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Classes are designed to challenge your thinking and develop your professional skills. You’ll leave each class with a unique set of tools to approach new communications challenges.

Tailor your experience to your career goals by focusing on one of eight areas of specialization. Use the search widget below to sort classes by quarter, specialization, instructor and degree track for each quarter. Get a comprehensive view of the full academic year in our Course Guide.

View the University of Washington Academic Calendar for important dates, including quarter start and end dates, registration dates and deadlines, and campus holidays.

Registration numbers (SLNs) are located on the Time Schedule. Please read the Department’s statement on internet resource requirements for access to courses.

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COMMLD 535: Foundations of Audio Storytelling (e.g. Podcasting)

(

Partnow

)

- 2024-2025 | Spring 2025

Track Neutral | 5 Credits
Tuesdays 4/1 – 6/3, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | CMU 302
SLN: 12584

Course Description

The podcasting industry has surged in recent years, with podcasts also becoming an increasingly important part of marketing and communication campaigns. Since it is the only medium that audiences can consume while engaged in a multitude of other activities, audio storytelling has a unique advantage to inform, entertain and call to action.

This course will teach you how to use audio to tell a powerful story. You will learn how to create your own short sound-rich, nonfiction audio story driven by characters and scenes. You will move through the process of research, reporting, interviewing, writing, editing, and mixing an audio story, as well as pitching a story for radio or podcast. By the end of the class you will have a working knowledge of the basics of audio storytelling and production. You will feel more confident about how to support visual storytelling with audio, as well as how to work with a larger production team on audio projects.

This course is a good match for students who:

• Are seeking an individualized, project-based course

• Want foundational storytelling and editing skills that can translate into any medium

• Would like to learn how audio can elevate and transform storytelling

This class greatly elevated my ability to concisely tell stories!—Jacob Christensen, Foundations of Video and Advanced Video Practicum Instructor, and MCDM cohort ‘15 alumni

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COMMLD 560A: Inclusive Design & Product Equity

(

Liu

)

- 2023-2024 | Summer 2024

Track Neutral | Meets Law & Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Mondays 6/17 – 8/12, 5:30pm – 9:20pm | CMU 126
Registration SLN: 14185

Course Description:

This course offers a comprehensive exploration of the critical intersection between Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and technology. In an era where technology such as artificial intelligence and machine learning plays an ever-expanding role in shaping our world, we should interrogate who gets to build it, use it, and profit from it. As future technology leaders it is imperative to not only be well versed in DEI but to create necessary solutions that democratize technology rather than allow it to perpetuate systems of inequality.

Meets Law & Ethics Requirement.

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COMMLD 540C/D: Public Speaking & Presenting with Impact

(

)

- 2025-2026 | Winter 2026

Open Elective | 2 or 3 Credits
Wednesdays, 1/7 – 3/11, 6:00pm – 7:50pm | Room on Time Schedule
2-credit 540C Registration SLN: 22027
3-credit 540D Registration SLN: 22028

Course Description

Skilled presenters have the power to move people and inspire change. Becoming a more effective and dynamic public speaker means making the complex accessible, connecting the dots for your audience, and developing confidence over canned answers.  By using storytelling and other communications strategies to become a better presenter, you’ll resonate with your audience in new and more meaningful ways.

In this course, you’ll learn how to grab attention immediately, the importance of simplifying your visuals, and why it’s critical to know your message well enough to speak directly to your audience — not to your notes and not to your screen.  We’ll address the mistakes most people make, and how to avoid them to ensure that you’re communicating with poise, confidence and conviction in a way that captivates your audience.

Whether it’s over Zoom or winning over the room, by mastering your public speaking skills you will learn to overcome doubt, increase your confidence and find your voice.

Note: 540C is the 2 credit version; 540D is the 3 credit version. The 3-credit version will include additional presentation assignments and deliverables.

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COMMLD 570: Leadership at All Levels

(

Myers

)

- 2022-2023 | Autumn 2022

Track Neutral | 3 Credits
Wednesdays 09/28-12/07, 6:00PM – 8:20PM | DEN 213
Registration SLN: 13033

Course Description:

Leadership shows up everywhere, every day–and it is open to us all. Building on the Comm Lead leadership coursework, this course will take the theoretical development of one’s leadership style and bring it into practice with one’s work style. Classes will focus on mini-workshops around the following topics: decision-making processes, presentation skills, practical communications, how-to be a team player (including how-to run a meeting, how-to write an email), and drafting your optimum work experience. Students will complete the class knowing how to address bias and success inhibitors within any organization; develop skills for collaborative and successful leadership at any level; and understand how to empower their workplace for everyone. Guest speakers will share stories from leadership perspectives at different companies and how they approach their own development and empowerment.

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COMMLD 551: The Law and Ethics of Community Building

(

Tausch Lapora

)

- 2022-2023 | Spring 2023

MCCN Elective | Meets Law & Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Wednesdays 3/29 – 5/31, 6:00PM – 9:50PM | DEN 258
SLN: 12567

Course Description

All organizations — private, public and nonprofit — inevitably encounter legal and ethical challenges when building and engaging with their communities and networks. Leaders must be able to identify, anticipate, and problem solve how to legally and ethically create, grow, and maintain organizations. This course considers and juxtaposes the legal and ethical realities of community building through a cross-sector approach, particularly by utilizing racial equity and anti-oppression frameworks and grounding in behavioral ethics (decision-making and heuristics). We will survey a wide array of case studies, many with a social justice backdrop, in which law and ethics may overlap, conflict, or contain gaps. We will engage in simulations, real-world scenarios and games to maximize understanding of the impact of law and ethics on organizational communications to clients, customers and constituencies. Throughout the course, you are encouraged to bring in legal and ethical issues from your professional experiences to enrich discussion of course topics. No prior experience in law is required.

Meets Law & Ethics Requirement.

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COMMLD 551: The Law & Ethics of Organizations

(

Tausch

)

- 2024-2025 | Spring 2025

MCCN Elective | Meets Law & Ethics OR Research Methods Requirement | 5 Credits
Thursdays 4/3 – 5/29*, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | CMU 302
SLN: 12588

Course Description

All organizations — private, public and nonprofit — inevitably encounter legal and ethical challenges when building and engaging with their communities and networks. Leaders must be able to identify, anticipate, and problem solve how to legally and ethically create, grow, and maintain organizations. This course examines the legal and ethical realities of leadership through a cross-sector approach, particularly by utilizing racial equity and anti-oppression frameworks and grounding in behavioral ethics (decision-making and heuristics). We will survey a wide array of case studies, many with a social justice backdrop, in which law and ethics may overlap, conflict, or contain gaps. We will engage in simulations and consider real-world scenarios to maximize understanding of the impact of law and ethics on organizational communications to clients, customers and constituencies. Throughout the course, you are encouraged to bring in legal and ethical issues from your professional experiences to enrich discussion of course topics. No prior experience in law is required.

Meets Law & Ethics Requirement OR Research Methods Requirement

Note: This course will end on 5/29 instead of 6/5 for Screen Summit. Asynchronous work will be included to make up for that session.

There’s a reason that final projects from this course consistently are nominated for the Comm Lead Department of Communication Research Award (one of B. Tausch’s students won in 2023), and it has all to do with the superb design of the course and how students are motivated by B.’s committed and thoughtful instruction to produce award-winning work. Legal studies can feel like another language, but not in this class: B. makes great use of real world scenarios to bring law and ethics alive in a professional communication context. — Anita Verna Crofts, Comm Lead Artist in Residence

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COMMLD 541B: Crisis Communication

(

)

- 2025-2026 | Winter 2026

Open Elective | Meets Law and Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Tuesdays, 1/6 – 3/10, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | Room on Time Schedule
Registration SLN: 12654

Course Description

Crisis communications is about much more than “spin.”  Crises will happen – in government, in the corporate sector, in nonprofits and political campaigns.  What will differentiate you as a communicator is your ability to plan for it, navigate it in real time, and learn something from it.  There is opportunity in crisis.  A crisis forces us to look inside ourselves, at our policies, at our practices, and at how we do our business.

Of course, crisis communications has always been tough; social media and the advent of generative AI have just made it tougher.  We will navigate the latest cultural challenges, from “cancel culture” to messaging in our polarized society.  In this course, we will look at before the crisis (including planning), how we respond during the crisis (this includes the critical crisis communications plan) and after (this is where we cover actions one must take afterwards, including how to repair the damage done).  The class is designed to look at crises in various sectors and will include participation from professionals in the field.

Meets Law and Ethics Requirement.

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COMMLD 543: Leadership Approaches to Equity Initiatives in Organizations

(

)

- 2025-2026 | Winter 2026

MCCN Elective | Meets Law and Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Wednesdays, 1/7 – 3/11, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | Room on Time Schedule
Registration SLN: 12655

Course Description

In this leadership development course students grow intra-personally in order to more effectively communicate and collaborate to change organizational systems and cultural norms toward greater equity, justice, diversity, access, belonging, and inclusion.

The course is designed to meet students where they are and coach for growth in self-awareness, communication skills, and comprehension of equity concepts. Students learn interactively together in order to explore interconnections among dimensions of our intersectional identities and experiences of power, and to expand our collective understanding of how organizations, and the people within them, function within larger societal systems of power.

Dual tracks of learning structure the quarter: shared equity related content learning and independent individually-bespoke topical inquiry. Students transform their understanding of their identities and agency, gain confidence for communicating about often-taboo topics, experience iterative reflection as a social justice practice, and expand their comprehension of the distinct roles of individuals, groups, organizations, and societal structures in making genuine system change.

Sarah’s course was intentional and thought-provoking and provided me with the tools to assess and navigate current and future workplace dynamics. I am now able to critically question and analyze organizational health.–AK Sterling, MCCN cohort ‘19 alumni

Meets Law and Ethics Requirement.

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COMMLD 560A: Communicating Across Power and Identities

(

Ross

)

- 2023-2024 | Spring 2024

Track Neutral | 2 Credits
Wednesdays 3/27 – 5/29, 6:00pm – 7:50pm | DEN 213
Registration SLN: 12571

Course Description:

This course provides a primer on equity concepts, such as identity, power, privilege, and systems of oppression. Through reflective writing and facilitated discussions of curated readings, students explore how their identities impact their effectiveness in communicating across interpersonal difference. Designed for students who seek a welcoming space in which to learn modes of inquiry for iterative self-preparation for collaborations across power and identities.

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COMMLD 591: Independent Research

(

)

- 2023-2024 | Summer 2024

Track Neutral | 1-5 Credits
Application Required

Course Description:

Independent Research projects are student-driven, with faculty serving in a loose advisory capacity. This option is for students with a clear project in mind who will only need minimal faculty support to accomplish their end goal. See complete details and application instructions on the Guide to Independent Research page.

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COMMLD 560A: Wellness Narratives

(

Bradshaw

)

- 2024-2025 | Autumn 2024

Track Neutral | Meets Research Methods Requirement | 5 Credits
Mondays 9/30 – 12/2, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | DEN 113
Registration SLN: 13072

Course Description

“Wellness” is one of those buzzwords that hovers over the top of various pop culture and advertising we consume. It’s a concept that permeates much of how we live and work in the world, and can often feel like a given. But what does “Wellness” actually mean? This course will dive deep into wellness and well-being as central concepts to mental, physical, and emotional modes of health in the 21st century. The goal is for communication professionals to better understand how modern “Wellness” campaigns connect all the way back to early 20th century American advertising campaigns, and why this history matters.

Yes, we will talk about GOOP, reflect upon Soul Cycle, and different popular diets like Paleo and Keto. But we will also explore them through a historical, cultural, economic and technological framework that connects the current moment to 20th century cultural anxieties of the physical and mental body, including the focus on losing unwanted weight and detoxifying the body from various ailments. Other wellness topics for the course will include productivity, health, corporate and social responsibility, clutter, burnout, and more.  

The final assignment helps showcase the student’s ability to do preliminary research while taking complex ideas and distilling them into an understandable presentation for an executive audience. We will do weekly reflective journal exercises throughout the quarter that engage with the readings and screenings from the course. Come prepared to engage in discussion, deep dive into wellness research, and hone your writing skills!

Meets Research Methods Requirement.

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COMMLD 562: Communication for Advocacy

(

)

- 2025-2026 | Winter 2026

MCCN Elective | Meets Law and Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Thursdays, 1/8 – 3/12, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | Room on Time Schedule
Registration SLN: 12660

Course Description:

This course is focused on ”integrated advocacy,” which is a strategy of communicating one’s advocacy efforts through multiple channels – like the marriage equality movement, net neutrality efforts by Google, Facebook and Netflix, and the passage of the Affordable Care Act of 2010.

This is a hands-on course. You will develop part of an integrated advocacy campaign working for a client in this class. Real-life challenges and advocacy needs of our clients will allow us to use integrated advocacy model in an applied sense. We will build stories around goals and solutions. We will come up with advocacy tactics and create an advocacy campaign that will ignite change.

The course will help you develop immersive storytelling skills, and practice community organizing. You will learn persuasive communication and engagement methods, and how to pack a punch with a campaign aimed at making change. Guest speakers and mentors with experience spearheading campaigns will serve as guides throughout the quarter. The course will culminate with a short advocacy pitch session.

“Changing the world” gets a lot of lip service – this class actually teaches you how to do it! Sejal’s experience on successful advocacy campaigns like the $15 minimum wage provides a backdrop for instruction in tested strategies and techniques that can be deployed to move the needle at the community, social and policy level. Watching my fellow students’ presentations at the end of the quarter, I felt like we were all really well equipped to go out and have a positive impact like never before.  — Alex Stonehill, Associate Director, MCCN Cohort 19

Meets Law & Ethics requirement.

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COMMLD 560A: Communicating Across Power and Identities

(

Ross

)

- 2022-2023 | Spring 2023

Track Neutral | 2 Credits
Mondays 3/27-6/05, 6:00PM – 7:50PM | DEN 212
SLN: 21584

Course Description:

This course provides a primer on concepts of identity, power, privilege, and systems of oppression. Through reflective writing and facilitated discussions of curated readings students explore how their personal and professional identities impact their effectiveness in communicating across interpersonal difference. Designed to welcome those who may have previously avoided discussing uncomfortable topics, this introductory course empowers students with modes of inquiry that enable their essential self-examination and self-preparation for any future equity-related organizational collaborations.

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COMMLD 562: Communication for Advocacy

(

Parikh

)

- 2024-2025 | Winter 2025

MCCN Elective | Meets Law & Ethics Requirement | 5 Credits
Thursdays 1/9 – 3/13, 6:00pm – 9:50pm | CMU 242
Registration SLN: 12720

Course Description:

This course is focused on ”integrated advocacy,” which is a strategy of communicating one’s advocacy efforts through multiple channels – like the marriage equality movement, net neutrality efforts by Google, Facebook and Netflix, and the passage of the Affordable Care Act of 2010. You will develop part of an integrated advocacy campaign working for a client in this class. Real-life challenges and advocacy needs of our clients will allow us to use integrated advocacy model in an applied sense. We will build stories around goals and solutions. We will come up with advocacy tactics and create an advocacy campaign that will ignite change. This is a hands-on course. The course will help you develop immersive storytelling skills, and practice community organizing. You will learn persuasive communication and engagement methods, and how to pack a punch with a campaign aimed at making change. Guest speakers and mentors with experience spearheading campaigns will serve as guides throughout the quarter. The course will culminate with a short advocacy pitch session.

“Changing the world” gets a lot of lip service – this class actually teaches you how to do it! Sejal’s experience on successful advocacy campaigns like the $15 minimum wage provides a backdrop for instruction in tested strategies and techniques that can be deployed to move the needle at the community, social and policy level. Watching my fellow students’ presentations at the end of the quarter, I felt like we were all really well equipped to go out and have a positive impact like never before.  — Alex Stonehill, Associate Director, MCCN Cohort 19

Meets Law & Ethics requirement.

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COMMLD 563: Multicultural Marketing: Creating Equitable and Inclusive Communications

(

Park

)

- 2022-2023 | Spring 2023

MCCN Elective | 5 Credits
Saturdays 4/8, 4/22, 5/6, 5/20, 6/3, 9:00AM – 5:00PM | Online
SLN: 12569

Course Description

This course will take a close look at the evolution of multicultural marketing, industry best practices and foundational strategies related to multicultural communications. We will explore how agencies and companies have adapted, pivoted and transformed the way brands and organizations engage with diverse audiences. You’ll learn how to build marketing campaigns that are rooted in principles of diversity, equity and inclusion. Additionally, we’ll learn how to craft campaigns that are responsive to the increasingly diverse marketplace and ever-changing marketing landscape.

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COMMLD 560C: Wellness Narratives

(

Bradshaw

)

- 2023-2024 | Autumn 2023

Track Neutral | Meets Research Methods Requirement | 5 Credits
Mondays 10/2-12/4, 6:00PM – 9:50PM | DEN 212
Registration SLN: 13020

Course Description

“Wellness” is one of those buzzwords that hovers over the top of various pop culture and advertising we consume. It’s a concept that permeates much of how we live and work in the world, and can often feel like a given. But what does “Wellness” actually mean? This course will dive deep into wellness and well-being as central concepts to mental, physical, and emotional modes of health in the 21st century. The goal is for communication professionals to better understand how modern “Wellness” campaigns connect all the way back to early 20th century American advertising campaigns, and why this history matters.

Yes, we will talk about GOOP, reflect upon Soul Cycle, and different popular diets like Paleo and Keto. But we will also explore them through a historical, cultural, economic and technological framework that connects the current moment to 20th century cultural anxieties of the physical and mental body, including the focus on losing unwanted weight and detoxifying the body from various ailments. Other wellness topics for the course will include productivity, health, corporate and social responsibility, clutter, burnout, and more.  

The final assignment helps showcase the student’s ability to do preliminary research while taking complex ideas and distilling them into an understandable presentation for an executive audience. We will do weekly reflective journal exercises throughout the quarter that engage with the readings and screenings from the course. Come prepared to engage in discussion, deep dive into wellness research, and hone your writing skills!

Meets Research Methods Requirement.

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© Copyright 2025 Department of Communication. University of Washington

© Copyright 2025 Department of Communication. University of Washington