the Western States Communication Association and the Visual Communication Division of the National Communication Association.