Business Communication - College of Business
Pathways for Communication Skill-Building
Business Communication Course
Business Studies BUSN:230 (3 Credits)
Business Communication is a course requirement for all College of Business majors. Our Business Communication faculty expertly combine scholarly communication theory with applicable professional experience. Students will obtain the knowledge and ability to use writing and oral communication skills in a professional environment to effectively persuade others and to mobilize action among various organizational stakeholders. With defined learning outcomes centered on presentational communication, interactions in the workplace, and business writing, our Business Communication coursework equips students with the necessary tools to fulfill communicator roles as educator, analyzer, and as change catalyst.
Business Communication Programming (COMMventions)
A significant portion of our unique EDGE professional development offerings is communication focused. Our COMMventions program combines our exciting Communication in Practice speaker series, a slate of discussion topics and co-curricular workshops, as well as other enriching opportunities for students to compete, self-reflect, and analyze the communication of others. Tied directly into our EDGE program is the COMMventions Badge. This achievement combines communication conventions with inventive ideas to enhance presentations and professional writing. In addition to supplementing our Business Communication learning outcomes, COMMventions takes a holistic and scholarly approach, covering topics in persuasion, argumentation, and rhetoric in business contexts.
Competitive Communication
Business communication is at the heart of professional development. In order to provide added value to our students’ breadth of opportunities, we offer numerous options in competitive communication, allowing our students to Experience Business at both the national and local levels.
UA College of Business Speech and Debate Team
The UA College of Business Speech and Debate Team is nationally competitive and nationally ranked. We participate in numerous regional national qualifying tournaments throughout our competitive season, as well as participate in all tournaments sponsored by the Ohio Forensics Association and the American Forensic Association National Speech Tournament. All undergraduate students, regardless of major, are eligible to audition for the team. With a focus on advocacy and argumentation, the team has a “business-centric” approach, giving students the opportunity to compete in public address, international public debate, limited preparation speaking, and interpretation of literature performances.
At the 2023 Ohio Forensics Association State Championship Tournament, the UA CoB Speech and Debate Team won the state championship Quality Award.
For more information about the UA College of Business Speech and Debate Team, please contact program director Mark Rittenour, at mritten@uakron.edu.
In-house business case competition
The University of Akron College of Business values the student experience and recognizes business case competitions as an integral component of that experience. To that end, we are committed to hosting our own competition for business majors. With an annual corporate sponsor/client, student teams draft a comprehensive business plan and vie for prize money, internship opportunities, valuable business acumen, and more.
The 2022-2023 business case competition, The Industrial Ecosystem Challenge, is sponsored by Continental Corporation. Students are challenged to create a business plan to meet the needs of the evolving industrial fluid systems sector.
Our “i” is on COMM
The University of Akron College of Business has our “eye” on cutting-edge approaches to Business Communication. Our students are taught that they are part of the conversation, so collectively, our “I” is on COMM.
Our “i” is on COMM is CoB’s contemporary “lens” for Business Communication
Components at the Center of Communicative Success:
Business Communication: An Investment in Student Success
The University of Akron College of Business views Business Communication programming as a necessary investment in student success and our students’ future professional marketability. Our in-house Business Communication Practitioner gives invited presentations in courses across our CoB curriculum and offers co-curricular workshops and one-on-one communication coaching sessions.
As part of our student-centered professional development opportunities, the College of Business has formed a licensing agreement with PitchVantage: Better Practice. Better Presentations. Current students wishing to use PitchVantage for presentation and interviewing practice can contact Mark Rittenour, Business Communication Practitioner, at mritten@uakron.edu.