Course Descriptions
MA in Professional Communication and Leadership
Core Courses
ENGL 7100 Professional Communication Strategies
Communication strategies employed by leaders in business, industry, education, and health professions;
practice in writing effective memos, letters, and reports; oral communication skills required for influencing
group decisions, conducting interviews, and making presentations.
ENGL 5740 Technical Editing
This course presents techniques for editing technical publications, including all levels of editing, document
management, and collaboration with writers.
COMM 7200 Organizational Communication in Diverse Contexts
Theories and principles of professional discourse applied toward working effectively in ethnically diverse
organizations and in international contexts.
LEAD 7200 Leadership in the Public Arena: From Ideas to Action
Examination of the leadership necessary to move from ideas to action on public issues. Course explores the
unique role of the public sector in society and will compare leadership issues in public sector and private
sector organizations.
Electives
ARTS 6110 Digital Media Management
Creating, preparing, and managing imagery and content for the web, including image manipulation and best
practices for web design. Concepts concerning basic design and development of websites emphasized.
COMM 5100G Communication Theory
A broad survey of contemporary theories and processes of interpersonal, public, and mediated human
communication.
COMM 5200G Nonverbal Communication
An introduction to the theories, processes, and effects of communication in nonverbal codes. Topics may
include kinesics, proxemics, and paralanguage. Critical analysis and contemporary research emphasized.
COMM 7500 Topics in Communication
Selected topics in the field of communication defined by the instructor. May be taught as a colloquium,
directed reading, or seminar.
ENGL 5710G Writing for the Nonprofit Sector
Techniques for writing for local and national nonprofit organizations. Possible service learning component.
ENGL 5730G Rhetoric
History of rhetoric from Aristotle to the present, with emphasis on rhetorical analyses of literature and other
forms of discourse.
ENGL 5750G Publication Design
Techniques for preparing documents from development to publication.
LEAD 7300 Selected Issues in Leadership Studies
Reading, research, practice, and discussion devoted to selected topics in Leadership Studies. Topics may
include leadership in literature, creativity and leadership, communication skills and strategic leadership, and
leadership in team-based organizations. May be repeated for credit as topics change.
PHIL 7100 Professional and Applied Ethics
Training in professional ethics in the workplace. Emphasis on specific ethical issues and dilemmas that arise
in particular professional contexts: ethical theory, including central notions such as social justice; merit;
individual liberty; freedom of communication; privacy; informed consent; confidentiality; utility; the work ethic
;and collective responsibility and logical reasoning, including logical fallacies.
PSYC 5150G Conflict Resolution
Social processes of conflict between parties (individuals or groups) and techniques for collaborative
resolutions, with special emphasis on mediation processes.
PSYC 5300G Leadership and Group Dynamics
Exploration of the social psychological approach to leadership development and the role of the leader in
influencing group dynamics. Emphasis on the application of research findings in social psychology to the
development of leadership skills.
PUBH 6050 Health Communications
This course provides a broad introduction to communication theory, media and health literacy, and cultural
competence.
PUBH 7760 Special Topics in Public Health (if topic is approved)
A study of selected issues in health.