General Information		Career Opportunities
	Undergraduate Study		Communication Lab
	Advisors and Advisement		Opportunities for Involvement
	Scholarship and Financial Aid		Faculty
	Internship Opportunities

General Information:

Since its inception in the 1920s, the University of Oklahoma Department of Communication has been committed to a social scientific approach to the study of the nature, processes and effects of human communicative behavior. The OU Department of Communication provides a broad-based liberal arts education and promotes communication research and development.

The goal of the undergraduate program is to share the best available theories of communication and facilitate the application of these theories for the improvement of the student’s communication skills, organization skills, research and analytical skills, and to prepare the student for advanced study; to increase understanding of the communication process; and to develop the student’s ability to analyze and interpret the elements of the communication process as they occur in society.

Communication courses explore the process of human interaction in interpersonal/social influence, intercultural/international, organizational, health, and media/political contexts.  

For more information about the department not included in this handbook please visit our website at: http://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/.

Undergraduate Study:

Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Communication:

Majors must complete 36 hours of course work in Communication. A student must earn a C or better in all core courses with a maximum of two attempts in each individual course. These core classes are as follows: 2713 (Core I), 3023 (Core II), 3113 (Core III), and 4713 (Core IV). A student majoring in Communication must have a 2.0 OU GPA in their college and major and meet the general education and college requirements to be eligible to graduate.

For more information on sequencing and course requirements, please refer to the “Requirements for the Bachelor of Arts in Communication” form at the end of the handbook.

Requirements for the Communication minor:

A minor in Communication may be obtained by taking at least 21 hours of courses acceptable for major credit in Communication including at least nine hours at the upper-division level. COMM 1113 must be taken before other courses for the minor. COMM 2713 must be taken and a grade of C or better must be earned with a maximum of two attempts allowed for this course. In addition, any of the writing/speaking intensive courses that are listed above in the major section can only be taken if COMM 3023 and 3113 have been taken and passed with a grade of C or better. Otherwise, students may choose from a list of general Communication electives. No more than three hours of COMM 4990 may count toward the total required for the minor. No more than six hours of COMM 3810 may count toward the total required for the minor or major.

For more information on the Communication minor please refer to the minor requirements at the end of the handbook.

Advisors and Advisement:

A student in the College of Arts and Sciences must be advised prior to enrollment each semester. Students can set an appointment time with Brandi Goldman, the Communication undergraduate advisor, before each semester’s enrollment period. Brandi Goldman can be reached at (405) 325-7710 or by email at goldman@ou.edu. Her office is room 110 in Burton Hall. These times are scheduled by student classification. There is an advising book which states the times that are available to be advised. You must be advised in order to enroll in your classes.

Students may also set up advising appointments in the manner listed above with the Graduate Advising Assistant, Nici Ploeger. Her office is room 107 in Burton Hall. Nici can be reached at (405) 325-8649 or by email at: nicole.ploeger@ou.edu.

Please see the Communication Advisor’s door for posted walk-in hours during non-advising season. For other questions and concerns please feel free to visit as the door is always open for students. More information regarding advisors and advisement can be found in the advising syllabus on pages 7 and 8.

In addition to being advised each semester, when a student has earned 90 hours, he or she must set up a degree check with the College of Arts and Sciences Advisor. This meeting will help the student confirm exact credit hours needed until graduation, how many upper division courses must be taken, etc. A student with fewer than 90 credits can receive a degree consultation for help with their schedule. The degree check and degree consultation can be scheduled either online at http://iadvise.ou.edu or by calling (405) 325-4411.

Scholarship and Financial Aid:

The Department of Communication offers four undergraduate scholarships carrying cash stipends to outstanding Communication majors.

Ralph E. Cooley Memorial Award is presented to one undergraduate and one graduate student who demonstrate significant work in cross-cultural Communication or Native American Language study. The award is $250 and will be given each April. Juniors and seniors who have completed their core courses in Communication and have a minimum GPA of 3.00 are eligible to apply.

Roger Babich Award for Outstanding Undergraduates is awarded to up to two outstanding Communication majors with a minimum GPA of 3.25. The student must also have 15 hours of COMM credit, six hours of which must be upper division. Junior standing is required. The scholarship value is $250 and will be awarded each April. The award is open to junior and senior students, even if the student is planning to graduate before the upcoming fall. Applications packets must include the application form, an unofficial transcript, and a current resume detailing honors and awards and your departmental, campus, and community involvement. One letter of recommendation from a member of the Communication faculty must also be included.

Scholarly Achievement Awards in Communication is awarded to up to two outstanding undergraduate Communication majors with a minimum GPA of 3.25. The student must also have 15 hours of COMM credit, six hours of which must be upper division. Junior standing is required. The scholarship value is $250 and will be awarded each April. The award is open to junior and senior students, even if the student is planning to graduate before the upcoming fall. Applications packets must include the application form, an unofficial transcript, and a current resume detailing honors and awards and your departmental, campus, and community involvement. One letter of recommendation from a member of the Communication faculty must also be included.

Political Communication Heritage Scholarship is awarded to one student who is a major in Communication. The student is awarded this scholarship based on GPA and other academic merits. The applicant must have taken COMM 3003 or COMM 4323. Applications are required and a committee will decide the recipient from qualified applicants. Applications are due in April, and the scholarship is open to undergraduates. The scholarship is worth $1,000 and is awarded for the following fall semester.

In addition to the four Communication scholarships, there are scholarships that are offered by the College of Arts and Sciences. The applications for these scholarships can be obtained from the Arts and Sciences website at: http://casweb.ou.edu/home/students/scholarships/scholarships.html. A student can also learn more about scholarships and financial aid at http://www.financialaid.ou.edu. Please refer to the Scholarship board outside of Burton Hall 107 for additional scholarships.

Internship Opportunities:

The Department of Communication highly suggests and encourages majors to participate in an internship. An internship is a planned work experience related to a student’s personal career and academic goals.  It can help a student to learn about a career, apply knowledge gained in the classroom, develop skills, and enrich understanding of self and organizations.  A primary purpose of an internship is to help students relate academic experiences to those in the workplace.

An internship board is located near Burton Hall Lounge and is regularly updated with new internship opportunities for students. A student may participate in these internships for course credit or no course credit. A student may also find his or her own internship and submit an application for course credit if it was not posted by the department.

To be eligible for course credit in an internship, a student must have junior, senior, or graduate standing at the time the internship begins. Undergraduate applicants must have an overall GPA of 2.50 or higher and a GPA of 2.75 or higher in Communication courses.  Graduate applicants must have an overall GPA of 3.00 or higher and a GPA of 3.50 or higher for communication courses. A student also must have completed approximately two-thirds of required Communication courses (24 credit hours for undergraduates) and then must gain approval of the internship from the Internship Director.
For more information and to obtain internship application, please see Brandi Goldman, Communication undergraduate advisor. Her contact information is listed below in the “Advisors and Advisement” section.

Career Opportunities:

Graduates from the OU Department of Communication can find challenging careers in management, business, event planning, sales, higher education, consulting (professional, health, and intercultural areas), and government. Because the Communication degree emphasizes oral and written skills, interpersonal and group communication, and understanding and correcting communication problems, business options are always open for graduates. Mastering the skills learned in the Communication Department makes the graduate an asset to any organization. In addition, a degree in Communication is an excellent choice to prepare for law, medical, or graduate school. For a listing of specific career opportunities, please visit the undergraduate communication website at: http://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/.

Communication Lab:

The Communication Department houses a lab for help in certain Communication areas. Tutoring is available for speeches, COMM 2513 (Introduction to Statistics), COMM 3023 (Research Methods) or COMM 3113 (Research Procedures). Tutoring appointments can be made by signing up in Burton Hall, Room 225.

In addition to the tutoring available, the lab also has computers for Communication majors to use for tasks such as checking email or conducting research for papers. The computers are in Room 230 and are available from 8am-5pm.

Opportunities for Involvement in the Communication Department:

Lambda Pi Eta

Lambda Pi Eta is the official Communication studies honor society of the National Communication Association (NCA). Lambda Pi Eta has nearly 400 chapters at four-year colleges and universities worldwide. The OU Department of Communication maintains the Theta chapter of Lambda Pi Eta and encourages its majors who meet the qualifications to join.

To be a member, a student must have an overall GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.25 in Communication classes. The cost for Lambda Pi Eta membership is $30. This covers chapter dues, a lifetime membership, and pins and certification. Various chapter activities include monthly brown bag luncheons featuring talks from professors, graduate students, and previous OU Communication graduates, as well as an annual awards banquet, and resume workshops.

The Theta chapter of Lambda Pi Eta seeks to recognize, foster, and reward outstanding scholastic achievement in Communication studies. In addition, we strive to promote and encourage professional development among Communication majors and provide an opportunity to discuss and exchange ideas in the field of Communication.

Please see Brandi Goldman in Room 110 for Lambda Pi Eta applications and further inquiries. There is also a Lambda Pi Eta board near Burton Hall Lounge.

Sooner Conference

Each year the Communication Department sponsors the Sooner Communication Conference. The Sooner Communication Conference promotes undergraduate and graduate research in all aspects of human communication. Submissions for papers may include competitive research papers, position papers, case studies, or round table proposals. Papers on any topic relevant to human communication within various areas of the discipline are welcome.

Each year the Sooner Communication Conference revolves around a different theme and encourages involvement from communication scholars nationwide.

For more information on the Sooner Conference, please refer to the website at http://www.ou.edu/cas/deptcomm/sooner/index.html or email your questions to soonercomconf@ou.edu.

Josh Lee Memorial Public Speaking Competition

The Josh Lee Memorial Public Speaking Competition is the highlight of the entire semester's coursework for students enrolled in COMM 2613. The students of each individual class vote for their fellow students who they believe presented the top speeches in class. During finals week of each fall and spring semester, those students who were selected by their classmates compete against the students selected by the other public speaking classes. All students who compete in this course-wide preliminary competition receive certificates of participation. It is from these preliminary rounds that six competitors are selected to compete in the final round of the competition. These six competitors will each receive a plaque and varying amounts of monetary awards for their efforts.

Student Advisory Committee
The student advisory committee consists of a small group of undergraduate students. In essence, it is the role of committee members to serve as the voice of their peers. The committee acts as a liaison between the department chair and the student community. The student advisory committee meets with the chair at least twice a semester to discuss student concerns, comments, and praise. Students in their junior or senior year with a 3.25 GPA in their Communication coursework may serve on this committee. The academic advisor will send an email when it is time to solicit committee members to participate in this valuable experience.

Undergraduate Research Positions
Cutting edge Communication research is continuously being conducted by the faculty in our department. Often the best way to learn about research is through hands-on experience in which you also gain independent study credit. Actual duties of research positions may vary depending on the study and the professor. Please contact the professor you wish to work with if you are interested.

Faculty:

Through grants, publications, honors and research projects, the faculty in the Communication Department represents the finest combination of excellence in teaching and research. Professors in the Communication Department have won numerous awards, including several prestigious university teaching awards. The department is home to a Fulbright scholar and some of the most respected academicians within the field of Communication. These scholars have produced much research, with many books, journal articles, book chapters, and convention papers in the last ten years. A list of the professors’ names, positions, and communication interests follow. More information can be found for each professor on: http://www.ou.edu/cas/deptcomm/pages/faculty.html.

Dr. John Banas, Assistant Professor, Persuasive message effects and the cognitive processing of social influence in a variety of contexts; message acceptance, message resistance, and behavior change.

Dr. Jill Edy, Associate Professor, Political communication and public opinion.

Lisa Foster, Assistant Professor, Public sphere theory, political media and popular culture, rhetoric of democracy and social change.

Dr. Glenn Hansen, Assistant Professor, Social influence of various forms of mass communication.

Dr. Elaine Hsieh, Assistant Professor, Communicative process of bilingual health care.

Dr. Amy Johnson, Associate Professor and Graduate Liaison, Interpersonal communication, relational communication, interpersonal conflict and argument.

Dr. Young Yun Kim, Professor, intercultural and interethnic communication.

Dr. Eric Kramer, Professor, Mass media, international, intercultural.

Dr. Patrick Meirick, Assistant Professor, Mass communication, political communication, social cognition and political psychology.

Dr. Claude Miller, Assistant Professor, Emotion, motivation, and social influence.

Dr. H. Dan O’Hair, Presidential Professor, Organizational, health, and risk communication.

Dr. Michael Pfau, Professor and Department Chair, Social influence, especially resistance to influence, and mass media influence, particularly in political and health contexts.

Dr. Clemencia Rodriguez, Associate Professor, Intercultural communication.

Dr. Todd Sandel, Assistant Professor, Intercultural communication, language and social interaction, and family communication.

Dr. Arthur VanGundy, Professor, Organizational, small groups, creative problem solving.


Dr. Norman Wong, Assistant Professor, Health communication.


Dr. Kevin Wright, Associate Professor, Health, computer-mediated, interpersonal, and life span communication.

Syllabus for Academic Advising-Department of Communication

Advisor: Brandi Goldman
                325-7710
                goldman@ou.edu                                                                            

Advising Office:

Burton Hall, Room 110

Office Hours: 9-11 & 2-4 Monday-Thursday and 9-11 on Friday or by appointment
during heavy advising season (October-December & March-May)

Appointments can be scheduled by signing up under your classification outside Burton Hall, Room 110. Appointments will not be accepted over the phone.

Normal advising appointments last 20 minutes. Please call or email if you need to miss your scheduled appointment so it may be offered to someone else.

Other departmental advisors who may assist you in my absence:

Graduate Advising Assistant:  Nici Ploeger
                                                 325-8649
                         nicole.ploeger@ou.edu
                         Burton Hall, Room 107

Walk-in Hours: Monday 2:00-5:00pm; Tuesday 1:00-2:30pm; Wednesday 1:00-3:30pm; Or by appt. during heavy advising season (Oct - Dec & March - May)

Readings and materials needed for academic advising:
Communication Undergraduate Handbook: http://www.ou.edu/cas/deptcomm/pages/under.html

OU Online Catalog:
http://www.ou.edu/bulletins/html/03-06catalog.htm

Communication Degree Requirements:
http://www.ou.edu/bulletins/degree-sheets/communic.pdf

My Advising Philosophy and Objectives:
I believe higher education is one of the most important steps you can take to achieve your goals and make your life better. My main objectives will be to guide you through the degree program and help you set educational and career goals. I will try to help give you encouragement and ideas as you work to obtain those goals. 

Advisor Responsibilities- What You Can Expect From Me:

• I will help you understand the curriculum, graduation requirements, and university and college policies and procedures.
• I will offer you encouragement and guidance as you set realistic educational and career goals.
• I will help you develop a clear educational plan.
• I will provide you information about resources available to you on campus.
• I will monitor and document your progress toward your degree.
• I will be available to you via email and during office hours.
• I will maintain confidentiality.
• I will work closely with your professors in the department so I can stay informed of what is happening in your courses.

Advisee Responsibilities- What You Are Expected To Do:

• You will schedule an appointment with me each semester (and keep that appointment when scheduled) to discuss your goals and plan for the following semester.
• You will come prepared for each appointment with your ID number, questions, and discussion items.
• You will fully participate in your advising sessions.
• You will ask questions if you do not understand an issue or if you have concerns.
• You will keep a personal record of your progress.
• You will clarify your goals with me.
• You will accept responsibility for your decisions.
• You will work toward achieving the goals you set.

Students With Disabilities (statement taken from ADA):