COMM – Communication Studies
COMM 160 Communication in Everyday Life (3)
Limited to first and second year students. Introduces students to basic skills necessary for communicating effectively across a variety of social and professional contexts. Emphasis is placed on the development of an analytical and critical approach to planning, implementing and assessing effectiveness when communicating with others. Oral communication competencies include listening, large and small group discussion, and formal presentations. (SB, EXP)
COMM 180 Introduction to Communication Theory (3)
Surveys and analyzes significant theories of the Communication Studies discipline. Topics include the self and messages, relationship development, groups and organizations, public communication, the media, and culture and diversity. Critical thinking and writing skills are cultivated through brief theory application papers. Theories are also explored through in-class exercises.
COMM 240 Multimedia Writing Strategies (3)
This course provides instruction and practice for developing the professional-level writing skills required of strategic communication experts. Students will gain confidence in writing strategic message planners, creative briefs, news releases, and social media posts. In addition, students will implement podcast shows, radio/ TV ads, campaign fundraisers, and various print materials. Composing messages for the appropriate audience, identifying strategies for PR campaigns, and interacting on social media are emphasized.
COMM 245 Group and Team Communication (3)
Prerequisite: COMM-160. This course examines the processes of small groups and provides the skills specific to working in groups and team. In this highly interactive course, students will explore ways that people think and behave in groups, the way groups make decisions, how to lead effective and efficient groups, and how to influence positive interaction and productivity.
COMM 250 Evaluating Contemporary Media (4)
Prerequisite: CIV-110, and 28 credits or sophomore standing. Investigates how contemporary screen media construct, reflect, and naturalize identities in the U.S. and other national contexts. In addition, the course introduces students to the contexts of production, text, and audiences, and invites them to actively respond to the identities constructed through screen media. (GPC, CTN)
COMM 262 Interpersonal Communication (4)
Prerequisite: second-year standing or instructor’s permission. Examines one-to-one communication encounters including friendships, intimates, family and work relationships. Applies theoretical concepts related to human perception, language, nonverbal communication, conflict resolution, listening and gender dynamics. (SB)
COMM 268 Intercultural Communication (3)
Prerequisite: CIV 110 and 28 completed credits. Explores communication within and across cultural groups. Addresses cultural differences broadly, including not only ethnicity, but also race, age, sexual orientation, gender, and disability. Presents and applies key concepts, skills, and processes of intercultural communication. Provides a forum not only to talk about diversity, but also to interact across difference and develop a better understanding of one’s own culture. (GPC, CTN)
COMM 272 Professional Communication (3)
Prerequisite: second-year standing. This course examines oral communication in a variety of professional face-to-face and digital contexts. Develops understanding and communication skills in relation to job searches and interviews, professional presentations, interpersonal and group interaction, persuasion, and professional etiquette. .
COMM 275 Sports Communication (4)
Prerequisite: second-year standing. Investigates the communication practices by which individuals, groups, and organizations frame their experiences in/through sport. It operates from the assumption that people enact, produce, consume, and organize sport primarily as a communication activity. The class is structured from a survey perspective where the relationship between communication and sport is examined in interpersonal, social, family, mediated, and organizational contexts. Analysis papers, independent research, oral presentations, and class discussion/activities will be emphasized.
COMM 280 Communication Research Methods (4)
Prerequisite: COMM 180 and second-year standing or instructor’s permission. Introduces basic primary and secondary research methods used in the study of human symbolic activity. Provides working knowledge of resources and research methods used in the communication discipline while refining research and academic writing skills. Primary methods emphasized include survey, ethnography, interviewing, and textual analysis. Includes significant writing component. Designed for students planning to be Communication Studies majors.
COMM 330 Media Criticism (3)
Prerequisite: third-year standing or instructor’s permission. Students will examine the production, textual meaning, and reception contexts of media culture by focusing on the gains of historical and contemporary approaches to media studies and their theoretical limitations. Each unit will incorporate case studies that examine the influence of media, and students will be tested on each unit along with the opportunity to implement each theoretical approach. Finally, students will select a theoretical perspective to apply to their media object of choice in a critical analysis paper.
COMM 340 Public Relations (4)
Prerequisite: third-year standing or instructor’s permission. Focuses on the fundamental communication processes involved in public relations. Basic theories of identity formation, persuasion and social influence are examined. Applied areas of emphasis include planning and implementing campaigns, as well as public relations writing, crisis response and information management. This course includes a service learning component.
COMM 342 Negotiating Organizational Cultures (4)
Prerequisite: CIV 210 and third-year standing. Examines the role of communication in workplace and other organizational cultures. Presents and applies theories of organizational communication through readings, case studies, and an original primary research project. Develops analytical, problem-solving, professional, and personal effectiveness through exploration of topics such as organizational systems and cultures, power and difference in organizations, and teamwork and leadership. (WOC)
COMM 364 Family Communication (4)
Prerequisite: third-year standing or instructor permission. Students will explore various family forms and examine family interaction from different theoretical lenses. Specifically, we will focus on the role of communication in a variety of family relationships (e.g., siblings, parent-child) and in a variety of settings (e.g., in times of stress and change, in health conversations, and through social media), as well as assess the idea of what constitutes a “functional” family.
COMM 376 Communicating Health & Illness (4)
Prerequisite: CIV 210 and third-year standing. Provides a broad introduction to communication about health and illness in a variety of contexts for both theoretical and practical perspectives. Explores how health and illness are socially constructed through interaction and how they affect and are affected by communication. Topics include health/illness identity and social support, provider-client interaction, communication in health care organizations, and public health, including issues related to media and health promotion. Provides practical information that can be used in personal and professional life. This course is appropriate for non-majors and includes a community-engaged learning component. (WOC)
COMM 385 Digital Media Discourses (4)
Prerequiste: CV 210, third-year standing or insturctor permission. Examines dystopian and utopian discourses about how digital media influence human communication with a focus on personal, interpersonal, social, educational, professional and virtual contexts. In addition to reading scholarly articles, students will consider how their media interactions fashion communication and relationships. This class is designed to engage students through daily readings and discussions and a group research paper that investigates an issue in digital media. (WOC)
COMM 397 Internship in Communication Studies (Arr)
Prerequisite: declared major or minor in Communication Studies; departmental GPA of 2.0 or higher; and departmental approval. An applied professional experience in communication-related fields. Includes midterm and final evaluations by site supervisor; written reflection during the experience; conferences with supervising faculty member; and submission of an acceptable internship analysis paper. May be repeated for a maximum of 8 credit hours applied to the major or 3 credit hours applied to the minor. Pass/No Credit basis.