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Communication Studies
Course Catalog: Communication Studies
The communication studies program at Rocky Mountain College blends our strong liberal arts education with skills every student needs to succeed in today's world. As part of the workforce, the student majoring in communication studies will already possess the skills employers want from potential employees -- oral and written communication skills. Study after study has shown that these consistently top the lists of skills employers want from their employees. As part of society, the student majoring in communication studies will learn how to be a responsible citizen of his or her community. We examine the ethical aspects of communication in our courses, reminding students that they have the responsibility to be honest, engaged citizens, in addition to succeeding in whatever career path they may choose.
Communication studies is a strong stand-alone major and is also common as a double-major or minor. The skills learned when studying communication are some of the most sought after by employers. Careers available to a communication studies major include diverse professions such as public relations, event planning, graduate school, teaching, sales, or law.
Learning Outcomes
Students who graduate with a major in communication studies will be able to:
- Discuss and apply communication theories;
- Articulate important features of key communication theories;
- Demonstrate the ability to support arguments and reason soundly;
- Conduct original research and present cogent results.
Major in Communication Studies
A minimum of 39 semester hours is required, including:
COM 102: Public Speaking
COM 105: Introduction to Communication Studies
COM 201: Interpersonal Communication
COM 490: Seminar in Communication
Choose any three 200-level COM electives, for a total of 9 credit hours (excluding COM 201).
Choose any four 300-level COM electives, for a total of 12 credit hours.
Choose any two 400-level COM electives, for a total of 6 credit hours (excluding COM 450 and COM 490).
Minor in Communication Studies
A minimum of 24 semester hours is required, including:
COM 102: Public Speaking
COM 105: Introduction to Communication Studies
COM 201: Interpersonal Communication
Choose any two 200-level COM electives, for a total of 6 credit hours (excluding COM 201).
Choose any three COM electives at the 300 or 400 level, for a total of 9 credit hours (excluding COM 450 and COM 490).
COM 102 - Public Speaking
Semester: Fall and Spring
Semester hours: 3
This course examines key aspects of writing and delivering public speeches. Focal topics include audience analysis, speech organization, developing supporting materials, argumentation, and delivery. By the end of the course, students will have written and delivered informative, persuasive, and ceremonial speeches.
COM 105 - Introduction to Communication Studies
Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 3
This course is a comprehensive examination of the field and practice of Communication Studies. It includes models of communication (linear, interactive, transactional), careers in communication, communication processes and skills (perception, verbal, nonverbal, listening, climates, culture), and communication contexts (self, relationships, groups, teams, organizations, public communication, mass communication, the digital world).
COM 201 - Interpersonal Communication
Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 3
This course examines how intimate, personal, and professional relationships are created and maintained. Students develop an increased awareness of and sensitivity to communication that facilitates interpersonal relationships, as well as communication that creates obstacles to building relationships. Topics discussed include perception, self-concept, listening, and conflict.
COM 250 - Small Group Communication
Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3
This course explores how and why people come together in groups, how groups develop norms for acceptable behavior, and how individuals can help groups work efficiently and effectively. Because employers seek competent communicators, this course is designed to provide students an opportunity to develop communication skills that can be applied in both personal and professional contexts.
COM 252 - Communication and Gender
Semester: Fall; Even years
Semester hours: 3
This course examines the relationship between gender and communication. We will combine readings, discussions, lectures, and research to define “gender” and to develop an understanding of how gender connects with personal identity, experiences, and our position in society.
COM 272 - Communication in Politics
Semester: Spring; Even years
Semester hours: 3
This course will explore the role of communication in the political sphere. The course will explain how political messages are constructed, strategized, and communicated to frame public controversy. The course will examine how political debates are communicated in mass media, from grassroots organizations, social media, and public advocacy groups.
COM 275 - Workplace Communication
Semester: Spring; Odd years
Semester hours: 3
This course will explore communication skills that are required in business processes and professional settings. Students will be exposed to theoretical foundations of interpersonal communication, group communication, nonverbal communication, written communication, presentation and interviewing skills in the context of a professional setting. Theory will be applied in many professional contexts including superior/subordinate communication, technical communication, workplace diversity and customer communication.
COM 299 - Directed Reading
Semester: Offered at discretion of department
Semester hours: 1-3
This course allows a student to devise and pursue independent study in an area agreed upon in consultation with, and supervised by, a faculty member. Students should be either a major or minor and have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or greater.
COM 301 - Advanced Interpersonal Communication
Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3
This class will explore in more depth foundational concepts introduced in COM 201 Interpersonal Communication. Focus will be on the evolution of close personal relationships—from initiation, to establishing and maintaining the relationship, to conflict, and dissolution—from a communication perspective but psychological theories will also be discussed.
Prerequisite: COM 201
COM 306 - Organizational Communication
Semester: Fall
Semester hours: 3
This course examines how communication occurs in large cooperative networks, especially in professional work settings. It focuses on the roles leadership, management, and conflict resolution play in larger organizations. By the end of the course, students will understand how the values and cultures of any organization emerge through communication.
Prerequisite: COM 102 or permission of instructor
COM 308 - Intercultural Communication
Semester: Fall; Odd years
Semester hours: 3
As global communication and transnational movement facilitate increased cross-cultural contact, there is a need to develop an understanding of intercultural communication. To this end, this course examines the ways in which culture influences communication and communication influences culture. Verbal and nonverbal communication will be analyzed as it conveys messages about identity, beliefs, and values. Conflict is discussed as a product of cultural orientations and interpretations. By the end of this course, students will understand communication as a vital aspect of intercultural contact.
Prerequisite: COM 102 or permission of instructor
COM 319 - Environmental Communication
Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3
This course investigates how symbols are used to construct and reflect nature and its relationship with humans. It examines intersections between the environment and humanity through a variety of communicative lenses, including theories of social-symbolic discourse, mass media, rhetoric, and public advocacy.
Prerequisite: COM 102 or permission of instructor
COM 325 - Theories of Persuasion
Semester: Spring; Odd years
Semester hours: 3
This course will examine multiple theories of persuasion through examination of artifacts in popular culture including advertising, campaigns, media, the Internet, and organizations. The course will explore how persuasive messages are constructed and delivered to the general public. Major topics in this course will include persuasion theory, argumentation, ethics, and critical approaches of persuasion theory.
COM 355 - Mass Media
Semester: Fall; Even years
Semester hours: 3
This course explores the social and cultural roles of media – from local newspapers to the global reach of the Internet. By the end of this course, students will be able to understand and articulate the social, cultural, and economic power of media in order to better manage its influence in their lives.
Prerequisite: COM 102 or permission of instructor
COM 418 - Rhetorical Theory and Criticism
Semester: Fall; Odd years
Semester hours: 3
This course builds on the historical foundations of rhetoric, focusing on contemporary rhetorical theories. Students will examine rhetorical artifacts through a variety of theoretical lenses, including narrative, metaphoric, and feminist theories, in order to better understand and explain social, political, and cultural conditions.
Prerequisite: COM 102, one 300-level COM course
COM 423 - Communication, Culture, and Social Identities
Semester: Fall; Even years
Semester hours: 3
This course will explore (a) how culture and communication are intertwined and (b) how key social identities (race, class, and gender) are made and remade through cultural communication practices. Emphasis will be placed on how cultural backgrounds and social identities affect how we perceive and interpret the world.
Prerequisite: any 200-level COM course
COM 450 - Internship
Semester: Offered at discretion of department
Semester hours: 1-12
This course is a guided work experience in an established institution such as a non-profit or for-profit organization or a governmental institution. The student must arrange the internship in agreement with the instructor and with the Office of Career Services, and the internship must be a learning experience that is connected with the communication studies degree. A contract is required.
Prerequisite: junior or senior standing
COM 452 - Communication Studies in Practice
Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3
Students will participate in an educational or professional platform and engage communication theory in practice, concept, and in written reflection. Students will engage theory in communication of self, communication within professional contexts, and communication about the experience.
COM 490 - Seminar in Communication
Semester: Spring
Semester hours: 3
This course is a senior-level capstone, variable topic seminar for communication studies majors. Past topics have included gender, international political communication, and freedom of speech. Whatever the topic, students will engage in a substantial amount of academic reading and writing that reflects theoretical expertise, research acumen, and heightened critical-thinking skills.
Prerequisite: senior standing, two 300-level COM courses
COM 499 - Directed Reading
Semester: Offered at discretion of department
Semester hours: 1-3
This course allows a student to devise and pursue independent study in an area agreed upon in consultation with, and supervised by, a faculty member. Students should be either a major or minor and have a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or greater.
Prerequisite: junior or senior standing
- Shelby Jo Long-Hammond, Professor
- Erin Reser, Professor
- Jolane Flanigan, Professor
- Ashlynn Reynolds-Dyk, Assistant Professor