Course Requirements

The Core and General Education Curricula are designed to provide an academic foundation for work toward the major field of study and should be completed as early as possible. All freshmen are required to take the core curriculum at Samford. All students should be registered for UCCP 101 in their first semester. They should also register for UCCA 101 or UCCA 102, depending on their placement. Students should consult their academic advisors for recommended scheduling. The prerequisite for UCCA 102 is UCCA 101. Students must make at least a C- to pass both courses, and students do not qualify for UCCA 102 until they pass UCCA 101. Making a C- in UCCA 102 meets the requirement for writing proficiency.

General Requirements

Every Communication Arts course requires students to write a minimum of 16 to 20 pages, or 3,600 to 4,500 words, over four essays; to deliver a variety of speeches; to read nonfiction essays; to develop computer skills; and to take a final exam (UCCA 102). In-class writing and group exercises are also required.

Writing Component

In UCCA 101 students write four essays: a personal narrative essay that focuses on students’ own personal experiences; an annotated bibliography and source evaluation that prepares students for an upcoming research paper; a research-based position essay that builds off the research performed in the previous assignment; and a reflection essay that asks students to reach conclusions about the external world. The techniques of research and documentation will be emphasized to prepare students for academic writing.

UCCA 102 focuses on writing research-based persuasive arguments. Students write four essays: an annotated bibliography and literature review analyzing the debate surrounding a specific topic and preparing students for an upcoming argumentative research paper; a position essay taking a stand on a significant issue and building off the research from the previous annotated bibliography assignment; a proposal essay advocating a solution to a problem; and an analysis essay reviewing some form of media (film, news, art, etc.).

Speech Component

Speeches in Communication Arts are intended to support students' writing activities. Most of the essays will be accompanied by an oral activity. Students will deliver two individual speeches in UCCA 101, a personal narrative speech and a position speech. They will also participate in a panel presentation speech for one other essay and deliver some shorter special occasion speeches. In UCCA 102, students will deliver one individual speech using PowerPoint presentation software. Students will also participate in a panel discussion with a small group.

Technology Component

Since much of the writing in Communication Arts is research based, instructors will often make use of Samford's computer labs, guiding student research using the library’s databases. In addition, students will learn to employ visual aids in their written and oral presentations, integrating graphs, tables, or photographs. Students will also create PowerPoint slideshows for their presentations combining all of these elements.