Technical Communications Courses

LMC 3403: Technical Communication

LMC 3403 builds on the competencies that students developed in English 1101 and 1102, often with a special emphasis on communicating in scientific, business, and technological fields. Students learn to create workplace genres, ranging from traditional print documents such as reports, proposals, and memos to electronic forms such as email and Web sites; students also learn how to skillfully assess the rhetorical situation underlying each of these genres.

With this emphasis on workplace communication, instructors of LMC 3403 focus on actual communication problems and scenarios. Many instructors enrich the course with their nonacademic work experience from the corporate and nonprofit worlds as writers, editors, and communication specialists. This experience adds a pragmatic dimension to the course. Students can expect their technical communication instructors to challenge them to think about communication outside the bounds of the classroom.

This emphasis on workplace communication takes many forms. Some instructors build courses around final projects that require students to work with actual workplace clients. Some require students to create and run mock companies. Others help students build online portfolios. Still others invite guest speakers from the corporate world to interact with students or encourage students to contact potential employers. All instructors of LMC 3403 teach the basic forms of workplace communication, document design, and professional etiquette necessary for students to succeed as professionals in their chosen fields.

Beyond the pragmatic how-to`s of business and technical communication, LMC 3403 helps students learn how to assess audiences in order to create documents, presentations, and visuals that are accessible, comprehensible, and usable. When students complete the course, they have learned how to evaluate and respond to a variety of complex communication situations in professional settings.

LMC 3431: Technical Communication Approaches

LMC 3431 is the second course in a multi-semester sequence that students take in tandem with major-specific classes to develop professional written, visual, oral, and analytic strategies.For example, the CS-hybrid version of this course is paired with CS 3801 Design Project I. In this course, students learn how to approach technical communication for various audiences, purposes, and contexts. The course emphasizes foundations for creating technical communication documents used for selecting and planning a computer science project for an actual client. Course assignments will integrate written, oral, visual, electronic and nonverbal (WOVEN) rhetorical skills to help students thrive in the modern workplace. This course is co-taught by a Brittain Fellow and a faculty member from the major-specific department.

LMC 3432: Technical Communication Strategies

LMC 3432 is the first course in a multi-semester sequence that students take in tandem with their major-specific classes to develop their professional written, visual, oral, and analytic strategies. For example, the CS-hybrid version of this course is paired with CS 3312 Design Project II. In this course, students expand their knowledge of ways to adapt technical communication strategies for various audiences, purposes, and contexts. This two credit course emphasizes creating technical communication documents that are used to complete a computer science project for an actual client. Course assignments integrate written, oral, visual, electronic and nonverbal (WOVEN) rhetorical skills to help students thrive in the modern workplace. This course is co-taught by a Brittain Fellow and a faculty member from the major-specific department.