The Department of Communication highlights the processes, effects, and role of communication for creating relationships in human societies.
Courses are organized to facilitate the student learning process.
The core courses introduce students to fundamental concepts, theories, issues, and research methods in communication, and prepare the student for material to be encountered in advanced-level course work. Core courses address underlying principles that govern communication in a variety of settings, introduce students to general definitions, theory, and applications of communication, and expose students to skills in library research, critical thinking, and argumentative writing and speaking. The analysis courses provide students with an understanding of a variety of frameworks, theories and processes by which to practice and analyze communication. Analysis courses emphasize observation, production and consumption as critical processes with which students continually engage. Research courses emphasize systematic inquiry, which fosters a critical understanding of the ways in which communication creates meaning about the world, and engage students in the research process.