Courses
The listing of a course description here does not guarantee a course’s being offered in a particular term. Please refer to the published schedule of classes on the MyBU Student Portal for confirmation a class is actually being taught and for specific course meeting dates and times.
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COM CM 529: Design Strategy & Software 2
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM501) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM501) - In this course students develop advanced design and new media skills while participating in multi-media lectures, critiques, and hands-on software skill building. While implementing individualized creative processes, students develop strategic projects from concept through to functional new media campaigns. The projects are continually updated to prepare students for emerging opportunities in the communication industry. 4 cr. Either sem. -
COM CM 530: Public Relations in Nonprofit Settings
Undergraduate Prerequisites: CM215 - Graduate Prerequisites: CM701 - This course will provide a kaleidoscopic view of the fundamentals nonprofit public relations. Students will study the processes, effects and influences of media relations practices, related to both traditional and new media, in a nonprofit environment. They also will learn the essentials of fundraising and volunteer recruitment/retention and how these can be influenced, in part, by politics locally--as well as across the nation and around the world. The course also will explore types of nonprofit organizations and the breadth of communication management careers available within them. Additionally, the course will study the benefits and cautions of nonprofit-corporate partnerships and the communication management techniques related to forming and managing such agreements. -
COM CM 531: International Communication
International Communication is a niche field that encompasses wide-ranging and interconnected subjects in communication and international relations. This course is intended to introduce relevant concepts and real-world practices in the broadly defined field, which is an important dimension of higher education for students aiming to specialize in a host of communication and socio-political areas. As the world has become immensely internationalized and intricately related, a good grasp of the world¿s communication systems, their underlying concepts, and the potential impact of practices may prove pivotal to one¿s edge in building successful careers in any field that involves any facet of communication, including news, campaign, public relations, or public diplomacy. Empowered with the knowledge and understanding beyond national borders, professionals in communication and public affairs are better prepared to fulfill their professional responsibilities, advocate the ideals they embrace, and the interests they represent. To all students, the knowledge of how global communication works indisputably can enhance their appreciation, enrichment, and engagement with different parts of the world. -
COM CM 535: Political Campaigns
Undergraduate Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. - Critical evaluation of political campaign strategies and tactics within the sociopolitical environment. The roles of campaign managers, media consultants, pollsters, press secretaries, and field operatives are studied. Analysis of the impact of press coverage, political advertising, and candidate debates on the electorate. 4 cr. Either sem. -
COM CM 539: Health Campaigns
Undergraduate Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. - Health Campaigns involves the principles and practices of designing media campaigns to promote health behavior change, whether related to smoking and alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, physical activity and diet, condom use, public safety, and environmental issues. It centers on how health organizations and initiatives can achieve their goals for population-based health behavior change by strategically creating, distributing, and evaluating media campaigns and media messages. At the nexus of communication and public health, this course uses theory and persuasive elements as a basis for designing and implementing health media campaigns and media messages via different media, including traditional media, new media, and social media. With this foundation, students are tasked to evaluate extant health media campaigns and campaign messages and design their own original health media campaigns and campaign messages. -
COM CM 548: International Public Relations
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM215 or CM701) - This course focuses on the global practice of public relations with an emphasis on corporate and agency practice. A major goal of the course is to help students become knowledgeable about the ever-increasing development of public relations throughout the world and the opportunities it offers within corporations, government, business, and non-governmental organizations. (This course was formerly CM448; if you have taken CM448, you cannot take CM548.) (Undergrad prereq: CM215.) -
COM CM 551: Children and Media
In this course, we will work to synthesize and critically examine some of the major contemporary considerations for children¿s and teens¿ media use today. Are media bad for kids' Good for kids' Or does the answer depend on a variety of factors and what outcomes we are measuring' Together we will apply an interdisciplinary lens to examine (a) what we know ¿ and don¿t yet know ¿ about media in the lives of youth, and (b) where we envision the field of children¿s media needs to go. As we consider nuances and trends across the media uses and effects of diverse youth, we will carefully examine extant research, focusing on four angles: developmental considerations, media and education, media for well-being and connection, and the navigation and creation of media landscapes. We will consider how technological advancements, such as AI, and the evolving needs and priorities of young people come into play for child media use ¿ and how the research and industry worlds should respond. This class aims to prepare students to navigate topics around youth and media, to help build students¿ foundation for a variety of media-, education-, and research-related careers, and to hone students¿ ability to innovate in the design, use, study, and conversations around media for youth in an ever-expanding digital world. -
COM CM 555: Advanced Media Writing
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM331) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM707 OR COMCM703) - In-depth focus on promotional, client-based writing. Course includes developing story ideas and angles; writing off- and on-line feature stories and slide shows for trade, business, and special-interest market as well as researching and writing a treatment/script video package with accompanying brochure. Also includes numerous multimedia workshops. 4 cr. Either sem. -
COM CM 557: Media Effects
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM180 & COMCM321) - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM710) - This course introduces the study of the effects of media on individuals and on society. This course will overview a broad range of media theories that have examined media as a social force, that have explored factors that affect individuals' selection of and perceptions of media messages, and that have studied how media affect viewers' attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. These theories will be used to examine a variety of different types of content, including media violence, portrayals of race and gender, politics, advertising, and entertainment, among others. 4 cr., 1st sem. -
COM CM 561: Special Topics
Each section of this course will explore a different relevant topic in the field of mass communication, public relations, or advertising. Pre-requisites for each topic can be found in the class notes. Please contact the MCADVPR Department at mcadvpr@bu.edu for more information. -
COM CM 580: PRLab
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM215 & COMCM331) sophomore standing - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM701 & COMCM707) - PRLab at Boston University is the nation's oldest student run public relations agency. PRLab allows students to gain valuable industry experience in an agency style setting, working in the corporate, nonprofit and government sectors. Students engage in media relations, event planning, branding, copy editing, content creation and social media management. Over the course of the semester, students create professional portfolios. 2 or 4 cr. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Teamwork/Collaboration. -
COM CM 581: PRLab Executive Board
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM215 & COMCM331) consent of instructor - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM701 & COMCM707) - This course represents the management function of the student run PRLab. The PRLab Executive Board consists of a President, Vice President and several Account Supervisors, who work together to facilitate the overall success of the student- client interactions and PRLab as a whole. The E-Board is also responsible for PRLab's branding and new business acquisition. 2 or 4 cr. Effective Fall 2022, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Teamwork/Collaboration. -
COM CM 585: AdLab
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM217 or CM708) - Experience in student-run, full-service advertising agency. Students organize, manage, and perform all functions: solicit business, perform market and consumer research, contact clients, write plans, create advertising campaigns, evaluate media, and prepare campaign evaluations for community service agencies. Variable credit. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in the following Teamwork/Collaboration. -
COM CM 586: AdLab E-Board
Undergraduate Prerequisites: (COMCM217) Consent of Instructor - Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM708) Consent of Instructor - Experience is a student run, full service advertising agency. Students organize, manage and perform real world functions: solicit business from real world clients, perform market and consumer research, collaborate with clients, write strategic plans, create advertising campaigns that run in the real world, evaluate media and prepare client presentations. Student leaders operate as agency management collaborating with other students. Effective Fall 2023, this course fulfills a single unit in the following Teamwork/Collaboration. -
COM CM 700: Financial & Strategic Management for Communication Professionals
The focus of the course is on two critical domains of modern business: financial and strategic management. Through lectures, readings, case studies, and team projects, the course will introduce students to the complexities and challenges facing today's communications industry manager along with practical understanding of how businesses operate and even succeed despite the obstacles. The goal of the course is to help students understand the fundamentals of business enterprise with an emphasis on how these apply to the media industries. The course covers the fundamentals of a business plan, including revenue models, marketing, venture capital, finance, and accounting in the context of the media landscape. 1st sem. -
COM CM 701: Contemporary Public Relations
Foundations of professional principles and practice in public relations for corporate, governmental, and nonprofit organizations. Includes history, organization, and scope of the field; its roots in social science; types of campaigns and programs; and professional ethics. Theories, strategies, and tactics in current practice emphasized. Explores opportunities and requirements for work in the field. 1st sem. -
COM CM 703: Basic Media Writing
CM 703 Begins a graduate level, two-semester immersion in American English communication writing. Portfolio finale serves as a bridge assignment to CM 707 Writing for Media Professionals in the spring semester. Introduces basic communication writing formats, including news releases, social media, features, profiles. Emphasizes interviewing, target marketing and publication options. Stresses tenets of plagiarism across media. Strong focus on creating quality copy in American English, which necessitates extensive work in grammar exercises and brainstorming workshops, quizzes, presentations, class participation, collaborative projects. Students fine-tune their writing and speaking skills as they analyze and rewrite their own copy. -
COM CM 707: Writing for Media Professionals
Serves to provide an in-depth understanding and proficiency in communication writing and transmedia storytelling skills across a wide variety of off and online formats, including news releases, social media, features (off and online), Q & A interviews, websites, broadcast PSA's, slide shows, videos. Stresses plagiarism prevention, collaborative workshops, reading aloud, media strategies, editing, and interview techniques. Extensive writing and rewriting. Develops comprehensive writing skills for media professionals. Both semesters. Prerequisite CM 703, unless waived via writing placement test or consent of the instructor. -
COM CM 708: Principles and Practices of Advertising
Overview of the nature, function, practice, and social, economic, and behavioral aspects of advertising. Student teams develop advertising plans, create campaigns, and explore problems of account management, creativity, production, and ethics. 1st sem. -
COM CM 709: Corporate Public Affairs
Graduate Prerequisites: (COMCM701) - Monitoring sociopolitical environment, managing corporate crises and confrontations, analyzing issues, formulating political strategies, developing programs of advocacy advertising, constituency communication, and public involvement. Case studies used. 2nd sem.
