Communication Studies (CMM)

CMM500. Strategic Communication. 3 Credits.

Introduction to professional communication, communication for organizational strategy, and communication for success in the workplace, with emphasis on communication between organizations and stakeholders. Case studies will illuminate how professional communication functions in the modern organization. (required course; no pre-requisites)

CMM501. Applied Communication Research Methods. 3 Credits.

Introduces students to applied research methods in the Communication discipline. Students are exposed to research paradigms and a range of approaches to quantitative and qualitative research, data collection, and analysis used for empirical studies. (required course; no pre-requisites)

CMM502. Organizational Writing and Design Across Media. 3 Credits.

Explores writing, design, and curation conventions for both digital and print distribution, with emphasis on writing persuasively in the digital age (interactivity, text, sound, video, & visualization). (required course; no pre-requisites)

CMM595. Independent Study Communication. 0 Credits.

CMM705. Collaboration, Leadership, and Facilitation. 3 Credits.

Studies the role of communication in effective leadership and management. Topics include power, credibility, motivation, and leader traits, styles, and challenges, as well as current models of leadership. (no pre-requisites)

CMM706. Conflict, Mediation, and Negotiation. 3 Credits.

Interdisciplinary approaches to interpersonal, intergroup, organizational, and international conflict management, emphasizing the interrelationships between theory and practice. Topics include cooperation/competition, justice/injustice, and cultural dynamics. Students will design multi-model and multidisciplinary interventions for managing conflict. (no pre-requisites)

CMM709. Narrative, Identity, and Community. 3 Credits.

Explores the role of oral narrative in communication, identity, and a range of communities of practice. Students may develop proposals for research or community projects, craft narratives, conduct interviews, and/or analyze archives of oral narratives. (no pre-requisites)

CMM712. Talent Development. 3 Credits.

Study of talent development as a modern field, with a focus on communication interventions in a various contexts. Provides students with the opportunity to use instructional systems design (ISD) and human performance improvement (HPI) interventions in organizational settings. Pre-requisite: CMM502 Writing and Design Across Media.

CMM716. Talk Technology and Society. 3 Credits.

Study of individuals’ incorporation of technology into everyday communication and its effect on community. Students will produce proposals for research or community projects, conduct observations of technology use, and/or develop an educational workshop. (no pre-requisites)

CMM720. Environmental Communication, Organizations, and Sustainability. 3 Credits.

Advanced critical and practical perspectives in environmental communication, with a focus on the complex relationship between humans, organizations, and the environment. Examines how communication shapes the social and cultural context(s) structuring our relationship to the natural world. (no pre-requisites)

CMM724. Nonprofit Leadership and Communication. 3 Credits.

Examines nonprofit leadership and stakeholder engagement, including social impact, financial obligations, donor relationships, volunteer and member recruitment and engagement. Attention to the stakeholder environment of nonprofits and the role of interorganizational communication for successful leadership. (no pre-requisites)

CMM726. Organizational Reputation. 3 Credits.

Uses stakeholder theory to consider the organizational and interorganizational dimensions of organizational reputation in corporate, nonprofit, and government sectors. Topics may include trust, crisis communication, public affairs, sustainability, image and brand, leadership, ethics, and social media. (no pre-requisites)

CMM730. Global Communication. 3 Credits.

Studies intercultural communication as a pathway to globalization, including global coordination, collaboration, and leadership. Attention to the role of media to shape communications across culture. Students will develop their capacity to communicate effectively across cultural boundaries. (no pre-requisites)

CMM760. Applied Research Project in Strategic Communication. 3 Credits.

One of two options for the capstone experience. Students will craft research papers and presentations in which they identify a problem and use communication theory and research to propose solutions. Students will take a comprehensive exam in which they synthesize program learning. (Option 1 of required capstone; Pre-requisites: CMM501 Applied Research Methods and completion of 27 credits in the MA in Strategic Communication program )

CMM780. Thesis in Strategic Communication. 3 Credits.

One of two options for the capstone experience. Students will design, execute, and orally summarize a substantial, meaningful written research project that meets all program learning outcomes. (Option 2 of required capstone; Pre-requisites: CMM501 Applied Research Methods and completion of 27 credits in the MA in Strategic Communication program) .

CMM791. Internship in Strategic Communication. 3 Credits.

Students work as Strategic Communication interns, under a site supervisor and often on a team, at an organization, company, or institution to advance its mission. Interns will analyze the impact of contemporary communication factors on the organization and will design, implement, and assess projects and/or solutions for communication problems.