Requirements & Courses
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Major Requirements
Thirty-six credits which must include:
- Core: COM-111; one of the following: COM-101, 102 or 110.
- Context: Twenty credits in COM, 16 of which must be upper-level.
- Capstone: COM-350, 450, and an internship (385) or applied learning experience approved by the department.
Notes: In addition to the requirements listed above, an ethics course in the Philosophy Department is strongly encouraged. No more than 4 credits of COM-385 may be counted toward the COM major.
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Departmental Honors
Completion of all COM major requirements, 3.5 GPA in the major, and completion of a senior thesis of honors caliber (COM-500).
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Minor Requirements
Twenty-four credits which must include:
- COM-111, 450, and one of the following: COM-101, 102 or 110.
- Eight additional upper level credits.
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Four credits from COM, with the exception of practicum or independent study courses, count towards the Distributive Requirements in the Humanities.
Courses
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COM101.Human Communication4 creditsBeginning study of the nature, problems and theories of human communication. Examines issues of meaning, relationship and community within interpersonal, group and media contexts. Surveys rhetorical, pragmatic and interpretive perspectives on the communication process.
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COM102.Group and Team Communication4 creditsThis class helps students understand, apply, and embody principles of effective group and team communication. In a semester-long team project, students apply the principles of effective team communication to both teams observed in organizations and to their own teams through ethnographic research methods.
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COM110.Media Systems and Influence4 creditsThis course serves as an introduction to the study of the major media industries and effects of contemporary mass communication. Emphasis will be on analyzing the way media technologies affect news, advertising, and entertainment functions of media and the way media professionals and organizations use media to influence perception, behavior, and social identity.
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COM111.Fundamentals of Speech Communication4 creditsElements of oral communication in public contexts. Emphasis on diagnosing rhetorical situations, inventing and delivering informative and persuasive presentations, and facilitating public discussion.
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COM123.Performing Advocacy4 creditsExplores the relationships among identity, power and culture. Students learn how to become advocates through the use of Everyday Life Performance and other performance techniques, engaging in perspective taking and service learning with marginalized groups.
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COM192.Introduction to Public Relations2 creditsIntroduction to the principles of public relations and strategic corporate communication practices. Topics include message design, campaign planning, audience analysis, issue management, and case studies of ethical issues.
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COM201.Relational Communication4 creditsExamination of messages, roles, rules and strategies through which interpersonal relationships are initiated, maintained and changed. Emphasis on analysis of interaction and communication processes in a variety of interpersonal contexts.
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COM211.Political Communication4 creditsExplores the influence of political messages and discourse in civic life. Topics include the relationship of free speech and a free press to democracy, historical and contemporary foundations for understanding the social influence of political messages the political uses and effects of traditional and new media, and contemporary challenges to free speech, deliberative public discourse, and participatory democracy.
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COM212.Sports Communication4 creditsExplores the function of sports communication and its impact on players, organizations, fans and professionals. Issues examined include decision making, crisis communication, gender dynamics, community relations and social media presence.
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COM220.Intercultural Communication4 creditsStudy of interdependent relationship between communication and culture. Examines conceptual and experiential problems of communication across cultural boundaries. Focuses on perceiving, interpreting, and evaluating different cultural values, world views and patterns of communication. Course fee.
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COM221.Intimacy and Technology4 creditsExplore the way communication technologies impact and influence our relational lives. Focus on both old and new media, examining the way specific communication channels shape our romantic, platonic, familial and professional relationships. Through readings, discussion, film and scrutiny of their own technology usage, students will investigate the relationship between intimacy and technology.
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COM223.Humor, Culture and Communication4 creditsExplores humor as an important means of communicating cultural messages by considering issues such as power, identity and marginality. Focusing on a variety of media - from stand-up comedy performance to literary parody, this course examines humor as social critique and potentially subversive rhetoric. Through analysis and performance of stand-up comedy, students gain an understanding of the relationship between humor and power, and the importance of this relationship in rhetorical and cultural contexts. Course fee.
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COM226.Voice and Diction4 CreditsIntroduces the theory and practice in the basic techniques of developing a clear and expressive speaking voice.
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COM227.Argument and Public Advocacy4 creditsInvestigates the nature and practice of argument in a democratic society. Focuses on speeches, debates, conversations, and other contexts of public argument. Emphasis on the analysis of evidence, reasoning, assumptions, and values in current policy debates.
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COM243.Health Communication4 creditsExamines communication practices in health care relationships and organizations. Topics include effective provider-patient interaction, communication relationships in health organizations, rhetorical and media strategies for managing health issues, and the uses of new communication technologies to promote health and manage health information.
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COM253.Environmental Communication4 creditsExamines issues and controversies in conservation, ecology and environmentalism from a communication perspective. Emphasizes critical analysis of the role of mass media and public discourse in the definition, deliberation and resolution of environmental issues.
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COM254.Clinical Communication2 CreditsExplores how clinicians and patients communicate with one another in a clinical setting. Examines current theoretical models for clinical communication. Students will gain an academic understanding of communication in clinical settings along with hands-on experience working with simulated patient/provider contexts.
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COM320.Gender and Communication4 creditsPrerequisite: Four credits COM and Sophomore Standing, or PermissionExplores the rhetorical construction of gendered identities, focusing on cultural messages about femininity and masculinity in social, political, institutional and relational contexts. Through readings, discussions, films and presentations, the course examines the way gendered identities are created, contested and performed, emphasizing the relevance of this process to our daily lives.
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COM327.Propaganda and Persuasion4 creditsExamines the mediated and rhetorical processes of social influence and the elements of propaganda. Emphasis on analysis of institutional persuasive strategies in film, television, print and oral media.
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COM350.Seminar in Communication Inquiry4 creditsPrerequisite: Twelve credits in COM, including COM-101 or Permission; Junior StandingExamination of systematic methodological approaches to the formal analysis of communication processes, messages and problems. Focus on evaluation of research literature and creation of a research proposal. Requires Junior standing.
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COM353.Risk and Crisis Communication4 creditsPrerequisite: COM-243 or 253 or PermissionThis course examines the communication practices and resources through which individuals, groups, agencies, media organizations, and communities recognize and respond to natural and socially created risks and crises. Topics include the nature and types of risks and crises, the functional requirements for effective risk and crisis communication, the organizational and procedural elements of risk and crisis communication systems, and the communication skills needed to design and disseminate the verbal, visual, and multi-media messages to reduce risks and manage crises.
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COM385.Communication Internship2-4 creditsPrerequisite: Twelve credits in COM and Junior Standing or PermissionApplication of communication concepts and skills through participation in communities, institutions, agencies, schools and businesses. Supervision by faculty and sponsoring organizations. Includes interpretive journal and substantive analytic paper.
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COM450.Communication Theory4 creditsPrerequisite: COM Major or Minor; Senior Standing and COM-385 or PermissionSynthesis, integration and elaboration of theoretical perspectives on communication issues, problems and practices developed through previous coursework, projects and internships. Coursework includes completion of individual senior project and compilation of portfolio.
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COM500.Senior Thesis2-4 creditsDevelopment and completion of original research. May be interpretive, critical, empirical, or theoretical. Required for departmental honors. Requires senior standing and permission.
