Please consider the following Special Topics course offerings from the School of Communication. Summer and Fall registration begins on April 4, 2022. Please consult Canelink, the instructor of record, and/or your academic advisor for more information.
Summer 2022
JMM – Special Topics in Journalism and Media Management
JMM 306/692 section 04 (Summer Session A) – iPhone Creativity
JMM 592/692 section 08 (Summer Session B) – Podcasting: Podcast Storytelling is a course offered jointly by the Departments of Cinematic Arts and Journalism and Media Management. Students create and produce narratives related to environmental issues that affect the South Florida community and our planet. Projects in the course are produced both individually and team-based and will be published on blogs/websites created during the semester. Students will learn the technical aspects of creating a podcast as well as how to be best organize and structure the content for audio consumption.
STC – Special Topics in Public Relations
STC 290 section 04 (Summer Session A) – Design for Social Media: Learn how to apply graphic design principles to design social media content that is effective and easy to create. In this course we’ll explore the current trends, tools for easy content creation and fine tune design skills to optimize and easily replicate content across different platforms.
Fall 2022
CCA – Special Topics in Cinematic Arts
CCA 294 section JK – Introduction to Animation: This course introduces students to the fundamentals of animation The course presents and explores techniques used to animate including; motion graphics, conceptualization, storyboarding, shot language, editing styles, narrative structure, creating characters, and bringing those characters to life.
CCA 394 section UV – Youth in Revolt: Teen Films of the 1990s: Youth in Revolt approaches Teen Films of the 1990s from a historical and social context to discover what they communicated to their target audiences in the era. Many of the movies will also be directly traced to their contemporary Hollywood counterparts, revealing how the films of the 1990s continue to impact filmed entertainment today.
CCA 494/795 section FGH – Directing the Commercial: Directing the Commercial examines the collaborative art and practice of film (video) commercial creation. Students will learn how to direct commercial projects of high production value while gaining a better understanding of professional standards governing commercial production.
CCA 494/795 section KL – Professional Development: This course is designed to give both a creative and a business overview across a wide range of professions that exist in the modern, studio-based and independent entertainment industry. Each week a different speaker will present to the class their own particular point of view on what their position entails and how it connects to the wider creative or business process.
CIM – Special Topics in Interactive Media
CIM 489/689 section FGH – Spatial Interfaces
COM – Special Topics in Communication
COM 609 + JMM 692 section JK – Global Communication
COS – Special Topics in Communication Studies
COS 391 section O – Communication for Development and Social Change: This course provides an introduction to “development communication,” also referred to as “Communication for Social Change (C4SC).” C4SC focuses on various ways in which communication processes, technologies and media can promote social/economic development, social change, and social justice. In this course, students will be introduced to the theories and practices of C4SC along the historical advancement of communication technologies, from mass media to new media.
COS 391/691 section RS – Communication in Romantic Relationships: Research and theory organized around the inextricable link between communication processes (including message production and reception) and the development of romantic/intimate relationships emerged under the rubric “relational communication” in the early to mid-1980’s.
JMM – Special Topics in Journalism and Media Management
JMM 361/692 section TU – Advanced Documentary Photography
JMM 409/692 section Q – Advanced Feature Design
JMM 592 section CD – Advanced Television Performance
JMM 592 section KL – Advanced Interviewing Techniques
JMM 592 section R – After Effects: Students will learn to create basic animations, special effects, and motion graphics using Adobe After Effects through project-based instruction relevant to both beginners and experienced users.
JMM 592/692 section HJ – iPhone Photo Illustrations: Students will improve photography skills using smartphones. Students will learn to break or bend many basic rules of photography while taking and editing images for artistic impact. Emphasis will be placed on creativity. The workload includes both taking and editing images.
JMM 592/692 + CCA 494/795 section RS – Podcasting: Podcast Storytelling is a course offered jointly by the Departments of Cinematic Arts and Journalism and Media Management. Students create and produce narratives related to environmental issues that affect the South Florida community and our planet. Projects in the course are produced both individually and team-based and will be published on blogs/websites created during the semester. Students will learn the technical aspects of creating a podcast as well as how to be best organize and structure the content for audio consumption.
STC – Special Topics in Public Relations
STC 290 section O – Brand Storytelling: This course is designed to teach students the elements of narrative to create an impactful and relevant brand identity. Students will be asked to dive deep into signs and semiotic theory, universal narrative tropes, and cultural context in order to create and communicate a brand’s story, meaning, and values.
STC 290 section P – Targeting Hispanic Markets: This course explores the space that intersects marketing, advertising, and public relations with the US Hispanic culture to unveil insights that can be used to inspire strategic and promotional communication for the US Hispanic market.
STC 437/629 section Q – PR and Politics: This course will focus on how campaign operatives create, target and deliver a message to voters. Although it will teach public relations strategy in the context of a political campaign, what you learn in this class should be applicable to any persuasive challenge. Using the current national and local elections, in real time students will study the ever-changing principles of campaign message development and analyze how those tactics are perceived. Students with an interest in politics and news will benefit from class discussions and activities, such as debating the campaign strategies used by the major political parties and analyzing how these are coming across to the voter. All students, regardless of political affiliation, will be encouraged to voice their own opinions and explore why other parties stand behind their platforms. Although vigorous discussion will be required in class, the student will write papers on the unique requirements of political messaging.
STC 444/629 + COM 609 section O – Social Media Analytics: This course will provide an overview and practical application of various digital and social media data, analytics, and tools, as well as their efficacy in strategic communication. More specifically, it will provide experience with analytics that brands, companies, and organizations can use across digital and social media platforms, which provide insight on efforts to reach specified target audiences to stimulate attitudes, engagement, two-way communication, and behavioral outcomes. Students will use numerous public and commercial sources of data, metrics, analyses, and tools to prepare written reports and presentations that describe and evaluate an organization’s digital and social media profile, its effectiveness, and recommendations for improvement.
STC 494/629 + COM 609 section P – Social Media Applications in Strategic Communication: This course focuses on the use of social and digital media platforms for advertising and public relations purposes. Students will learn how social and digital media differ from traditional media from a theoretical standpoint. They will also learn how to apply online communication principles to real-world settings. By analyzing successful social media campaigns in recent years, students in this course are expected to create a social media campaign plan for a corporation or non-profit organization.