No Description Available

(Below are some sample topics courses that have been offered in the past few years)

Corporate Social Responsibility (Aakhus)

Focuses on communication in the business-society relationship and the practice of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The seminar examines the communication, information, and media issues emerging along with global transformations in the relationship among business, society, and government.

Conflict and Collaboration (Aakhus)

This course examines the role of communication in conflict and collaboration. The course focuses on theories and methods for describing, assessing, and diagnosing complex situations to understand the nature of conflict and the possibilities for collaboration among groups, organizations, and communities.

Communication and Civil Society Organizations (Lewis)

This course provides a critical examination of the particular communication problems encountered by the nonprofit organization. Among the topics that are explored: Superior subordinate relationships in volunteer-based organizations, interactions with special stakeholders (e.g., volunteer boards, funding agencies, community groups, under-served client populations), inter-organizational coordination efforts within communities of nonprofits, image and representation of nonprofit organizations, formal and informal structure within non-profits, and planned change implementation in the context of multiple stakeholder relationships.

Communication and Organizational Change (Lewis)

This course will serve as a broad introduction to theories, perspectives, and empirical evidence related to organizational change and how communicative processes are involved in this phenomenon. We will examine traditional topics of organizational development, implementation, and stakeholders’ responses to change programs. Embedded in those discussions will be exploration of issues of vision, leadership, channels used for communication, interaction among stakeholders, strategic messages for implementation, emotional aspects of change, and trust and fairness among others.

Organizational Communication Networks (Doerfel)

This course is an introduction to the theory, concepts, procedures, methods, and analysis of social networks with an emphasis on theory and its applications in organizational communication. The goal of the course is to provide you foundational knowledge about communication networks and their implications for organizations. Students will develop a working knowledge of relevant social networks theories, concepts, and methods used to describe and understand relationships in and among organizations. The objective of this course is to help students understand and articulate network theory, its applications, and implications for audiences including researchers and practicing professionals.

Dynamics of Global Organizations (Gibbs)

This course aims to provide deeper insight into the contested phenomenon of globalization and its implications for organizations and processes of organizing. Topics covered include globalization theory and theoretical perspectives, global management, culture and cross-cultural issues, the role of technology, global and virtual teams, outsourcing, network organizations, knowledge management, identification, and social justice. Students taking this course will gain awareness of the complexities of organizing across national boundaries and the role of communication in this process, as well as assessing the implications of globalization for today’s organizations, including both corporations and non-profits, governmental and private.

Organizational Culture (Gibbs)

This seminar is designed to expose students to the vast arena of literature on organizational culture and cultural approaches to studying organizations. Course readings and discussions cover dominant theoretical frameworks for studying culture in organizations and various approaches taken (interpretive, ethnographic, narrative, and social scientific), as well as current issues facing the field. The goal is for students to be conversant with the breadth of the literature as well as to be able to conduct original cultural or interpretive research in organizational settings.

(Offered every fall semester) This course examines the role of communication in society. Taught with a special topics focus in each semester, the course will examine the important impacts that communication processes, relationships, and messages have in society. Topics of focus include corporate social responsibility; community networks; community health campaigns; political communication; communication in civil society organizations among others.

(Offered every spring semester) This course will serve as a broad introduction to theories, perspectives, and empirical evidence related to organizational communication in a wide range of organizations (e.g., non-profit, for-profit, governmental, communal) and in a variety of contexts (e.g., industry, educational, social services, advocacy). Students will learn about historical, current and future issues; changes and challenges facing organizations; and the communication-relevant aspects of these issues. They will gain practice in applying theoretical perspectives and concepts to actual organizational situations and settings.

(Offered every spring semester) Drawing on existing theory and research, this course examines issues of usage, adoption, and performance of new and established communication technologies in the workplace and other contexts. The course also considers opportunities and challenges that mediated communication presents for both users of these tools and society more generally. The course will expose students to a range of new technologies used by people to coordinate, collaborate, and communication with one another.

(Offered every fall semester) This course is will introduce students to a set of social science research methods that are used in the communication discipline and in workplace and organizational contexts. At the end of this course, students should have a basic understanding of several general research methods used by communication scholars and have gained an appreciation for the ethical considerations in conducting human subjects research. Students will gain knowledge and practice of collection methods such as questionnaires, experiments, structured interviews, focus groups, structured observations, and content analysis.

In this course students study a critical approach to theories and applications of knowledge management/knowledge sharing in corporations, non-profits, and other organizations. Knowledge as a resource and asset are considered. The role of communication specialists, information managers, specialized librarians, and knowledge advocates is examined, and case studies are used to learn how knowledge is created, how it flows, is exchanged and is used for organizational learning. Knowledge tools such as decision support systems, mind mapping software and social networking are studied from an organizational knowledge sharing perspective. An interdisciplinary collection of readings and online resources are used in the course to appeal to communication, media, and library and information science students.

This course examines the nature and impact of the media of mass communication in society. Particular attention is paid to emerging media technology, including the Internet and other digital technologies. Students learn four primary ways new technology influences media and society, including 1) how media professionals and members of the public increasingly create content using new media technologies, 2) the nature of mediated content, 3) the relationships between and among media and relevant publics, and 4) the structure, culture and management of media organizations and systems. Students learn five areas of media technology, including 1) acquisition tools, 2) storage technologies, 3) processing devices, 4) distribution technologies and 5) display, access or presentation tools.

The capstone seminar requires students to integrate theory and practice through the preparation and presentation of an intensive project. Students will design their own original work that includes integrating, synthesizing, and analyzing fundamental communication theories, concepts, and research methods; show proficiency in gathering and using evidence to study and understand communication processes and consequences; demonstrate advanced written and oral presentation skills; apply communication theories and concepts to professional and civic life.

Open only to students appointed as MCIS Fellows Required of MCIS fellows each term of their fellowship placement, includes formal assessment of student by fellowship supervisor.

Open only to students appointed as MCIS Fellows Required of MCIS fellows each term of their fellowship placement, includes formal assessment of student by fellowship supervisor.

Open only to students appointed as MCIS Fellows Required of MCIS fellows each term of their fellowship placement, includes formal assessment of student by fellowship supervisor.

Open only to students appointed as MCIS Teaching Interns Selected students assist faculty member with delivery and student evaluation of an undergraduate course.

Open only to students appointed as MCIS Teaching Interns Selected students assist faculty member with delivery and student evaluation of an undergraduate course.

Recommended for students without significant experience in complex organizations; 150 hours of supervised professional practice in an approved organizational setting, with supervisor assessment and student report required.

Recommended for students without significant experience in complex organizations; 150 hours of supervised professional practice in an approved organizational setting, with supervisor assessment and student report required.

Recommended for students without significant experience in complex organizations; 300 hours of supervised professional practice in an approved organizational setting, with supervisor assessment and student report required.

Focused readings or research conducted independently by student arranged with and approved by faculty sponsor and program director.

These courses involve assisting a faculty member with an ongoing research project(s).

Examination of group and organizational leadership from a communicative perspective, integrating both theory and current practice. Topics of focus include leadership roles relative to organizational culture, diversity, organizational assessment, support technology, organizational change, ethics, and leadership and organizational development. The course includes informational and experiential learning approaches.

This course focuses in how decision-making happens within and between organizations. The course focuses on how communicative action and communication networks shape decision-making processes and outcomes. The course addresses the design of effective decision-making systems. Topics in include individual & group decision-making, problem-solving, conflict management, decision and negotiation support systems, decision-making in virtual and networked organizations, and the role of technology in decision-making.

This course is an advanced masters-level course focused on the diverse array of topics studies in organizational communication research. We will examine the role of communication in issues of socialization and identification; power, conflict and control; decision making and leadership; ethics, performance, and feedback; turnover, burnout, and exit; culture; structure and networks; as well as image and reputation. It is based on theory and research, but will also address application.

No Description Available

The key issues explored in this course concern the management of interorganizational relationships and projection of organizational reputation, image, and identity to external audiences. The course begins with identification and specification of the external environment(s) of organizations. Readings and discussion explore interorganizational relationships, boundary-spanning communication, and management of external stakeholder relationships.

Survey of contemporary concepts, practices and methods of organizational training and development with emphasis on the role of communication. This course focuses of the planning, design and assessment of organizational and human resource development programs and functions.

Applications and policy implications of innovative communication and information-processing technology in business, government, and education; emphasis on political, economic, and legal aspects.

Below are some topics courses that have been offered in the last few years.

Work and Technology (Scott)

This class examines key issues at the intersection of communication technology use and organizational worksites, including privacy/surveillance, collaboration, virtual work, and work-life balance. Special emphasis is given to organizational and technology policies in these areas.

Understanding and Building Social Media -- An Interdisciplinary Approach (Boase)

What makes social media -- such as Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, and MySpace -- work? In this course students will form interdisciplinary team-based projects involving the conceptualization, design, and implementation of a social media application. The goal of this course is to merge social science, information science, and computer science approaches to explore the social and technological forces driving the design and use of social media services. The course will cover various social science concept that underlie social media (e.g., adoption of technologies, the role of social networks in social media, theories of motivation and communication). In addition, the course will provide a high-level overview of information science, computer science and human computer interaction aspects of social media. This coursework is done in teams, so that students will not be required to step outside their program expertise: students from the social sciences are not required to have computer skills; the computer science students need not have a social science background, and the information science students will also be able to bring in their own expertise.

This class is designed to give an overview of the major fields of study in the area of health communication. This includes the areas of health communication campaigns, multicultural health communication, physician-patient communication, and communication among health professionals. The ultimate goal of health communication is to increase health and satisfaction by encouraging healthier behaviors, medical compliance, and more efficient communication of medical information.

(Below are some sample topics courses that have been offered in the past few years)

Health Campaigns (Yanovitzky)

This graduate-level course provides an overview of theory and research concerning the role of communication campaigns in health promotion efforts. Whereas "traditional" approaches to the study and application of public health communication campaigns focus almost exclusively on the design of persuasive messages and the use of effective channels, the approach taken in this course is more firmly grounded in the concept and principles of social marketing. By blending theory and practice, this course affords students an opportunity to experience first-hand the process of designing, implementing,and evaluating public health communication campaigns. Doctor Patient Communication (Robinson)

Interpersonal Health Communication (Greene)

This course focuses specifically on the role of interpersonal and dyadic interaction in health settings. In this course, you will 1) gain an understanding of theories used in the field of health communication; 2) learn to analyze health communication research; 3) better understand programs of research in health communication.

This class focuses on the foundational and contemporary research that makes up the study of interpersonal communication. Its primary goal is to give students an understanding of the origins and the current directions of much of the scholarship on interpersonal communication.

Below are some courses that have been offered in the last few years.

Studying talk in social interaction (Bolden):

This course takes up the question of how we use language to communicate and introduces students to the methods and findings of a particular qualitative way of analyzing social interaction called “Conversation Analysis.” We will examine video- and audio-recorded, naturally occurring conversations to learn how to look beyond the taken for granted answers to questions about how and why we talk and behave as we do. You will learn about the underlying structures of conversation that make it possible for us to accomplish mundane (and not so mundane) activities of everyday life – agreeing and disagreeing, complaining, complimenting, teasing, telling stories, etc. We will also discuss how we construct our identities and relationships through our ordinary talk.

No Description Available

(Below are sample topics courses offered in the last few years.)

Research Methods

Interface Design

Principles of Searching

Information Visualization and Presentation

Multimedia Production

Database Design and Management

Information Policy

(Below are some sample topics courses offered in the last few years.)

Media and Politics (Kern)

Explorations in Play and Creativity (Kubey)

The course examines the last 100 years of social scientific research on creativity in well known creative individuals and in the creative life of "so-called" everyday persons. We will take "life themes" approach to the development of creativity in famous creators (Darwin offers a classic case study, for example). We will also explore the important of creativity and innovation in business and industry. Of relevance also is how our everyday communication, media, and information practices are actually experienced, and how they can be studied using naturalistic or quasi-naturalistic methods that put the researcher in situ.

History of the News Media in 20th Century America (Greenberg)

The course looks at the news media not as freestanding institutions but as a part of American politics and culture in the 20th century. It explores several periods of major change, including the Progressive era, the Depression, the Red Scare, the civil rights movement, and others. During these moments, journalists and news institutions interacted in complex ways with political actors—-while at the same time both expressing and helping to shape public attitudes about key events and policy decisions. The class examines these interactions of political actors and the public with the media in an effort to understand the underlying ideological and cultural currents of American life.

Audience Studies (Bratich)

The audience remains elusive, despite many attempts to understand, study, and measure it. Each week we will explore one of these methods and concepts, examining its contributions and limitations to understanding media and culture. While we will occasionally discuss what audiences/ do/ (in their various guises as readers, viewers, writers, citizens, and activists), the main focus of this course is to examine how the object "audience" has been constructed through a variety of research methods and theoretical frameworks. The course is roughly divided into two parts: The first part will be a survey of canonical debates and problematizations in media studies. After establishing this base of knowledge, we will explore how recent political, economic, and technological transformations have produced new forms of media practices (especially interactivity and collective participation) that once again challenge the notion of a self-identical audience.