Courses | B.A. in Communication

This course develops student understanding of rhetoric as the foundation to all effective communication. Based on a communication model that recognizes the rhetorical situation as a determining factor in all communication decisions, the course provides students with instruction on gathering, organizing, and presenting information appropriate for the audience, context, and purpose of the communication event. Students will understand their role as both communicator/audience and will be asked to deliver/critique oral and written products to demonstrate their development of rhetorical skills. Notes: Approved for Core Curriculum credit. Students should take this course in the second semester of their Freshman or the first semester of their Sophomore year at Biola. Ideally, a student would have had a COMM 100 (public speaking) or other fundamentals of communication course as part of their high school curriculum. If students have already fulfilled the COMM GE requirement, then COMM 200 may be taken as an option for a lower division COMM elective. Grade Mode: A.

This course focuses on developing communication skills in the dyadic setting including emphasis on essential preconditions, conflict management, interpersonal relationships, nonverbal behavior and creative supportive climates. Notes: This course has been renumbered to COMM 235 from COMM 270. Grade Mode: A.

A historical and interdisciplinary analysis of the development of communication studies theories, concepts, and practices from the classical rhetorical tradition to the present. Grade Mode: A.

The dynamics of organizational communication centering in systems, structures and patterns of work/workplace communication; the role of communication in organizational development. Grade Mode: A

Study and analysis of intercultural communication and identity within the context of the United States. Grade Mode: A.

This survey course gives an overview of the origins of journalism (particularly its technological developments), the mandate for press inquiry in the First Amendment, limits on that freedom in the U.S. and developed nations, implications for journalistic inquiry and storytelling in today's digital age, and the role of Christians in truth-telling. The course introduces students to the power of journalism to bridge cultural barriers and how journalism done badly contributes to societal discord and misunderstanding between disparate groups.

This course gives students introductory skills in writing for print and digital media, including narratives aimed at audiences who read, who listen and who watch (in video and social media formats). Students learn reporting as a research method, including interviews, use of public documents and data, and the ways visual media interacts with narrative online. Students learn how writing coaching and pitching of stories is part of writing in any journalistic setting. Cross-cultural understanding is introduced in the course as an influence on interviewing and narrative approaches. Grade Mode: A

Laboratory, lecture and discussion course in advanced principles of identifying news, its sources and the connection of issues with trends. Course emphasizes in-depth (documentary-style) interviewing, variable deadline writing, introductory use of and analysis of online and retrievable databases, and other online resources. Students will resource professional tools for visualizing data, exploring ways the visual can help tell the story of numbers in compelling ways.

Collection and presentation of business data, central tendency and dispersion measures for business analysis, sampling and inference for confidence intervals and hypothesis testing, business forecasting with simple regression. Core Curriculum: Approved for Core - Mathematics.

A survey course in which students explore the nature and process of public relations process as well as methods and professional issues. Public Relations is conceived as the 'overall umbrella' under which come advertising, marketing, promotion, publicity, employee and community relations, and public affairs. In addition to exploring public relations generally, the class addresses both corporate and not-for-profit organizations as well as religious and mainstream operations. Grade Mode: A

Familiarizes students with and challenges them in a variety of forms of public relations writing. Vehicles include internal and external media, print, electronic and audiovisual. Emphases include research, audience analysis, message design, and selection of communication channels. Grade Mode: A

Methodology for Public Relations, Journalism and related media research, including sampling, questionnaire design and introduction to statistics. Students conduct an audience analysis, focus groups and research project. A major goal is to become adept at reading and evaluating research reports. Grade Mode: A

This course provides an overview of the intent, purpose, and influence of public relations beginning with journalism in the late 1700s, extending into the birth of public relations in the 20th century, and the rise of convergent media in the early 21st century. The course examines the crafting and influence of media messages and understanding and serving of audiences over time. The course examines interplay of journalism and public relations over the decades, exploring also the roots of, and ethical principles underlying, best practices. Students will juxtapose their biblical world-view with ethical decision-making. Grade Mode: A

A course providing students an introduction to various channels necessary for companies and organizations to resource in communicating messages for the building of relationships with select audiences. Course content introduces basics in writing for social media for organizations and causes and exposes students to digital strategies and tools as students prepare for careers in various areas of public relations. Students begin the development of their professional online presence as they create the scaffolding for their e-portfolio site. The course serves as a prerequisite to PREL 307. Grade Mode: A

A course introducing students to digital approaches to publishing, including basic principles of design and typography, hands-on practice with leading industry software and the ultimate production of publication material. The adobe suite of products (Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, and Dreamweaver) is used. Provides students with the opportunity to develop the use of electronic procedures to produce and edit publications and Web sites. Students create, format, illustrate and design print material and Web products. The course prepares students to produce such materials as newsletters, flyers, brochures, publication spreads and advertising materials. This is an entry-level course, assuming students have little or no previous experience with the Adobe suite of products. Grade Mode: A

Practical study and experience in successful strategies for making the step from academia to public relations careers. Experiences in developing personal digital branding artifacts and self-presentation will be covered. Grade Mode: A

An introductory course providing students with the media tools and grasp of marketing-related media theory needed for effective digital communications in businesses and organizations. Course content will cover the basic social media platforms and their uses from an organizational standpoint; Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tools and methods; and digital strategy for online advertising, analytics and website user trending. Upon completion, students will be equipped to create digital communication strategies, understanding the platforms and tools available along with methods to measure effectiveness for a variety of audiences. Grade Mode: A

Public relations is inherently tied to ethics. This course provides a review of common public relations ethical theories, decision making models and applied practices. Students will be challenged to examine ethical dilemmas and situations in order to effectively provide ethical council as a public relations professional. Legacy, or tradition, communication PR ethics as well as digital and social media ethics will be included in this course. Grade Mode: A

A core component to public relations is the ability to effectively manage and guide organizations throughout a crisis. This course introduces students to key crisis communication theories and applied practices. Students explores effective processes to prepare for, respond to and repair reputations after a crisis is experiences. Particular attention will be given to strategies and tactics to engage crisis communication in a digital and social media environment throughout the course. Grade Mode: A

Practical study and experience in successful strategies for agencies, organizations, businesses, ministries and mission organizations as they pursue balanced media coverage and respond to requests for interviews, data or other questions aimed at publication or broadcast on various deadlines. Ethics of media relations practice from a Christian world-view are applied to the media marketplace through discussion and project-driven experience. Grade Mode: A

A course analyzing public relations campaigns, solving/preventing problems, utilizing theories and public relations strategy. Throughout the course students write press releases, learn the research process for PR campaigns, address internal and external audiences, devise strategies for guidance of executive leadership, and learn effective guidance of public opinion with integrity. The course incorporates use of pertinent media tools and role-playing presentations among other approaches to effective instruction. Grade Mode: A

This course is an examination of the legal and global influences that shape public relations. Students will learn core legal frameworks that guide the practice of public relations related to mass media and business. Building on this framework, students will examine organizational principles that are critical for public relations practitioners to understand in order to effectively leverage leadership influence, focusing particularly on the purpose and role of other organizational disciplines like marketing, finance and management in relation to the purpose and role of PR. Finally, students will evaluate global perceptions and practice of public relations in light of political, legal and cultural influences around the globe. Grade Mode: A

This course is designed to be taken in the graduating semester for a student. Students will complete their professional portfolio, resourcing work from throughout the program. Additionally, students will take the "Certificate in Principles of Public Relations" exam. Grade Mode: A

A course in broadcast journalism in which students learn the craft of shooting TV news and informational video. They also study the process of video storytelling and how to create a compelling news package. Course includes shooting stand-ups, interview, b-roll and voice-overs, with an emphasis on editing and production.

Applied course in which students produce professional-level work in an area directly related to their major and/or concentration. Work in the practicum is designed as a springboard to competitive application for internships and career-entry in media and media-related ministry.

This course, building on skills learned in JOUR 120, puts students in practical news-writing projects that use in-depth interviewing, use of public documents and data to support assertions. The course uses individual and group approaches to decision-making about news for short deadlines and longer ones, using writing, photos and video to tell stories that bring clarity to complex topics. The course gives preference to cross-cultural storytelling approaches and topics for projects will include stories that shed light on racial diversity issues and those on the cultural margins of society.

Students learn basic techniques of broadcast news-writing, video shooting, editing and production. Classes consist of lecture/discussion and guidance in project work for telling visual and/or audio stories adapted to traditional broadcast settings as well as Web audiences. Grade Mode: A

Workshop course to provide an introduction to the field of audio production for radio, film and television. In this course students will learn and practice techniques for recording, editing, mixing and exhibiting radio, film and television sound. Introduces audio production techniques and equipment operation. Includes terminology, basic script writing, editing, producing commercials, public service announcements and news casting in a studio setting. Introduction to the place of sound (voice, music, sound effects) in radio, television, motion pictures, and the Internet. An overview of technology and its use in audio recording and editing; using analog and digital equipment.

This workshop introduces students to concepts and techniques for capturing video in a live studio environment and challenges the students to think and act as members of a production team. Students will gain the foundational concepts and techniques needed for understanding media creation while also giving them a useful and practical outlet with which to develop and hone their skills. This course will give students a greater understanding of how audio, camera work, lighting, editing, set design, and directing all contribute to video production within a studio based production environment.

Students will learn the essentials in shooting, editing and streaming compelling video; preparing them for the other video courses in the broadcast curriculum. Also, students will learn about multi-media reporting and a convergent newsroom, shooting DV and editing on Final Cut Pro, all necessary skills to become a competitive broadcast journalist.

Explores reporting and documentation through the visual medium of still images. Students photograph assignments under working press and commercial-type conditions and advance their skills using the DSLR camera.

A course introducing students to digital approaches to design principles and techniques for visually communicating ideas. Fundamental principles of design and elements of line, form, color, texture, value, shape will be resourced in hands-on practice. Creating user-focused experiences on the web and in apps will be integral to the student design development. These digital designers will resource electronic procedures and tools to produce and edit websites and elements for online distribution, including landing pages, banners and ads, and email marketing collateral. They may work with Wordpress and in languages such as HTML5, CSS3 JavaScript. Students will understand and consider accessibility as well as functionality of design and systems. Materials they create, format, illustrate and design will be used for creative concept presentation to clients as well. This is an entry-level course, assuming students have little previous experience with coding, UX/UI, or tools for design which may include the Adobe Suite products.

Practical study and experience in successful strategies for covering youth, varsity and professional sports for deadline news media (print, broadcast and Web). The course will emphasize techniques for interviewing, reporting and writing about sports for print and online media, but will include elements applicable to video and audio components of a convergent approach to sports journalism. Ethics of sports journalism practice from a Christian world-view are applied to the media marketplace through discussion and project-driven experience.

Building on the Introduction to Digital Skills for Media course, this class has students further develop their use of contemporary media tools, building their expertise as media professionals and their understanding of how media theory informs what they do. Course content may cover web and app development, user experience (UI/UX), basic social media platforms and their uses of such from a media organization perspective, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tools and methods as well as comprehensive digital strategy, and analytics. Further multimedia skills will be developed in the use of contemporary tools like drones, virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR).

Students will be part of a team that will produce a streaming weekly webcast featuring news of the Biola campus, surrounding community and Los Angeles. Practical skills of producing a TV newscast, the language of TV, writing a reader, a VO, a VO-SOT, a news package, incorporating sound bites, reporter stand ups, and the timing and producing a newscast will be taught. A deeper understanding of multi-media reporting and a convergent newsroom, shooting DV and editing on Final Cut Pro will also be gained.

Exploration of aesthetics and design with emphasis on copy editing and marking skills necessary for quality presentation of material both in printed and digital journalistic venues. Practice of copy editing with attention to style, grammar, punctuation, writing headlines, cutlines, selection of type, use of color and art as all relate to print or digital presentation. Because of this, SEO and analytics are further explored from the management position.

Principles of writing for targeted audiences that win readers and editors at niche and mainstream magazines. Students move articles from inception to querying through the revision processes of medium and long-form features and in-depth article writing. Course includes elements of business self-management, budgeting and copyright guidelines.

Students learn principles and practical application of television directing and the aspects of production that determine aesthetic quality. Techniques and concepts of video field reporting, production and video editing are introduced. Lecture, discussion, and projects give particular emphasis to developing critical and analytic abilities, and realizing practical applications of media ethics and aesthetics. Each student creates a web show utilizing green-screen production values. The finished show is uploaded to a student’s YouTube channel where they also learn analytics and techniques in creating an audience reaction and web hits.

A course focusing on broadcast and/or print or Web news from an international perspective. Students follow news stories with international significance, comparing story content, coverage and decision-making with the national media in the United States. Guest speakers include experts from the international news media.

Study of theoretical approaches to the First Amendment as well as specific areas of concern to professional journalists such as defamation, privacy, fair trial, obscenity, copyright, shield laws, sunshine laws, etc. Exploration of applied professional ethics and contemporary professional issues of ethics for journalists. Note(s): This course was renumbered from JOUR 433.

A research and discussion course exploring theories of visual knowledge, the making of meaning through visual languages, and the ways journalists negotiate visual symbols and paradigms within disparate communities. The course analyzes digital SLR imaging, video imaging, and the uses of complementary elements alongside visuals including, but not limited to, text, audio and graphics. Cross-cultural elements of visual meaning are an integral part of the course content.

A capstone course for journalism majors organized in a seminar style in which students review the philosophies of formative thinkers behind American journalism (print, broadcast and Internet), and examine the philosophy of a journalist whom they'll shadow. The course culminates in each student's examination of his or her own philosophy of journalism and sense of calling as a believer practicing journalism or public relations or as an influence in the marketplace of public opinion.

Students in this mastery-level course will explore in-depth a topic using a team approach that moves their inquiry from a core idea into a multi-part exploration that, by the end of the semester, becomes a finished book published by the department through on-demand technology. Book topics will vary, but urban and cross-cultural themes will be emphasized, pointing towards the needs and solutions being sought to help the marginalized and alienated within and around the American evangelical church and/or internationally. Projects will include reporting through written and visual form, and as needed, video storytelling and web development that enhances audience understanding of the book's topic.

A culmination of the journalism student's academic career. This course is the laboratory where students transition from student to master of their craft, bringing together journalism fundamentals, approaches to storytelling, and technology and techniques necessary to produce material in various and/or applicable forms. Students bring their mastered understanding of craft together with their developed ability to think critically concerning their faith and the world around them, to ultimately produce intensive final projects of their choosing. Students will consider business practices as they develop proposals, researching their areas of focus and considering experts and best practices for their final projects.

A course introducing students to digital approaches to publishing, including basic principles of design and typography, hands-on practice with leading industry software and the ultimate production of publication material. The adobe suite of products (Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, and Dreamweaver) is used. Provides students with the opportunity to develop the use of electronic procedures to produce and edit publications and Web sites. Students create, format, illustrate and design print material and Web products. The course prepares students to produce such materials as newsletters, flyers, brochures, publication spreads and advertising materials. This is an entry-level course, assuming students have little or no previous experience with the Adobe suite of products. Grade Mode: A

A course introducing students to digital approaches to design principles and techniques for visually communicating ideas. Fundamental principles of design and elements of line, form, color, texture, value, shape will be resourced in hands-on practice. Creating user-focused experiences on the web and in apps will be integral to the student design development. These digital designers will resource electronic procedures and tools to produce and edit websites and elements for online distribution, including landing pages, banners and ads, and email marketing collateral. They may work with Wordpress and in languages such as HTML5, CSS3 JavaScript. Students will understand and consider accessibility as well as functionality of design and systems. Materials they create, format, illustrate and design will be used for creative concept presentation to clients as well. This is an entry-level course, assuming students have little previous experience with coding, UX/UI, or tools for design which may include the Adobe Suite products. Grade Mode: A

This course focuses on the individual's communication in a group setting: leadership in groups; group communication norms and processes with emphasis on problem solving and conflict management techniques. Grade Mode: A

This class is designed to help you succeed in your academic, professional and personal life, particularly by developing a practical and theoretical understanding regarding workplace communication. Each of you begins this class with your own, individual experiences, perspectives and expectations. Learning and growing in the concept of work-life will provide you with a practical “tool belt” of specific methods and critical thinking abilities to: (a) Develop your capacity to conceptualize and apply valuable workplace communication strategies, (b) Strengthen your analytical and critical thinking skills, (c) Increase your ability in writing and presenting your thoughts, including content organization and delivery, (d) Equip you with career essentials: creating and/or polishing your resume, interview competence and rhetorical sensitivity, and (e) Utilize library resources and develop effective researching approaches. Grade Mode: A.

Techniques of persuasive speaking and communication persuasion theories. Experience in the preparation and delivery of speeches. Grade Mode: A

In this course students will extend their development by engaging in seminal texts, discussions, and case-studies focusing on Organizational Rhetoric, the link between applied practices existing in organizational settings and the philosophical tenets of persuasion as identification, resulting in a mastery understanding of this area. Grade Mode: A.

In this course students will complete a previous proposed research study. This includes: a) learning how to complete the NIH training and application to complete your research to the universities PHRRC (Protection for Human Rights in Research), b) building a robust literature review, c) collecting and interpreting data, d) submitting a research study to NCA (National Communication Association, and e) completing a full research study. Students will extend their development by reading previous studies, methods of communication research, and engaging in the link between communication and their research topic, resulting in a mastery understanding of this area. Grade Mode: A.