"I think the Communication department is one of the best on campus. The faculty members are incredibly dedicated, knowledgeable, and fun to get to know. They truly want students to excel and do everything they can to help you be successful as a student and as a person. The courses offered cover a wide range of topics and are challenging but manageable. Independent Study in the Communication department is especially valuable because you learn first-hand how to conduct research and write professionally." Ann Wenzel, '06 Grosse Point, MI

Drawing on classical tradition as well as on contemporary behavioral sciences, Communication Studies focuses on how people arrive at shared meanings through an interchange of messages, or, in other words, the symbolic processes through which meaning and social reality are created. More specifically, Communication Studies majors concern themselves with messages (their characteristics, strategies, motives) and message-centered behavior (the social, psychological, and other effects that messages can have on human behavior). Communication Studies originated from the older disciplines of rhetoric and public oration, but today this major studies messages--whether oral, written, or nonverbal--in the context of face-to-face and mediated communication.

"The study of communication is overlooked way too often. The lessons we learn in class benefit us in everyday life, and may students improve as people. When we examine communication we are able to understand the significance of the thousands of messages that we encounter daily." Jeff Clapacs, '07 Euclid, OH

Majors in Communication Studies should learn how to be more effective communicators and how to be critical analysts of communication, thereby preparing them for life as enlightened citizens and professionals in a variety of career paths such as business, education, law, politics, media, social service, and the ministry.

At The College of Wooster, the curriculum includes courses from three basic tracks: rhetorical studies, human dynamics, and media studies. Courses in rhetorical studies raise fundamental questions about human discourse in public forums. These courses examine persuasive strategies, argumentation, verbal style, message context, and forms of rhetorical criticism--a qualitative approach to message analysis--as they apply to public speaking, political discourse, issue campaigns, public relations, and other public messages. Human dynamics courses stress message-centered behavior in human interaction. Beginning with communication within one's self that gives form to the intellect, these courses extend the private domain of communication to encompass communication and its role in interpersonal relationships, groups, and organizations. Media studies courses focus on mass communication history, media literacy, the process of creating and distributing mass-mediated messages, and the effects of those messages.

"During my four years at The College of Wooster I was challenged to grow and think in ways I never imagined. When I first arrived at Wooster, I was not a communication major, but the more time I spent within the department, the more I knew that was where I belonged. The faculty and staff of the Communication Department are intelligent and challenging, but also equally important, caring and compassionate. The faculty provided the means necessary for me to learn how to be a good student, and they also provided the tools and encouragement for me to want to become a better person and well-rounded citizen." Lisa Fellows, '06 Minerva, OH

In preparation for Independent Study, all Communication Studies majors are required to take courses in communication theory and qualitative and/or quantitative research methods. Course work in qualitative methods prepares students to take interpretative approaches to the analysis of communication by learning: forms of rhetorical criticism; the collection, organization, and reporting of participant observation data; and interview techniques and the interpretation of interview data. Through quantitative methods, majors learn to apply the basic principles of sampling, measurement, survey construction, experimentation, and data analysis.

Students must also demonstrate proficiency in public speaking, as certified by all faculty members in the Department of Communication, based upon the student’s oral presentation of his/her Senior Independent Study proposal.

The following are abbreviated course descriptions. For complete details about the major and minor in Communication Studies, see the latest issue of The College of Wooster catalogue. Courses in Communication Studies that count toward requirements in Learning Across the Disciplines: Arts and Humanities are literature indicated by *. Courses in Communication Studies that count toward the requirements in Learning Across the Disciplines: History and Social Science are indicated by #. Courses that count toward the requirement in Quantitative Reasoning are signified by Q.

#111. INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNICATION STUDIES. This course examines the significance of communication in human life and introduces students to fundamental principles and processes of communication in a variety of contexts: interpersonal relationships, small groups, public settings, and the mass media.

200. SPECIAL TOPICS IN COMMUNICATION. A topical seminar that focuses on special issues within communication studies or communication science and disorders.

311. THEORIES OF HUMAN COMMUNICATION. This course provides students with in-depth knowledge of theories of human communication in order to provide a more coherent understanding of communication studies as a discipline. Prerequisite: Two courses from the categories of human dynamics, rhetorical studies, or media studies, with each course representing a different category; or, permission of instructor.

350. ADVANCED TOPICS IN COMMUNICATION STUDIES. Selected topics or issues for advanced study in human dynamics, rhetorical studies, or media studies. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing. May be repeated.

352. RHETORICAL CRITICISM. This course examines the nature and methods of rhetorical criticism, with the goal of teaching students how to write rhetorical criticisms of their own and how to critique the work of others. Prerequisite: One of the following--250, 252, 254--or permission of the instructor.

Q353. QUANTITATIVE METHODS. This course examines experimental and field research methods as they apply to Communication Studies and Communication Sciences & Disorders. The course covers such methods as surveys, survey interviews, content analysis, and experimental design. Prerequisite: One completed course in Communication Studies or Communication Sciences and Disorders, or the permission of the instructor.

400. TUTORIAL. A tutorial course on a special topic may be offered to an individual student under the supervision of a faculty member. Permission of the instructor is required.

451, 452. SENIOR INDEPENDENT STUDY. Prerequisite: 352 or 353, and 401.

*152. PUBLIC SPEAKING. The course involves the study of public address and the performance of various types of speeches.

*250. PRINCIPLES OF RHETORIC. The course surveys basic concepts of rhetoric or persuasive symbol use.

*252. ARGUMENTATION AND PERSUASION. The course examines basic concepts of argumentation and reasoning, with the goals of teaching students how to articulate cogent arguments in both written and oral form, and improving students' abilities to analyze the arguments of others. Prerequisite: One of the following--111, 152, 250--or permission of instructor.

254. POLITICAL RHETORIC. This course examines the role that rhetoric plays in constructing and shaping our political realities. It aims to sharpen students' critical skills in analyzing and evaluating political rhetoric, and to provide students with a greater awareness of both the artistry and potential manipulation of political rhetoric.

220. INTRAPERSONAL DIMENSIONS OF HUMAN COMMUNICATION. The course focuses on the interdependence of perception and the construction of meaning in human communication. The focus is on the internal generation and regulation of meaning through perceptual systems which link the individual to the environment.

#221. INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION. This course examines the form, content, and consequences of communication between two people, primarily focusing upon informal contexts such as the communication between parent and child, siblings, romantic partners, and friends.

225. GROUP AND ORGANIZATIONAL COMMUNICATION. This course analyzes the form, content, and consequences of communication within both small groups and larger organizations, primarily focusing on the dynamics of communication exchanges within such contexts.

#229. MASS COMMUNICATION PROCESSES AND EFFECTS. The course examines the form, content, and consequences of mass communication as it applies to human interaction, focusing on how mass communication influences human behavior.

231. RADIO, TELEVISION, AND FILM IN AMERICA. This course examines the dynamic influences of American political and economic thought on the development of radio, television, and film in America, and emphasizes how present-day media owe much of their structure and function to social, technological, and regulatory decisions.

332. VISUAL COMMUNICATION. This course introduces students to the form, content, and consequences of visual literacy as they relate to screen composition, photographic design, and applied media aesthetics. Students will develop the ability to understand and interpret screen language, and will construct their own visual statements using video production techniques.

130.00. RADIO WORKSHOP. The course provides training in radio broadcasting and station management associated with the activities of WCWS-FM, the College radio station. Credit: One-fourth course credit. Offered every semester. S/NC.

130.01. RADIO WORKSHOP. The course provides training in radio broadcasting and station management associated with the activities of WCWS-FM, the College radio station. Prerequisite: Must be a member of the WCWS management staff and have the permission of the course instructor. Credit: One-half course credit. S/NC.

190. PRACTICA. Self-initiated investigations into communication in applied settings. The approval of both the chairperson and the supervising faculty member is required prior to registration. Variable credit of one-fourth or one-half course credit. S/NC.

390. INTERNSHIP. Internships are negotiated with the Dean of the Faculty and the faculty of the Department. Washington Semester, the GLCA Philadelphia Center, and the GLCA Arts Program in New York are off-campus programs that offer internships especially pertinent to Communication Studies majors.