57140 Professional Industry Review

Handbook description

This subject allows students to develop their professional skills through completion of an internship or critical evaluation of current practice. It enables students to undertake further studies in their area of professional and or scholarly interest in the field of communication management. Students further develop their critical and analytical skills in communication management appropriate to working in consultancy and advanced management roles, and extend and deepen their conceptual understandings of communication management.

Students undertake either an internship or critical production and submit a portfolio of reflective practice. The portfolio consists of two major pieces of professional work, each accompanied by a critical evaluation, relating the student's professional work to the theories and skills covered in modules undertaken during the course. The portfolio provides a framework for developing the ability to reflect critically on practice through the application of different models of reflection.

Subject objectives/outcomes

On completion of this subject students are expected to be able to:

1. demonstrate a range of practical experience in public relations and communication management
2. demonstrate understanding of theoretical concepts and professional practices relevant to their research and work experience
3. document and present evidence of critical reflection on professional and scholarly practice
4. produce competent, appropriate written material in a professional context.

Contribution to graduate profile

This subject provides students with:

• a good understanding of the nature of communication and communication management through a broad range of theories and paradigms
• a sensitivity to ethical and legal issues related to communication
• an understanding of organisational culture and climate factors and the ability to diagnose communication problems and engage in change management
• the ability to choose and use appropriate research methods for communication professionals
• the capacity to be international in perspective
• a capacity to critically reflect on their learning and professional communication practice
• an understanding of communication management in local and international contexts
• competency in analysing research data and designing and evaluating research proposals for problem solving.

Teaching and learning strategies

While the teaching strategies used in this subject will include seminars, group and class discussion and individual consultation, the basic aim is to develop a 'community of practice'. Interaction between students, both within and outside formal class sessions, and between students and their lecturer/supervisor will be strongly encouraged. Students are expected to be interested in and to contribute to each other's endeavours in a supportive yet challenging way, with the ultimate goal that each student successfully develops and completes a high quality project.

Workshops will focus on relevant communication research design and methodologies. Individual consultation will provide students with advice and feedback on controlling and developing their research projects.

Content

Students will participate in an initial briefing covering industry/contextual issues, what is critical practice. Three work in progress workshops will be scheduled during the semester, as well as an end of semester mini conference for the presentation of results. Additional content areas are a matter for discussion and negotiation between the student and the subject coordinator.

Students will undertake a professional project comprising either:

• an internship program of no less than 80 hours, which includes a research component related to the work of the client or hosting organisation. This could be campaign based research, measurement or evaluation research or another form of research that either informs practice or evaluates it. The internship component will involve attending the organisation for the stated number of hours, the establishment and completion of a learning contract, an internship journal and a portfolio or work, which will be submitted as appendices to assessment item 2. A separate handout detailing the internship requirements will be provided, or
• critical production including a sample of work and detailed evaluative appraisal of the work sample in the context of current industry theory and practice. This is to be accompanied by an exegesis.

Assessment

Assessment item 1: Seminar Presentations

Assessment item 2: Practice Review Paper

Assessment item 3: Presentation of results at student mini conference

Minimum requirements

Students are expected to read the subject outline to ensure they are familiar with the subject requirements. You are expected to initiate, attend, arrive punctually and actively participate in all scheduled meetings or classes. If you experience difficulties meeting this requirement, please contact your lecturer. Students who have a reason for extended absence (e.g. illness) may be required to complete additional work to ensure they achieve the subject objectives.

Indicative references

Boje, D. 2001, Narrative Methods for Organizational and Communication Research, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Brown, S. Durning, D. & Selden, S. 1999, 'Q methodology', in G. Miller & M. Whicker (eds), Handbook of Research Methods in Public Administration, Marcel Dekker, New York, pp. 599-637.

Denzin, N. & Lincoln, Y. (eds) 2000, Handbook of Qualitative Research, 2nd edn, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

de Vans, D. 1995, Surveys in Social Research, 4th edn, Allen and Unwin, Singapore.

Ely, M. 1997, Doing Qualitative Research: Circles within Circles, The Palmer Press, London.

Frey, L. Botan, C. & Kreps, G. 2000, Investigating Communication: An introduction to Research Methods, 2nd edn, Allyn & Bacon, Boston.

Hart, C. 1998, Doing a Literature Review, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Herndon, S. & Kreps, G. 2001, Qualitative Research: Applications to Organisational Life, Hampton Press, New Jersey.

Howitt, D. & Cramer, D. 2005, Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology, Pearson, New York.

Littlejohn S. & Foss, K. 2008, Theories of Human Communication, 9th edn, Thomson-Wadsworth, Belmont, CA.

Malhotra, N. Hall, J. Shaw, M. & Oppenheim, P. 2002, Marketing Research: An Applied Orientation, 2nd edn, Prentice Hall, Australia.

Mann, C. & Stewart, F. 2002, Internet Communication and Qualitative Research: A Handbook for Researching Online, Sage Publications,, London.

Marshall, C. 2006, Designing Qualitative Research, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Mickey, T. 2004, Deconstructing Public Relations: Public Relations Criticism, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Hillside, NJ.

Neuman, W. 2006, Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches, Pearson, New York.

Page, C. & Meyer, D. 2000, Applied Research Design for Business and Management, McGraw-Hill, Australia.

Reinard, J. 1998, Introduction to Communication Research, 2nd edn, McGraw Hill, Boston, MA.

Richards, L. 2005, Handling Qualitative Data: A Practical Guide, Sage, London.

Rubin, R. Rubin, A. & Piele, L. 1996, Communication Research: Strategies and Sources, 4th edn, Wadsworth, Belmont, CA.

Sproull, N. 1995, Handbook of Research Methods, 2nd edn, Scarecrow Press, London.

Stacks, D. 2002, Primer of Public Relations Research, The Guilford Press, New York.

Williams, F. & Monge, P. 2001, Reasoning With Statistics: How to Read Quantitative Research, Harcout Inc. FL.

Wimmer, R. 2006, Mass Media Research: An Introduction, Thomson-Wadsworth, Belmont, CA.

Yin, R. 2003, Case Study Research: Design and Methods, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Yin, R. 2003, Applications of Case Study Research, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.

Journals
Advertising Research
Communication Theory
Communication Yearbook
International Public Relations Review
Journal of Advertising
Journal of Communication
Human Communication Research
Journal of Public Relations Research
Public Relations Quarterly
Public Relations Review
Total Communication Measurement