Syllabus
ENGL 502U Business & Professional Communication
Details: Online | Summer 2023 | CRN 30769 | May 8–June 17, 2023 | blog.richmond.edu/bizprocomm
Academic Calendar: See the full calendar on the Registrar’s Office website.
- First day of class: Monday, May 8
- End add/drop period: 5pm Wednesday, May 10
- Memorial Day, Monday, May 29 (no class requirements)
- Last day of class: Saturday, June 17
Instructor: Dr. Daniel Hocutt | dhocutt@richmond.edu | mobile 703-304-3021 | danielhocutt.com
Description: Introduces a rhetorical approach to the techniques and types of communication in professional contexts, including correspondence and reports. Designed to strengthen skills in effective business and professional communication in oral and written modes across multiple media. Prepares students to write professionally for audiences within and outside a corporation or nonprofit enterprise.
Rationale: Business and professional communication enable functional workplaces. Effective communication practices enable effective and efficient function of workplaces. This course focuses attention on researching and developing business and professional communication practices that focus on audience, message, and purpose along with media (print, online, video) and modality (spoken, written, combination). Students who succeed in this class will be better workplace communicators, capable of managing communication tools and techniques to help ensure effective workplace function.
Objectives & Outcomes
- Understand how the origins of business, professional & technical communication instruction inform current research & practice
- Recognize & identify disciplinary boundaries
- Engage in effective workplace communication, applied in real-world scenarios
- Respond effectively to a job announcement with appropriate application materials
- Compose effective and persuasive written, visual, and oral texts for diverse audiences
- Use technology to effectively present your messages
- Conduct research using a broad range of sources
- Communicate ethically
- Practice writing a variety of workplace genres including resumes, letters, emails, memos, proposals, and reports
- Collaborate effectively with peers
Assignments
Participation (25%): Complete all online work, participate in online discussions through post comments and peer feedback
Employment Project (15%): Respond to a job announcement you find for a position you’d like to consider now or in the future. Minimal requirement is updated resume or CV and cover letter; follow the job posting’s requirements for materials.
Scholarship Presentation (15%): Identify, research, and present to the class a text (article, chapter, or book) that provides background, history, and/or definition of professional & business/technical writing as a practice and/or field of study.
Fabric of Digital Life Project (15%): Collaborate with classmates to curate a collection of AI-augmented business tool technologies for the Fabric of Digital Life project.
Communication Project (30%): Propose a professional communication artifact or portfolio of artifacts that responds to communication needs in your current (or prospective) professional context (workplace, volunteering center, etc.).
Texts
All required and ancillary texts and resources are available online for free.
Grading
The following are general criteria, and may include plus (+) or minus (-). Your final grade will be calculated as a letter grade. Grades below C require the assignment be resubmitted.
| Letter Grade | Standard |
|---|---|
| A | You did what the assignment asked at a high quality level, and your work shows originality and innovation. Work demonstrates that you took extra steps to be original or creative in developing content, solving a problem, or developing a verbal or visual style. |
| B | You did what the assignment asked of you at a high quality level. Work in this range needs some revision, is complete in content, is organized well, and shows special attention to style and visual design. Moderate improvement would result in a higher grade. |
| C | You did what the assignment asked of you. Work in this range tends to need a fair amount of revision, but it is complete in content and the organization is logical. The style, verbal and visual, is straightforward but unremarkable. Significant improvement would be needed for a higher grade. |
University & School Policies
Participation Expectations
You will have little choice but to participate in each class session. Many assignments will include a collaborative component. Lack of participation will affect your own grade, and will certainly diminish the learning experience of everyone else in the class. In a class that highlights discussion of ideas, argument and dissent are natural and welcome. Business and professional communication highlights the importance of quiet, thoughtful listening to best understand one’s audience and its ideas, followed by communicating one’s own ideas precisely and calmly to be understood best by that audience. That process is iterative. Hateful or derogatory participation is not an accepted mode of communication.
Attendance Policy
Attendance in online sessions is represented by on-time submission of work as assigned. Each student is expected to complete all assignments and is responsible for making up any missing work if absence is unavoidable. To receive credit for this class, students must complete at least 75% of all assignments.
Honor Code
Students are expected to adhere to the University of Richmond Honor Code at all times. All work submitted should be original, completed for this class and no other. It is plagiarism to include other people’s ideas or information without documenting the source, including textbooks, books, articles, and the internet: spcs.richmond.edu/students/academics/honorcode.html. Review Citing Sources on the Library website for more information.
Religious Observances
The University of Richmond values and supports students’ religious observance. Students who will miss class or other academic assignments because of religious observance are responsible for completing missed work. Students should contact the instructor within the first two weeks of the semester to make arrangements. The full religious observance policy is online: registrar.richmond.edu/services/policies.
Disability Services
The University of Richmond strives to ensure that the campus is safe and accessible for everyone. If you need to request a disability accommodation, review guidelines online at disability.richmond.edu.
Diversity and Inclusion
The University of Richmond is committed to developing a diverse workforce and student body and to modeling an inclusive campus community which values the expression of differences in ways that promote excellence in teaching, learning, personal development and institutional success: commonground.richmond.edu.
Academic & Personal Support Services
If you experience difficulties in this course, do not hesitate to consult with me. There are also other resources that can support you in your efforts to meet course requirements.
Academic Skills Center (804) 289-8626 or (804) 289-8956: Assists students in assessing their academic strengths and weaknesses; honing their academic skills through teaching effective test preparation, critical reading and thinking, information processing, concentration, and related techniques; working on specific subject areas and encouraging campus and community involvement.
Career Services (804) 289-8547: Can assist you in exploring your interests and abilities, choosing a major, connecting with internships and learning experiences, investigating graduate and professional school options, and landing your first job. We encourage you to schedule an appointment with a career advisor during your first year at SPCS. Your SPCS Career Advisor is Becca Shelton (bshelton@richmond.edu).
Counseling & Psychological Services (804) 289-8119: Assists students in improving their mental health and well-being, and in handling challenges that may impede their growth and development. Services include short-term counseling and psychotherapy, crisis intervention, psychiatric consultation, and related services. SPCS students are eligible for services.
Speech Center (804) 289-6409: Assists with preparation and practice in the pursuit of excellence in public expression. Recording, playback, coaching and critique sessions offered by teams of student consultants trained to assist in developing ideas, arranging key points for more effective organization, improving style and delivery, and handling multimedia aids for individual and group presentations.
Writing Center (804) 289-8263: Assists writers at all levels of experience, across all majors. Students can schedule appointments with trained writing consultants who offer friendly critiques of written work. As an SPCS student, you also have exclusive access to the Richmond Online Writing Lab (OWL): review guidelines for submitting assignments.
Boatwright Library Research Librarians (804) 289-8876: Research librarians assist students with identifying and locating resources for class assignments, research papers and other course projects. Librarians also provide research support for students and can respond to questions about evaluating and citing sources. Students can email, text or IM or schedule a personal research appointment to meet with a librarian.