Course

Read about the Master Programme and find the Study Regulations at ruc.dk

You register for activities through stads selvbetjening during the announced registration period, which you can see on the Study administration homepage.

When registering for courses, please be aware of the potential conflicts and overlaps between course and exam time and dates. The planning of course activities at Roskilde University is based on the recommended study programmes, which should not overlap. However, if you choose optional courses and/or study plans that goes beyond the recommended study programmes, an overlap of lectures or exam dates may occur depending on which courses you choose.

The course contains presentation and critical discussion as well as testing knowledge of a defined media and communication subject area/field of activity, including presentation and discussion of current concepts, theories, and research methods, possibly in collaboration with practitioners within the field.

This elective course belongs to bloc 2. We recommend that you choose one elective per bloc. This way, you avoid overlaps in classes and exam periods.

Note: This elective course belongs to bloc 2. We recommend that you choose one elective per bloc. This way, you avoid overlaps in classes and exam periods.

Course description: Where there are organizations, there is rhetoric: persuasive communication aimed at influencing the organization's external as well as internal stakeholders. In this course, we primarily (but not exclusively) focus on an internal perspective. More specifically, we start from the assumption that all organizations have their own unique ways of thinking, talking, and acting; that these 'organizational cultures' can be as different from one another as those described by anthropologists telling tales about different ways of living in distant lands; and that different organizational cultures lay the foundation for different rhetorical patterns regarding what members of the culture do (or do not) talk about, whom they do (or do not) talk with, how they do (or do not) speak to each other, and what they typically do (or do not) lie about.

In short, the course begins with a discussion of various perspectives on the relationship between organizational culture and rhetoric. Subsequently, the cultural perspective on organizational rhetoric is expanded and challenged by gradually incorporating alternative theoretical traditions. The course introduces the central concepts and frameworks of organizational rhetoric, aiming to present an arsenal of communication techniques: the art of thinking about communication on different levels, framing it from different angles, and formulating it according to the rules of different communication genres.

The course adopts a practical, strategic perspective on communication: The course emphasizes knowledge that can be applied in practice. Therefore, students work with cases throughout the semester, applying the course's theoretical concepts and methodologies to concrete empirical realities. The course's theoretical basis is organizational rhetoric, but we understand this in a broad sense.

All the required and recommended reading will be available on Moodle

The total study effort for the student (ECTS points converted into hours) = 270 hours.

The hours are divided as follows:

• Course teaching: 40 hours

• Preparation: 150 hours

• Exam, including preparation: 60 hours

• Other activities: 20 hours (semester start, literature search, etc.

In principle, teaching activities take place on campus. The teaching can be arranged so that one or more activities take place elsewhere than at Roskilde University. This can also be online.

Standardized evaluation in accordance with the rotating evaluation scheme implemented by the Study Board. https://intra.ruc.dk/nc/en/employees/organisation/councils-and-committes/list-of-study-boards/board-of-studies-for-the-communication-programmes/work-on-quality-in-the-education-programme/the-study-boards-evaluation-practice/

At the end of the course, the student is able to:

• Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of a defined subject area/field of activity within media and communication, including nuanced knowledge of current forms of practice in relation to the subject area.

• Identify and account for current theories of relevance to the subject area/field of activity, including understanding of important communication professional concepts.

• Identify and account for current methods used to study the subject area/field of activity and its central communication professional issues.

• independently and reflectively translate theoretical perspectives and methodological approaches into a concrete communication professional practice

• Independently take responsibility for one's own professional development.

The exam is an individual, written assignment assigned by the course instructor. The assignment must meet all formal requirements. Emphasis in its assessment is placed on the extent to which the student can:

• Select, account for, and apply relevant theories, concepts, and models to identify, analyse, and evaluate a given communication problem.

• Analytically and critically reflect upon the chosen theories, concepts, and models.

• Outline and explain different approaches or perspectives on how to address problems around mediated communication, and how these relate to each other.

• Formulate the exam in a professionally precise and clear manner that demonstrates mastery of academic standards for written presentations. __ Students may use ChatGPT or similar LLMs in specific ways, and for specific purposes, that will be discussed during the course.