Course

Directed Studies in Professional Communication

Faculty
Language, Literature & Performing Arts
Department
Communications
Course code
CMNS 3901
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15 weeks
Max class size
N/A (independent study)
Method(s) of instruction
Tutorial
Course designation
None
Industry designation
None
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course provides students with an opportunity to pursue a specific applied research interest. The course will require (a) a review and analysis of relevant published theoretical or applied research readings and articles, and (b) original related research or a project in the field of professional communication.

Directed studies are supervised and evaluated by an assigned faculty member.

Students must apply to the program coordinator for approval of their proposed directed studies.
Course content

The course content will be identified in the student’s application for approval and will include a preliminary list of readings and articles. The scope and content of the research or project must be approved by the faculty supervisor and program coordinator and, if necessary, the Research Ethics Board.

Learning activities

Independent study with supervision provided throughout the semester.

Means of assessment

Students are expected to be self-motivated and to demonstrate professionalism, which includes active participation, good attendance, punctuality, effective collaboration, ability to meet deadlines, presentation skills, and accurate self-evaluation.

Instructors may use a student’s record of attendance and/or level of active participation in the course as part of the student’s graded performance. Where this occurs, expectations and grade calculations regarding class attendance and participation will be clearly defined in the Instructor Course Outline.

Students may conduct research as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving humans, which can require obtaining Informed Consent from participants and getting the approval of the Douglas College Research Ethics Board prior to conducting the research.

Assessment will be based on course objectives and will be carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. An evaluation schedule is presented at the beginning of the course. This is a graded course.

Example evaluation schedule:

Literature review 30%
Research/project proposal 20%
Research paper/project 35%
Presentation 10%
Attendance/professionalism/participation 5%
Total 100%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this course will

  1. complete an in-depth investigation into a topic in professional communication
  2. complete a comprehensive review of published research
  3. conduct original research or complete a project on the topic of interest
  4. demonstrate an understanding of applied research ethics and procedures, as applicable
Textbook materials

Students will be responsible for identifying the relevant academic and professional publications. The faculty supervisor must approve a preliminary list of readings and articles.

Requisites

Prerequisites

Acceptance into the Post-Degree Diploma in Professional Communication

AND

Permission of the Professional Communication Program Coordinator

AND

Confirmation of an appropriate faculty supervisor

Corequisites

None

Equivalencies

None

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for CMNS 3901
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU CMNS 3XXX (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) No credit

Course Offerings

There are no course offerings this semester.