CAPS-COMM 1120 Protect Yourself: Personal Digital Security

We all use computers, smartphones, & the internet, but most of us don't know much about securing our devices, our personal data, or even our identity. There's a lot to worry about-viruses, phishing, surveillance, tracking, & much more-but what should really concern you? How can you tell if you or your devices are vulnerable? How can you safeguard yourself? This course, meant for the average technology user, will answer these questions and many more. Topics covered include passwords, spyware, messaging & email, encryption, testing for vulnerabilities, HTTPS, and backup.

Credit 1 unit.

CAPS-COMM 1996 Communications Elective - 100 Level

Credit 0 units.

CAPS-COMM 2000 Foundations of Communications

Foundations of Communication is designed to help students be more effective communicators by examining the principles and contexts of human communication. It introduces fundamental elements (including self-awareness, perception, listening and responding, and verbal and nonverbal messages) and models of communication, basic communication theory, interpersonal communication, small group communication, and public speaking, with an emphasis on a practical application at each level. Students will learn the skills and techniques essential to effective communication and will be expected to demonstrate those in each communication context throughout the semester.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring

CAPS-COMM 2010 Writing for Business Communication

Effective and appropriate written communication skills are a distinct advantage to any employee and an essential requirement for today's manager. In this course we will take a creative and active approach to increasing your knowledge of communications principles and formats as well as your ability to express yourself in a variety of written forms, including memos, proposals, presentations and reports. Communications strategy, and the importance of how the message, medium and an understanding of the audience all relate to affect communications outcomes, will also be reviewed. Prerequisite: One college-level course in English composition.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Summer 4, Summer 3, Summer 2, Summer 1, Summer, Spring, Fall

CAPS-COMM 2016 Search Engine Optimization Strategies

The greatest tool for discovery today is the search bar. More than 80 percent of people search online for products and services, but from a marketing perspective, how do you ensure your website result will be shown to them? It is imperative to consider search engine optimization for any digital campaign you embark upon, and SEO work is best learned by doing. Through this course, we aim to deconstruct and demystify how search engines work and what brands, organizations and individuals can do to improve their own search engine standing. Specifically, we will focus on understanding the algorithms that power search engines; how keyword strategies can be researched and constructed; the elements of strong SEO performance; and how to devise and measure tactics that improve a site's overall ranking.

Credit 1 unit.

Typical periods offered: Summer

CAPS-COMM 2017 Oral Communication

Oral Communication is an introductory course that bridges the most prominent areas in the study of interpersonal and speech communication, including effective one-to-one, small and large group, intercultural, relational, organizational and professional, and public speaking. It will emphasize theoretical/conceptual approaches as well as skill development and the application of oral and speech communication tactics to various communication settings and contexts. Students will explore and apply effective communication strategies that incorporate elements in persuasion, mindful listening, cultural awareness, and group management and leadership.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Summer 4, Summer 3, Summer 2, Summer 1, Summer, Spring, Fall

CAPS-COMM 2050 Introduction to Public Speaking

This course is the online version of U48 2111. Public speaking is an essential skill for success in a student's professional career and in public life. This online version is particularly geared toward virtual public speaking and presentation. The focus of this course is to develop each student's ability as well as the confidence necessary to speak effectively in public. Students will learn to structure an effective and ethical speech, write to be heard and not read, use the voice and imagination successfully, and look and sound professional in a virtual meeting or job interview. Students will present a special occasion speech, an informative speech, and a persuasive speech.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring, Summer

CAPS-COMM 2051 Introduction to Public Speaking

Public Speaking is an essential skill for success in a student's professional career and in public life. This class is geared for students to succeed. The focus of this class is to develop each student's innate ability and the confidence necessary to speak effectively in public. The presentation skills we will work on are: structuring an effective speech, writing to be heard and not read, and using the voice and body successfully. Students will present an introductory speech, an informative speech and a persuasive speech.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

CAPS-COMM 2080 Professional Writing, Speaking, and Presentation

This is a course in organizational communications drawing upon the means of persuasion from classical rhetoric to Powerpoint. We will practice writing, speaking, and listening in the various formats: paper, oral presentations, and internet. We will also conduct comparative analyses of what works best with varying topics, situations, audiences, purposes. Students must have an e-mail account and access to the Internet to take the course. Required for the Liberal Arts and Business Program (LAB) and the Business Communication Certificates.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 2090 Website Design and Development

This course covers Web site development using the three methods that have been used since Web design first began: hand-coding HTML using a text editor; building Web pages using a WYSIWYG editor like Dreamweaver; and using the most modern method, a Content Management System that separates design from content while making it easy for non-technical users to update a site. We will cover design principles, Cascading Style Sheets, server-side vs. client-side technologies, Web browsers, and Web servers. We will conclude the course with a brief overview of the future of Web development: XHTML and XML.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

CAPS-COMM 2100 Introduction to Journalism

This course provides an overview of hands-on journalism skills with an emphasis on clear, accurate, and persuasive writing. Students will learn how to get the story, conduct interviews, report the story, and proofread their work. We will study and practice the art of pursuing a story, digging up and verifying facts, sorting fact from opinion, and uncovering information using principles of fairness, truth, and accuracy. As the format for news distribution varies and changes regularly, the course prepares students to use all platforms, including newspaper, television, radio, Facebook, Twitter, social media, citizen journalism, blogs, and all other formats.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 2210 Marketing Communications

An introduction to advertising, public relations, and promotions and how they influence communications, journalism, and mass media. Students explore each of the three sisters of marketing and how they are used to build integrated marketing programs. Specific tools, including special events, direct mail, sponsorship, and press materials, will be discussed. In addition, the class will examine current and memorable marketing campaigns, view new technologies, and learn techniques and trends from professionals in the marketing field.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Summer

CAPS-COMM 2230 Integrated Strategic Communications

Strategic communication programs enable organizations to accomplish business goals by building and maintaining trusted relationships with their most important communities. A strategic communication plan includes clear and measurable objectives, is based on positioning that clearly differentiates the organization, and takes advantage of appropriate and effective tactics. This course provides an overview of all aspects of strategic communication and how they relate to each other in corporate, agency and not-for-profit environments. It covers the critical concepts needed to manage diverse communication disciplines - including marketing, branding, advertising, public relations, promotions, graphic design, traditional and new media. This course provides the foundation in theory and practice required by today's business executives and professional communicators to create and manage successful programs, using all available strategic communication techniques.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring, Summer

CAPS-COMM 2250 Fundamentals of Public Affairs: Messaging Strategies, Public Policy and Advocacy

This course examines the relationships between the public and influential institutions, especially different levels of government and media communication networks. Students also study how changes in communications and media, including the Internet, print, and social media, have influenced the field of public affairs. Related course topics include lobbying, publishing, and entertainment, their interface with political, economic, and social issues, and their influence on the work of public affairs professionals. We also will analyze how changes in the media impact international communication, and how these influence our understanding of other cultures, regions, and countries.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 2260 Black Voices and Crusading Journalists: Frederick Douglass to Oprah

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 2996 Communications Elective - 200 Level

Credit 0 units.

CAPS-COMM 3008 Website Design: Principles and Practice

The Web is its own design medium, and it requires a specific set of skills. This hands-on course teaches students the concepts, issues, and skills needed to design attractive, usable, and accessible websites that work across a wide range of devices. Bringing together graphic design and code, topics will include design principles, color, typography, layout, and multimedia. Graphic design tools will be introduced and explained. Prerequisite: U48 218 or permission of the instructor.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3010 Market Research and Communications Strategies

This course provides an overview of market research techniques with an emphasis on planning for communications campaigns. The course provides a hands-on look at several popular market research techniques used in supporting communications, such as focus groups and phone surveys. No previous knowledge of statistics is necessary. Recent case studies are used to illustrate how research results have influenced communications campaigns.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring

CAPS-COMM 3020 Digital Paid Media

In this course, students will receive an introduction to digital paid media. Students will learn about the various ad networks and platforms that help reach consumers online. Digital paid media includes search engine marketing, social media ads, display, mobile, and video ads. This course delves into best-practice approaches to planning and measuring digital paid media campaigns, as well as how to leverage complex algorithms.

Credit 1 unit.

CAPS-COMM 3031 Organizational Communication

Organizational Communication provides an overview of communication dynamics within and between organizations. Students will analyze these processes using various analytical frameworks, concepts, theories, and methods aimed at both examining and improving organizational communication strategies. Emphasis will be given to contemporary issues and challenges facing communication professionals and organizations at large. This course's guiding principle is to teach students how to lead their organizations in gaining a competitive advantage in a strategic communications context.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3050 Social Media for Public Relations

This class introduces students to the various ways social media may be used in the practice of public relations and marketing. We use the traditional steps of research, strategy, and measurement and apply them to online campaigns. We learn about various emerging social media technologies--including blogs, wikis, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn--and how they have changed the world of PR and marketing.

Credit 1 unit.

Typical periods offered: Summer

CAPS-COMM 3060 Making the Cut: Editing Digital Video

This course introduces students to video editing: reducing hours of recorded video to compelling moments and creatively weaving together the best parts to attract and hold viewers. Students will use supplied video material to learn how to guide the viewer's attention, build suspense, and inform the audience. We will also learn tricks to fix common mistakes made in the field and explore higher-level production methods (e.g., color correction, picture-in-a-picture technique) to achieve a professional look. By the end of the course, students will be proficient in making simple edits to create the equivalent of a basic short narrated video package or promotional video. Students will also learn to improve their videography skills by seeing what works in the editing suite.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3080 Sports Reporting and Writing

No journalist works longer or more unappealing hours than a sportswriter, and no one faces tougher deadlines. None is more dedicated to round-the-clock coverage. We'll learn the skill for channeling a love of sports into twitter feeds, blog posts, game stories, columns, hot takes and podcasts even when the home team stinks, the owner is broke, the stadium is falling apart, the point guard has flunked out and the starting goalie gets arrested on a DUI.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3110 Advanced Web Site Design and Development

This course focuses on one of the most important parts of Web development: Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), which allow developers to set the formatting and positioning of content in webpages. We will cover topics such as CSS selectors, media-specific styles, animation, navigation, layouts with Flexbox and Grid, lightboxes, and we'll take an in-depth look Responsive Web Design via Bootstrap and other frameworks. Prerequisites: U48 218 Web Site Design and Development or instructor permission.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring

CAPS-COMM 3330 Technology for Managers: Tools and Strategies

This course is designed for managers involved in making business decisions involving technology. Students are expected to know how to use a computer, but this course is not a hands-on tutorial. Instead, we will discuss a range of issues focusing around modern technologies used by businesses around the world. Topics include networking, communications, open source software, content management systems, computer based training, Web services, Web site usability, wireless, productivity tools, and more.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3440 Public Relations Principles and Practices

This course provides an overview of public relations and its social media and online components. We will consider theoretical and practical applications of communications with various publics: media, employees, consumers, the community, and shareholders.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Summer 4, Summer 3, Summer 2, Summer 1, Summer, Spring, Fall

CAPS-COMM 3452 Effective Editing

Online version of the course U49 345. Today's communicators don't just write, they also must edit their work for posting on a website or publishing in print. Learn about editing, including the basics of professional-grade grammar, punctuation and style usage. Most editing today involves not just copyediting, however. Communicators must know how to spot sexist and racist language, poor organization and imprecise sentences. This class will help you edit others' work, and, most importantly, your own.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3630 Crisis Communications

Both profit and nonprofit organizations are increasingly embroiled in controversies and crises. Consequently, demands are growing for public relations practitioners to help restore an organization's good name and reputation, along with its financial stability. In learning to construct, implement and evaluate a crisis communication plan, students will research and analyze an organizational crisis, identify the communication demands of various audiences affected by a crisis, and develop strategies and communication tools for managing a crisis.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring

CAPS-COMM 3650 Communications Technology and New Media

This course explores concepts, production, design, publications, strategies and practical applications of interactive media. The course focuses on emerging topics and technologies to help students develop strategies for addressing and resolving both basic and complex issues associated with interactive media. Case studies will be introduced to examine a range of interactive media topics including photography, blogging, videography, ethics and social media marketing.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall

CAPS-COMM 3680 The Business of Communications

This course presents the business side of journalism and media organizations, from publication and creation of content to day-to-day operations. Students will study business practices and procedures of all types of media organizations, with emphasis on sales and marketing, product distribution, production, and audience identification and engagement. We also will learn to develop publications and products which speak to readers and viewers.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall

CAPS-COMM 3700 Politics of Encryption: Snowden, Surveillance, and the Fourth Amendment

In 2013 Edward Snowden disclosed the existence and extent of world-wide government surveillance, leading to important debates about encryption, surveillance, and control. This course uses the implications of Snowden's revelations as a takeoff point to explore the politics of encryption. Topics include encryption and secure communications, the use of encryption by terrorists and criminals, United States and international laws concerning encryption, and the clash between businesses like Apple and U.S. intelligence agencies.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 3710 Digital Communications Analytics

For the last quarter century, organizations, companies and brands have entered into an increasingly evolving world of digital communications, offering unbridled opportunities to reach and engage their key stakeholder audiences. This course delves deep into how to uncover and utilize data analytics and their related insights to better understand, plan and optimize communications within digital channels and platforms. It goes into detail on how the digital ecosystem has evolved and is still evolving due to technological advances, regulatory actions, and other cultural impacts. It explores how to use digital data to better understand audiences and their behavior as well as for specific marketing and communications objectives, such as launching a new product and planning for a crisis.

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall

CAPS-COMM 3999 Independent Study in Communications

Instructor and CAPS approval required.

Credit 1-4 units.

Typical periods offered: Summer 4, Summer 3, Summer 2, Summer 1, Summer, Spring, Fall

CAPS-COMM 4050 Topics in Public Relations

An advanced-level examination of public relations functions through studies in special subjects related to the field. A major research paper or project is required. For information about current offerings, consult the Course Schedule.

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 4161 Communications Ethics and the Law

In this course, we will analyze principles that influence ethical judgment in the newsroom, the public relations firm, and the broader communications business. We will look at historical foundations of ethical thought in communications, study laws governing mass communications, and examine tools and strategies for ethical judgment in the field. We will also consider how one's personal ethical framework influences judgment, and we will use case studies to analyze ethical questions associated with social responsibility, commercial speech vs. political speech, and censorship.

Credit 3 units. UColl: ML

Typical periods offered: Spring

CAPS-COMM 4600 Topics in Communications and Journalism

Credit 3 units.

CAPS-COMM 4994 Internship in Public Relations and Advertising

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Fall, Spring, Summer

CAPS-COMM 4999 Independent Study

Credit 3 units.

Typical periods offered: Spring