Immerse yourself in the ancient beauty of Rome! SAI students studying at JCU select 4 or 5 courses from the wide range of disciplines offered for a total of 12 - 17 credits. Courses available include Art History, Business, Political Science, and Communication, among many others. Semester students have the option of enrolling in the SAI Global Leadership Certificate, or completing a part-time internship, to further their academic and community involvement.
Application open until: October 1 , 2024
Application Requirements
Complete online application
Personal statement (300-500 words)
Transcript
Digital photo (passport style)
Passport copy (photo & signature page)
Italian privacy consent form
Supplemental JCU privacy consent form
Highlights
- Earn a Global Leadership Certificate or Certificate in Entrepreneurship
- Attend a US-accredited University in the Eternal City of Rome
- Explore courses in Race and Gender, Art History, Engineering, and more
Program Dates
January 15, 2025 – May 10, 2025
Eligibility Requirements
Age: 18+
Academic Year: High school graduate or above
* contact SAI if you don’t meet requirements
Cumulative GPA:* 2.5 (on a 4.0 scale)
English Language:* Non-native English language speakers must submit TOEFL: 85+ (internet based) or IELTS: 6.5+.
Art & Design | Studio Art
Art History and Archaeology | Archeology
Art History and Archaeology | Art History
Arts and Humanities | Theater and Film Studies
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Business
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Law
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Management
Business, Law, Management, and Marketing | Marketing
Classical Studies | Classical Studies
Communications, Media Studies, and Journalism | Communications
Communications, Media Studies, and Journalism | Journalism
Communications, Media Studies, and Journalism | Media Studies
Computer Science, Mathematics, and Natural Science | Computer Science
Computer Science, Mathematics, and Natural Science | Mathematics
Computer Science, Mathematics, and Natural Science | Natural Science
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | Creative Writing
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | English Composition
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | English Language
Creative Writing, English Composition, Literature, and Language | English Literature
Economics and Finance | Economics
Economics and Finance | Finance
Foreign Languages | French Language
Foreign Languages | Italian Language
Foreign Languages | Latin Language
Foreign Languages | Spanish Language
History and Humanities | History
History and Humanities | Humanistic Studies
Philosophy and Religious Studies | Philosophy
Philosophy and Religious Studies | Religious Studies
Political Science | Political Science
Social Sciences: Sociology and Psychology | Psychology
Social Sciences: Sociology and Psychology | Sociology
The course focuses both on the practical and the theoretical aspects of Poster Design. It will address how to develop graphical concepts in order to bring a coherent message across for didactic purposes, campaigns, exhibitions, or events, and it will examine poster design from an historical and aesthetic point-of view. Technical practice includes an in-depth study of typography, composition, color, photography, and illustration. A basic competence in visual communication, including the major Graphic Design programs, is expected from students who wish to take this course.
Students with prior painting experience follow their personal lines of research; instruction is through group critiques and individual tutoring. Visits to museums and art exhibitions help students discover their own relationships with artistic traditions.
The aim of this course is to provide the theoretical knowledge and practical skills necessary to conceive, plan and produce a creative photographic project. Each student will work on a photography research project that may concern: nature photography, architecture, portraiture, fashion and beauty, photojournalism, landscape, etc. Students should already have a basic competence in black and white photography including developing and printing techniques and will experience advanced creative darkroom techniques. Further instruction will involve the use of Photo Shop software for the digital manipulation of images. Assignments will help students to begin to acquire specific skills and knowledge sought in the professional workplace.
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The main objective of the course is to prepare students to learn the use of the NEW CAMERAS, their settings, and the new perspectives in photography given by the use of specific SOFTWARE. The students will be able to create their own Portfolio, including eight/ten photos, and a one written page explanation of their work. In this part of the course the teacher and the fellow classmates following two criteria will critique the works: Techniques and Creativity. The best pictures of all students will be presented with a multimedia slide show during the final exhibition of classes.Pre-requisite for the course: each participant must have his/her own digital camera with a wide lens or an optical zoom 3x or more and/or 35mm TTL camera with 28/80mm lens zoom or equivalents.
This course makes use of the unparalleled resource that is the city of Rome itself; each class meets at a different site around the city. Students work in sketchbook form, creating over the course of the term a diary of visual encounters. Instruction, apart from brief discussions of the sites themselves, focuses on efficient visual note-taking: the quick description of form, awareness of light, and the development of volume in space.
The course offers an opportunity for idea development, visual perception, and the organization of experience into compositions. Primary emphasis is on developing visual expression, skill in using various materials, and growth of critical evaluative abilities through group discussions and critiques. The course offers a critical investigation of concepts such as abstraction, mark-making, mapping, spatial disruption, time, pace, coding and organising visual information. The class will be structured around a series of projects and workshops, both within the studio and onsite, and visits to exhibitions in order to both examine the role of drawing within Contemporary Art and to support an evolving personal approach to drawing amongst students.
Figure drawing is the traditional basis for training the artists eye and hand. Through specific exercises, students learn to control line and gesture, to model form in light and dark, and to depict accurately the forms and proportions of the human body.
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This course is meant for students who wish to deepen their knowledge in the field of corporate identity and branding. It will address how to respond to technical and communication requirements of a design brief, develop visual concepts, create a system of graphical elements that form the basis of an identity, and define a strategy for a brand. The course will also consider the professional standards of preparing artwork for print. The course requires good competence in visual communication and expertise in the major Graphic Design programs.
The aim of this course is to give students a comprehensive introduction to visual communication and to demonstrate how Graphic Design can be an effective and powerful tool for business. It covers a broad spectrum of different design disciplines, ranging from corporate identity, branding, brochure design, poster design, to packaging and illustration, and provides precious insight into the world of Graphic Design. The course is open to all students, particularly those who do not have a background in design, and complements other courses including Business, Management, Marketing and Communication.
This introductory studio course engages students in historical and contemporary techniques of printmaking and its theory. The course positions drawing and mark-making as fundamental ways to investigate visual culture. Exploring the basic intaglio and relief processes of mono-printing, linocut and collagraph, students will heighten their sensitivity to line, color, tone, texture, transparency, layout and overall composition. This will provide students with an introduction to the creative thinking and visual exploration involved in making a multiple edition print and understanding its relevance to art, design and today’s image-based culture.
Textiles and fiber are crucial to today’s conceptual and technical creative practices. This studio-based course introduces students to a diverse range of textile materials, processes, histories, traditions and applications of fiber and to their relationships to contemporary art and design. Projects engage with the historical relevance of fibers, its relationship to issues such as labor, identity, decoration, and functionality. These are taken to be vehicles to explore the use of textiles and fiber within the expanded field of contemporary art and design. Emphasis is placed on researching and developing creative ideas through material sampling and exploration of surface and structure. Students investigate dyeing, printing, weaving and manipulation of fabric to investigate imagery, color and form
This course offers an exploration of the expressive possibilities of ink, watercolor, and acrylic. Painting is done mostly on paper, directly from life, both in the studio and outdoors. Emphasis is on control of color, the creation of a coherent pictorial space, and the discovery of technical effects which suggest light, form, and movement.
Inthis course, photography will be examined in relation to other art disciplines to highlight the pivotal role that this art form holds in contemporary art. By examining the work of contemporary artists and photographers who utilize interdisciplinary art-making strategies, the course bridges the gap between traditional photography and the diverse range of experimental and hybrid forms found in contemporary art.
The course is designed to introduce students to the history of museums and to curating practices. Classes will discuss the cultural position of the museum, the evolution of its function, the different forms of display, the historical developments of the act of collecting, the position of the visitor and the role of the curator. The primary purpose of the course is to provide students with a critical vocabulary for understanding how museums produce knowledge and structure the ways in which history, geography, cultural difference, and social hierarchies are mapped. Through a series of richly detailed case studies related to ancient and contemporary Rome museums, collections and institutions, classes will investigate the differences between the roles, the missions, the objectives, and the policies of conservation and exhibition-making in spaces, relating to modalities of thought. The course also intends to introduce the figure of the curator and its development from conservator and classifier to creative, critical protagonist of contemporary art culture. The course concludes with an overview of current debates around the contemporary need for museums, and large scale exhibition (such as Biennials and Triennials) and their perceived social functions
The course is an introduction to Environmental Archaeology and Paleoclimatology, the studies of the interactions between humans and environment. Human history (like settlement-patterns, migration, and economies) depended on environmental factors, and, in turn, humans had an impact on the landscapes they were living in. The course will examine the composite archaeological approaches to this: The studies of Earth, Fauna, and Flora collectively known as Environmental Archaeology, as well as Palaeoclimatological analyses of long-term patterns and variations in temperature and humidity; all factors that strongly conditioned the environment. The course is a critical engagement with the primary data, as well as with the scientific and archaeological approaches and the research of the fields.
This course is an introduction to archaeological research, focusing predominantly–but not exclusively–on Classical Antiquity, i.e. on Italy and the Mediterranean. Various methods of recovery of ancient monuments will be explored, like radar survey, aerial reconnaissance and underwater archaeology. There will also be a focus on the changing interests of the discipline by an overview of the history of archaeology, from the first scientific excavations in the 18th century to new approaches in the last years. Finally, the presentation to the public (restauration, museums) and problems as illegal digging and trading will be discussed.
Partially on-site; activity fee: 25 Euro or 33 USD
The course is an upper-level survey of technology in the ancient world, with particular emphasis on Greece and Rome. The course provides an in-depth familiarity and appreciation of the multifaceted nature of ancient technology through which students will gain a firm understanding of the links between technological innovation (history of engineering) and the development of human civilization (social history). It examines the architecture, waterworks, war machinery, and entertainment industry that framed and generated technological innovations, as well as production techniques related to the working of metal, wood and ceramics. The course will draw on both archaeological and text-based sources, and students will gain an awareness of field-specific methods and research theories: historical, philological and archaeological.
This is a survey of Greek art and archaeology from the Bronze Age through the late Hellenistic period. The course begins with an introduction to the Minoans and Mycenaeans; cultural and artistic developments are traced through the 2nd century BC when the Hellenistic kingdoms began to fall into the hands of Rome. Analysis of architecture and art are merged with an understanding of historical trends and Greek mythology.
Portraiture in Greece and Rome was a vital currency of social interaction and public engagement – across gender, class, location and context. As new archaeological data and research methodologies are transforming our understanding of its form and impact, the field is one of the most vibrant of ancient art. The course will discuss all aspects of what made a portrait: facial characteristics, hairstyles, body types, and clothing, as well as the inscribed base and placement. It will do so with a keen awareness of the developments and experimentations of the medium over time. The course will investigate themes like the uses of male and female portraits in public, the use of type-associations and role models, and the choices of statue types and status indicators. It will ask questions about who commissioned works, about workshop practices and distribution, and about the visual impact of techniques and form for the viewer, as well as why some portraits were destroyed or reworked.
Rome City Series – This on-site course considers the art and architecture of ancient Rome through visits to museums and archaeological sites. The course covers the visual culture and architecture of Rome beginning with the late Bronze Age and ending with the time of Constantine. A broad variety of issues are raised, including patronage, style and iconography, artistic and architectural techniques, Roman religion, business and entertainment. On site activity fee may apply. On Site Activity Fee may apply.
One previous course in Art History. This course carries 4 semester hours of credits. A minimum CUM GPA of 3.5 is required.
The course examines the complex subject of art and cultural heritage crime, with a particular emphasis on Italy. While examining the international and national normative frameworks determining what constitutes an art/cultural heritage crime, special attention will be paid to the question of what constitutes ownership of art and cultural heritage. The course will consider the development over time of ideas of the value of art (both real and symbolic), as well as the ways that ideas of ownership have changed since the late 20th century. In addition to examining issues related to the definition, prevention, and punishment of art/cultural heritage crimes, the course will also examine the role of the Italian state in protecting its national cultural artifacts.
This course is about the art of writing about art, and surveys notable examples. As in any historical study, our understanding of art history is filtered through specific writings. These writings can to be appreciated in themselves for their sensitivity, originality, and craft, and also evaluated critically. In this course we search out authors who achieve sensitive description of works of art of many diverse styles and periods, who vividly communicate the intellectual and emotional responses triggered by visual experience, and who skillfully delineate art’s historical and cultural context. This course is appropriate for beginners in art history.
On-site activity fee 40 euros or $52
Rome, Ostia and Pompeii are three of the best- preserved archaeological sites in the world. Through their study, we are able to comprehend the physical and social nature of Roman cities and how they transformed over the course of centuries. We explore the subjects of urban development, public and private buildings, economic and social history, and art incorporated into urban features (houses, triumphal monuments, etc.). In Rome, we focus primarily upon public buildings commissioned by Senators and Emperors: temples, law courts, theaters, triumphal monuments, baths. In Ostia, the port-city of Rome, we are able to experience many aspects of daily life: commerce, housing, religion, entertainment. Pompeii represents a well-to-do Republican and early Imperial period city that was influenced by the Greeks and Romans and preserves some of the most magnificent frescoes in the world.
The course addresses the skills, methods and issues essential to building the future Art Historians tool kit. To this end, it develops simultaneously on three levels: immersing students in progressively complex assignments and exams; getting students to practice art history as an issue-based analysis of objects; providing students with the historical and methodological frameworks specific to the field. The course lays the foundation for looking at, understanding and working in the visual arts. The material corpus that the course draws on is primarily Early Modern Europe and the Americas, across a period roughly between AD 1400-1750.
The course addresses the skills, methods and issues essential to building the future Art Historian’s tool kit. To this end, it develops simultaneously on three levels: immersing students in progressively complex assignments and exams; getting students to practice art history as an issue-based analysis of objects; providing students with the historical and methodological frameworks specific to the field. The course lays the foundation for looking at, understanding and working in the visual arts. The material corpus that the course draws on is primarily the Medieval Mediterranean and Western Asia, across a period roughly between AD 400-1400.
A survey course covering the innovations of the Early Renaissance to the High Renaissance (14th into the 16th Century). The works of Brunelleschi, Alberti, Donatello, Ghiberti, Masaccio, Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, Pollaiuolo, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Bramante and Raphael and others will be studied.
This course surveys the art and architecture of the Islamic world from the 7th to the 13th centuries. The phenomenal rise and establishment of Islamic civilization in three continents- Asia, Africa and Europe- in this period is studied through monumental religious and secular architecture and its applied decoration from mosaics to stucco and wall paintings and through painted ceramics, carved wood and ivories, metalwork, illuminated manuscripts, and embroidered and woven textiles. The form and function of buildings and artifacts, their changing patterns of use and their evolving meanings are examined in their original social, political, religious, and cultural contexts. One of the primary aims is to become familiar with the regional diversity of medieval Islamic visual culture and so also to consider what issues are involved in studying a tradition that flourished in several geographical areas, encompassing a variety of cultures and national and ethnic identities. Two special areas of focus are the urban design and architecture of Islamic medieval centers such as Cairo and Islamic court culture which, often centered around royal palaces such as Madinat al-Zahra in Spain, produced some of the most outstanding luxury arts of the Middle Ages.
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Rome City Series – This on-site course will study the monuments of Renaissance Rome: painting, sculpture and architecture produced by such masters as Bramante, Raphael, and Michelangelo, all attracted to the lucrative service of popes, cardinals and nobles of the Roman court. On-site classes will investigate examples of palace and villa architecture, chapel decoration that encompasses altarpieces and funerary sculpture, as well as urbanistic projects where the city itself was considered as a work of art. In-class lectures will introduce historical context and theory allowing the student to understand artworks studied conceptually and place commissions of painting and sculpture within a socio-historic framework.
This upper level seminar/practicum provides rigorous, practical preparation for the writing of professional art-historical research papers, including the Senior Thesis, through four discrete units: an individual portfolio review; a research tools and methods seminar; intensive, directed bibliographic research; and the formulation of a presentation to the class on the thesis topic, together with a new ‘foundation’ portfolio demonstrating mastery of the research skills, competencies, and bibliography necessary for advanced art-historical research writing. The course is intended for JCU Degree Seeking students, but advanced visiting students studying Art History are welcome.
Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the ancient world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern.
Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the modern and contemporary world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern. May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.
The course focuses on the social agency of women in artistic professions and patronage in the early modern period (c. 1500-1750), taking advantage of an abundance of new scholarship of the Italian context. Through case studies of individual artists and patrons, the course will examine how women negotiated their professional presence, especially in the homosocial spaces of academies that were increasingly important for instruction and theorization. Some of the artists and patrons under study include Isabella dEste, Sofinisba Anguissola, Lavinia Fontana, Artemisia Gentileschi, Elisabetta Sirani, and Queen Christina of Sweden.In the first weeks, the course establishes a framework for understanding how women produced and commissioned art in early modern Europe, considering the spaces and methods of art production, while also examining questions of privilege as a consequence of economic status. Individual case studies will then be explored in depth, focusing upon artists for whom there is a considerable amount of biographical information and body of works, while also introducing several artists who have been the subjects of very recent research. The activities and collections of prominent women as patrons will also be examined. Students will have the opportunity to conduct research on works by women artists displayed in Rome and other Italian collections.
Specialized courses offered periodically on specific aspects of the art of the medieval world. Courses are normally research-led topics on an area of current academic concern. May be taken more than once for credit with different topics.
One previous course in Art History or permission of the instructor
The visual arts have served to foster, construct and promote national identity from the very inception of the modern nation. This course aims to broach methodological and historical issues at the intersection of art of politics. Understanding how the visual arts have been instrumentalized, brandished, weaponized and subverted, or have actively chosen to promote a national(ist) agenda is the focus of this course. Each class takes a specific work as a case study to examine the political role(s) it was made to play, to what ends, and how this informs our understanding of the much larger historical debates around nationhood, citizenship, ethnicity, class, etc from the late 18th to the late 20th centuries. Official manifestations, such as Worlds Fairs, biennales and public commissions equally contribute to the comparative history of art and nation-building.
The course investigates the visual construction of gendered identities in the art produced in Europe in late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The course will discuss how this diverse visual repertoire operates as in an on-going re-definition or re-negotiation of gender as a category. To that end, it addresses both traditional gendered constructs and representations that challenge hetero-normativity as an ideal. The cultural centrality of Christianity in these periods means that representations of gender are inextricably linked to contemporary discourses regarding political, social, economic and ethnic identities, as well as religion. Methodological approaches to the analysis of gender, and to agency of the viewer in the reception and construction of gendered identities, are integral to the course.
This survey course begins with the very birth of visual representation in the middle and late Stone Age (ca. 32,000 – 11,000 BC) and ends with Late Antiquity (ca. AD 250-400), when the transition from ancient to medieval art began to take shape. The focus of this course is on the art and architecture of the Mediterranean, Near East and Europe, including the first flowering of art on the islands of Greece and the spread of Roman art throughout the entire Mediterranean area. The different media, aesthetics, functions, and subjects chosen for representation in each culture will be studied in terms of the particular social, religious, political and geographical contexts of which they are a product. Students will also be introduced to the contemporary developments in other areas of the world: Asia, Africa, Americas. The course will also assist students in cultivating basic art-historical skills, in particular description, stylistic analysis, and iconographic and iconological analysis.
During this course students will learn to: collaborate creatively; employ basic acting techniques such as sensory work, the principles of action, objectives, status, etc.; develop an expressive speaking voice; engage with a variety of stage props; analyze the process of placing a dramatic text on stage; critique and enact a variety of theatrical techniques; define specific terms relating to the study of drama and theater; develop an appreciation for theater as an art form and a reflection of society; understand the responsibility of an actor s work ethic, especially to one’s fellow actors; initiate and upkeep a gradable class-by-class journal (either blog or v-log) of their personal growth throughout the course.
This course considers management problems of founders, owners, managers, and investors in small business. Acquisitions, location, organization control, labor relations, finances, taxation, and other topics of interest to entrepreneurial business management will be analyzed.
This course considers some of the most important ethical issues in business today. Students will examine such issues as businesses responsibilities to shareholders, workers and consumers, the pros and cons of a “free market,” the challenges raised by globalization and environmental destruction, the idea of “ethical” consumption, and the particular dilemmas faced by Western businesses working in foreign countries. Issues will be studied through a selection of contemporary cases, arguments, and broader theories, along with much class discussion, with the aim of helping students develop a familiarity with the issues and the ability to discuss and defend their own opinions.
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This course examines the entrepreneurial process, from recognizing opportunity to planning, organizing and growing a new venture. We will highlight innovation and its methods and applications on business opportunity analysis. Topics covered also include significance, status, problems, and requirements of entrepreneurial businesses. Students will have the opportunity to identify a business opportunity and develop the idea to the point of being start-up ready.This course will serve as a foundation for students who might want to own a business, and it is meant to be accessible also for non-business majors.
The course aims at investigating how the creation and exploitation of intellectual property in various product and service markets is the basis for the creation of wealth and employment in the creative industries, which are those industries that have their roots in individual creativity, skill, and talent. The course analyses the main forces behind the creation of new marketing and business models in these industries, considering also the introduction of new technologies as well as creative consumption patterns. As a result, the course will focus on one of the most dynamic battlegrounds which is the development of business models for the creative industries, which include, among the others, publishing, software, design, and the performing and visual arts. The creation and effective application of an innovative business model for these sectors may turn it into a respectable example of commercialization and a workable channel for the distribution of content. As a result, the objective of this course is to give the students a thorough analysis of the creative industries from a management perspective, as well as of the actors and activities that directly support the creation of creative content (origination, production, distribution, and consumption).
The course aims at exploring strategies of social media management for business organizations. The focus of the course regards not only the aspects of communication with prospects and customers, but also the internal processes necessary in order to enact strategic decisions. Hence, this course analyzes every stage required to use social networks for business from a global perspective that includes, among others, IT, customer service and sales, in the light of the social, economic, and technological implications surrounding the ever-changing e-business environment.
The objective of this course is to expose students to the essential elements of international business with particular emphasis on how it differs from domestic business. An extensive use of case studies provides a basis for class discussion, allowing students to develop their analytical skills and apply their theoretical knowledge.
Junior Standing, EC 202. Recommended: MKT 301.
This course aims to provide students with a theoretical and practical background to develop their personal skills to manage negotiations in multicultural environment. The course will explore leadership and communication approaches to effective negotiation management, and will highlight the role of innovation in achieving integrative, successful results. Students will have an opportunity to explore the meaning and practice of managing negotiations. During the course, they will review theory, analyze strategies, engage in practical exercises and acquaint themselves with the language, thought, and praxis of negotiations in the multicultural setting in which we live, learn and work. By studying the impact of the relations between their and others cultural narratives, the student will discover innovative paths, techniques, and strategies to lead negotiation processes in multicultural environments.
This course presents a general summary of all functions of a business enterprise, including management, finance, accounting, marketing, human resources, and production. The course gives emphasis to the structure of business organizations and the decision-making process that occurs at different levels of corporate management. Students will be exposed to basic business terminology and will establish an applicable business vocabulary. The course also touches upon current business practices (such as managing organizational relationships, managing human resources or planning and controlling resources) that are employed in different national markets to adjust their strategies to diverse consumers worldwide. The course will use reading materials, projects and assignments that will relate the subject to the real world and the possible professional avenues students of business can pursue; the course will also foster critical and analytical thinking, and develop decision-making skills. Successful completion of the course will equip students with a broad understanding of how the business environment works, as well as a lens through which to interpret the world they live in.
This course aims at studying in depth the model of Resonant Leadership and its positive effects on the increase of efficacy, creativity, motivation, conflict resolution, decision-making, and stress reduction within the workplace.Using the latest studies in the fields of Psychology, Neuroscience, Behavior, and Organization participants will learn the theory, research and experience of employing Mindfulness and Emotional Intelligence within the work environment.The course will be divided in two parts:a) a theoretical part in which the participants will be introduced to the model of Resonant Leadership informed by Mindfulness, Emotional Intelligence, Neuroscience, and the most recent cognitive research; b) a practical-experiential part in which Mindfulness techniques and the development of Emotional and Social Intelligence will be learned in order to promote resonance in leadership.
The course analyzes the Italian Business environment, the characteristics of its culture and its inner workings. Students will be able to understand the different types of Italian corporate cultures and the role of family businesses in Italy. The course allows students to assess some of the most popular Italian brands and learn why “made in Italy” is a leading brand in the world, despite recent influences and threats from foreign investors. Company cases and special guests will be an important part of this course and will allow students to relate theory to practice.
This course surveys the theory and practice of public relations, examining a model for public relations programming, the principles of public relations writing, and stakeholder/issues management techniques, together with their ethical implications. It distinguishes PR and publicity communication concepts within the framework of the firms overall marketing communication strategy and organizational mission. Special topics, such as Marketing Public Relations, Investor Relations, Government Relations, etc., will also be addressed. Students are expected to be able to use primary and secondary research and the information tools of communications professionals.
Nowadays, significant social problems dramatically affect both the most developed and developing countries in many fields like education, health care, the environment. Most people think that these serious issues should be solved by either the governments or the third sector, which includes voluntary and community organizations like charities and NGOs. Conversely, the mission of a corporate organization is not to solve social problems but to maximize both its profits and the shareholder value. Social entrepreneurship allows to solve social issues using the instruments and the techniques of classic corporate organizations, however, its main goal is its social mission rather than profit maximization.The course explains how to become a social entrepreneur, the different options to organize a social business and to find the requested financial support, and how to use the lean start-up methodology to find both the right business model and market fit in order to solve a significant social problem.
In this transdisciplinary course, students develop a first-hand project that is commissioned from a real non-profit organization and they learn how to mainstream the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – including social, economic and environmental sustainability – into it. The students will act as a consultancy unit for the non-profit organization and, under a strict supervision, will submit a proposal for the resolution of the problems that the project implies. The non-profit organization will be significantly involved in the class, the first-hand project will be agreed beforehand, and selected members of the non-profit will provide a detailed feedback on the submitted proposal. The non-profit may propose diverse managerial challenges that help the organization achieve its own objectives, including, for example, the devising of contingency and operational plans, the generation of funds and social communication campaigns.This course will offer students the capability of managing and solving real-life challenges and directly interact with external organizations and professionals. Students will learn how to discuss a project internally and communicate externally and to combine the priorities of the whole organization with the specific project. In the end, students will gain a first understanding of the financial analysis for program management and performance review. Moreover, this learn-by-doing approach will be accompanied by a sound theoretical framework in which the role non-profit organizations play in the fragmented system of global governance will be analysed, the ways in which they can contribute to achieving the SDGs enshrined in the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will be examined and the complexities of evaluating interventions are assessed
This course considers management problems of founders, owners, managers, and investors in startups. Acquisitions, location, organization control, labor relations, finances, taxation, and other topics of interest to entrepreneurial business management will be analyzed.
This course explores the fast-growing field of green criminology, which examines the causes, consequences, and legal responses to a wide range of environmentally destructive activities. These include catastrophes such as oil spills, systematically polluting extraction and production processes, illegal trades in hazardous materials such as toxic waste and natural resources like wildlife and timber, among others. It investigates the impacts that these activities have on human and ecosystem health and security, and identifies how vulnerability to these harms intersects with class, race, gender and geographical discrimination, disproportionately burdening underprivileged groups in advanced and less developed economies. The course unpacks how these activities are managed in international and domestic law and highlights gaps, loopholes, and contradictions among regulations, as well as tracing the political processes by which legal frameworks are developed and enforced. Finally, it explores the intensifying role of civil society activism in pushing for more effective prevention policies and reparatory justice mechanisms.
This course deals with legal aspects of international business transactions. The course introduces students to issues in international commerce, including requirements of a contract, international shipping terms, and liability of air and ocean carriers. The course will examine international and U.S. trade law, including GATT 1994, and the regulation of imports and exports. Finally, the course will familiarize students with various areas of regulation of international business, such as competition law, employment discrimination law, and environmental law.
This course provides the student with an overview of the law in general, beginning with the foundations of the legal and regulatory environment, the law making processes, and the implementation of the legal rules. Students examine some areas of substantive law, including bodies of law that are regulatory in nature. Particular attention is given to aspects of business transactions in an international context.
This course examines the basic concepts of public international law, to enable students to critically evaluate the interplay between legal claims and power relations. Starting with a theoretical overview of the character, development and sources of international law, the course examines such law-generating and law-implementing institutions as the United Nations, international arbitration and adjudication, international criminal tribunals, national systems and regional organizations. Such substantive areas as the law of war (the use of force and humanitarian law), international criminal law, human rights, and environmental law will be given special attention.
This course considers some of the most important issues concerning contemporary challenges in the field of entrepreneurship. Students will be confronted with interdisciplinary perspectives to the study of entrepreneurship that stem from economics, psychology, geography, history, cultural studies, and policy making, to better understand the emergence and the determinants of entrepreneurial ecosystems.
This is an introductory course in Comparative Business Cultures in a context of International Business and Management, covering the work of Clyde Kluckholm and Fred Strodtbeck, Gary Ferraro, Bjorn Bjerke, Fons Trompenaars, Geert Hofstede as well as the G.L.O.B.E. project. The emphasis in this course is on understanding and applying one’s knowledge of different national cultures as an aid to improved management of human resources, enhanced cross border trade, relocation of business activities to different countries, as well as on the melding of different cultures in multinationals as well as companies which are involved in joint ventures, mergers, or take-overs.
Disruptive innovation, as well as technological, social and economic changes are key characteristics of the New Economy,” drastically impacting all aspects of businesses and social life. Information Technology (IT) is at the center of the Digital Transformation of companies for the optimization, redesign or reinvention of their business in response or in anticipation to the disruptive impact of emerging technologies and new business models.All managers are directly or indirectly concerned with IT, either because they work in the IT department or because they are involved in the definition, purchase, deployment, and usage of IT infrastructures, software, and applications. This course will provide students with a basic understanding of IT as an introduction to the changing managerial role in organisation.
Management issues related to the procurement and allocation of resources in the production of goods and services in order to meet organizational goals. Topics covered include product and process design, facility size, location and layout, quality management, production planning and control.
The course examines human personality, behavior and relationships as applied to business, industrial and organizational settings. Topics include: social systems at work; human needs, attitudes, human relations; leadership patterns, group dynamics, teamwork, communication, motivation, participation and reward system; technology and people, managing change, models of organizational behavior and management. Teamwork and group participation are emphasized.
A major component of this course will be exposing students to proofs, with the aim of having them learn how to read, write, and understand a proof.
This course explores the significance of social networks in business and social life. The focus of the course is to critically appreciate social media platforms across a variety of contexts. The course investigates issues related to the management of social media in terms of the strategies and tactics related to successful deployment and cultivation of business/social initiatives and the redefinition of the customer/user as a central element in value creation. Issues related to participatory culture, communication power, collaborative work and production, privacy and surveillance, and political economy of social media are explored in depth through the use of contemporary cases.
This course is intended to introduce students to the field of management consulting from the perspective of both the individual consultant and the consulting firms. It is important to those who are especially interested in consulting careers, those whose current or planned jobs involve staff consulting or line management using consultants, as well as those who are planning to launch their own business activity and need to be familiar with the consultancy attitude and mindset
This capstone course focuses on the roles and skills of the General Manager and on diagnosing and finding realistic solutions to complex strategic and organizational problems. Business situations will be analyzed from the point of view of the General Manager to identify the particular tasks related to his/her unique role, which calls for leadership, integration across the functional areas, organizational development, strategy formulation and implementation. Prerequisites: Completion of all Core Business Courses. In particular, case discussion will require a good understanding of Finance (performance evaluation, forecasting, budgeting), Marketing principles, Organizational structure and Management.The course builds on previous course work by providing an opportunity to integrate various functional areas and by providing a total business perspective.
The course is designed to expand student’s knowledge in the area of supply chain management by applying analytical methodologies and information technology. Supply chains are concerned with the efficient integration of suppliers, factories, warehouses and stores so that products are supplied to customers in the right quantity and at the right time, while satisfying customer service level requirements at minimum cost. Deficiencies in the SC result in a downgrade of competitiveness. Only over the last few years firms have started to focus on supply chain management (SCM) as a source of competitive advantage. SCM is an area of knowledge which offers tremendous opportunity for most firms.
Advertising as applied in industrialized countries. Its impact on the social and economic status of the consuming public.
During the course students will undertake studies on brand assessment, goal setting; defining brand equity and target; Crafting a Communication Strategy; Establishing the Marketing, Communications, Public Relations and Media Strategies; Building the Marketing Plan; and Measurement and Strategic Brand Audit. Students will complete a group project where they choose a brand or create their own and take on the role as brand manage to build, manager and market a brand using successful public relations, communications, and media strategies.
The objective of this course is to expose students to the environment of business-to-business (B2B) marketing from a global perspective, with emphasis on how it differs from the consumer (B2C) marketing context. Concepts, models and analytical tools are studied in the areas of business-to business marketing analysis and strategy; managing business-to-business marketing processes; and putting business-to-business marketing into practice.
This course focuses on the study of consumer decision processes, consumer behavior models and their impact on the development of marketing strategies. The emphasis is on researching and in-depth understanding of the consumer decision process. Teaching methodology includes case studies and an emphasis on experiential research.
This course approaches Internet marketing from a marketing management perspective. The course looks at the Internet both as a tool to be used in the marketing planning process and as an element of a company’s marketing mix. The course explores how traditional marketing concepts such as market segmentation, research, the 4Ps and relationship marketing are applied using the Internet and other electronic marketing techniques. Website design is not covered.
A dramatically new form of marketing has emerged. Recent years have witnessed the use of such terms as subversive marketing, disruptive marketing, radical marketing, guerrilla marketing, viral marketing, and expeditionary marketing. This course represents an attempt to bring together these perspectives by providing an integrative framework called entrepreneurial marketing (EM). With EM, marketing is approached not as a set of tools (a technology) for facilitating transactions or responding to change, but as a vehicle for fundamentally redefining products, services, and markets in ways that produce a sustainable competitive advantage. EM represents a strategic type of marketing built around six core elements: innovation, calculated risk-taking, resource leveraging, strategic flexibility, customer intensity, and the creation of industry change. Conditions in the marketplace environment drive the need for entrepreneurial marketing (turbulence, discontinuities, rapid changes in technology, economics, competition, etc.), while organizational culture can hinder or facilitate the firm’s ability to demonstrate high levels of EM.
This course first examines the basic principles underlying consumer information processing and how marketing can influence this process. It then addresses the design, coordination, and management of marketing communications, focusing on the role of integrated marketing communications in the marketing process, particularly as it relates to branding. The second part of the course may take the form of an extended case study/IMC plan or may address special topics: for example, the relationship between public relations (PR) and marketing, the history and development of advertising and public relations, public opinion and its role in IMC planning, media relations, research for campaign design, global communication, and crisis management.
An investigation of the marketing concept in a global environment. Factors in assessing world marketing opportunities; international marketing of products, pricing, distribution and promotion program development in dynamic world markets. Marketing practices which various businesses adapt to the international environment are studied. Attention is also given to comparative marketing systems, and planning and organizing for export-import operations.
This course covers the basic methods and techniques of marketing research. Discusses the tools and techniques for gathering, analyzing, and using information to aid marketing decision- making. Covers topics such as problem definition, research design formulation, measurement, research instrument development, sampling techniques, data collection, data interpretation and analysis, and presentation of research findings. Students choose a marketing research project, formulate research hypotheses, collect primary and secondary data, develop a database, analyze data, write a report, and present results and recommendations.
This course investigates the process of new product management, starting from idea and concept generation through to project evaluation and development. The course is designed to be a workshop for new product development, allowing students to explore market opportunities and propose new concepts to the market.
This course will give students a solid understanding of the fundamentals of the strategic marketing planning process including: methods and tools of market assessment, customer segmentation analysis, development of the value proposition, positioning and planning of marketing tactics designed to deliver value to targeted stakeholders. Emphasis is placed on the need to align marketing principles and theories with the management skills needed for the preparation of a marketing plan. Students will be able to analyze opportunities and threats in both the macro and micro-environments. Students will also conduct a marketing research gathering data for effective decision-making and will develop their ability to evaluate gaps.In this course, students will begin to learn how to conduct a competitive analysis, analyze environmental trend, forecast changing market demand and develop competitive marketing strategies.
This course focuses on issues related to Retail Management in the Fashion industry and requires both an understanding of marketing principles as well as channel management concepts. The course reviews basic concepts related to retail business such as operations, logistics, retail channels management, retail controlling and strategic location development, which develop the students ability to understand performance indicators and measure store performance. Students are encouraged to focus on retail buying and stock planning, in order to fully understand how to manage in-store product life cycles. Teaching methodology is project based and team work is emphasized. Teams will be required to apply fashion retailing concepts to companies decision making through a proposed retail project, which will require a written strategic retail plan that is adapted to the Italian fashion market.
This course offers key insights into the rapidly growing service sector industry. The course is challenging and requires students to apply their knowledge and skills for the effective management of service design and delivery. Central issues addressed in the course include identifying differences between service and product marketing; understanding how customers assess service quality/ satisfaction; applying the GAPS model to assess service failure; and understanding of the theory of relationship marketing and using related tools and techniques for keeping customers and encouraging loyalty.
This course introduces students to the conceptual frameworks, ethics, and practice associated with social marketing. This course explores how classic marketing techniques can be effectively applied beyond traditional corporate settings, in not-for-profit organizations. Students will gain an understanding of the basic principles of social marketing, and then will address fundraising and resource development as well as social communication campaigns. Fundraising is the application of marketing principles to generate funds that enables not-for-profit organizations to achieve their objectives and cover their expenses. Social communication campaigns deal with creating awareness of the not-for-profit organizations mission and services and influencing specific target audiences to behave differently for a social purpose. At the end of the course, students will gain an understanding of the financial analysis needed for program management and performance review. The course offers students a valuable opportunity to implement the marketing concepts in an original and growing sector, where the objectives are broader than simple profit maximization, and social, ethical and political factors play a major role.
This course involves the analytical integration of material covered in previous marketing courses. It develops skills in diagnosing marketing problems, formulating and selecting strategic alternatives, and recognizing problems inherent in strategy implementation. The development of a comprehensive marketing plan is a major requirement of the course.
This course introduces students to the civilization of the ancient Greeks through an in-depth study of ancient Greek literature and society from the eighth century BCE through the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE. Topics studied include the role of religion and myth in ancient Greece, politics and warfare, the status of women, the importance of athletics and other subjects pertaining to the everyday life of the ancient Greeks. Readings in translation include selected works of Hesiod, Homer, Pindar, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, Herodotus, Thucydides, Plato and Plutarch.
The course examines the principal myths of Classical Greece and Rome, with some reference to their evolution from earlier local and Mediterranean legends, deities, and religions. The importance of these myths in the literature and art of the Western World will be discussed.
Prerequisite: GRK 102 or permission of the instructor
This course is designed to offer students with a basic level of Greek language preparation the opportunity to read texts in the original. The level of readings may range from intermediate to advanced. Language levels will be determined at the beginning of the course and students will be arranged in suitable reading groups. Texts appropriate to each groups level will be chosen by the professor and the individual students. Texts will vary. All groups will work independently and in weekly reading groups with the professor where issues of language, grammar, and literary technique wil be discussed.
This course examines the history of Ancient Greece from the Archaic Age to the Age of Alexander, the seventh through fourth centuries B.C.E. Focus will be on the rise of Athens and Sparta as the most influential city states in Greece; the development of their respective political, military and social systems; and the causes of the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War that paved the way for the rise of Macedon and domination of the Greek world, first under Philip II, and then his son, Alexander the Great, until his death in 323 B.C.E. Readings in translation will include Herodotus, Aristophanes, Plato, Thucydides, Xenophon, and Plutarch.
This course surveys the history of ancient Rome and Italy, focusing on the origins and metamorphoses of Rome from its archaic foundations as an Italic-Latinate kingship to an imperial city. The course examines the establishment, expansion, and conflicts of the Republican period; the political and cultural revolution of the Augustan Principate; the innovations of the High Empire; and the transition into Late Antiquity. Course materials include the writings of ancient authors in translation (these may include Polybius, Sallust, Cicero, Livy, Augustus, Suetonius, and/or Tacitus) as well as modern historians and archaeologists, along with considerations of Roman art, architecture, and archaeology.
This course focuses on the literature of Ancient Rome and its role in shaping modern notions about the customs, social practices, and ideas of its citizens. Emphasis will be placed on using Roman literature as a means of studying Roman civilization, while simultaneously examining stylistics and literary techniques particular to the genres of comedy, rhetoric, epic and lyric poetry, satire and history. Texts, which vary, are chosen from Terence, Plautus, Cicero, Catullus, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, Tacitus, and Juvenal. All texts are studied in translation.
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This course is designed to be the capstone experience in analysis of media and media texts through specific theoretical constructs. Theories covered include semiotic theories of Saussure, Bakhtin, and Barthes; deconstruction theories and critical theories; and theories of spectatorship using psychoanalytic models. Further, the course provides students with experience in performing sustained and in-depth analysis of complex signifying operations and their relationship to ideological functions.
This course provides students with a number of theoretical approaches to critically assess how digital media function and their expanding and expansive role in contemporary culture. The course further investigates digital media convergence in order to develop a critical lexicon that can both chart its development and engage in intellectual interventions in its use within the transformations occuring in more traditional cultural forms such as television, film, popular music, print, and radio. Special emphasis will be placed on the specific cultural, political, economic, and social issues raised by digital media forms.
This course introduces students to the technical, conceptual, and aesthetic skills involved in video production through the single camera mode of production. Still the most dominant mode of film and video production, the single camera mode places an emphasis on using the camera to fullest capacity of artistic expression. In addition to the multiple skills and concepts involved with the camera, the course also introduces students to the principles and technologies of lighting, audio recording and mixing, and non-linear digital video editing. Special focus is given to producing content for successful web distribution.
An exploration of some of the historical and political conditions that make intercultural communication possible, the barriers that exist to effective intercultural communication, and possible solutions to the problem of intercultural misunderstanding. The course examines examples of differences in communication styles not only between cultures but also within. As a result, issues of race, nation, class, gender, religion, immigration, and sexual orientation will be of significant concern. The course stresses the notion that knowledge of human beings is always knowledge produced from a particular location and for a particular purpose. As a result it encourages students to think carefully about the discipline of Intercultural Communication, its conditions of possibility, its assumptions, and its blind spots, as well the need to be mindful of the limitations and interests of our positioning as investigating subjects.
This course is designed as an introduction to the art, history, and business of film. It presents an introduction to film aesthetics and the formal properties of film, locating specific styles and narrative forms within specific classical and alternative film movements. Film theories and critical strategies for the analysis of film will be investigated. The course will be divided into weekly screenings and lectures.
From photojournalism to Instagram, 21st century communication is primarily image-based. Whether its mass media, individual expression, social media or alternative media, images are used for promoting ideas, products, information and political discourses. In this course students investigate the role of visual culture in daily life, exploring fine art, popular culture, film, television, advertising, business communications, propaganda, viral social media and information graphics. As a critical introduction to visual communication, this course mixes theory, analysis and practical activities for an applied understanding of key issues, including the relationship between images, power and politics; the historical practice of looking; visual media analysis; spectatorship; historic evolution of visual codes; impact of visual technologies; media literacy; information graphics literacy; and global visual culture.
This course carries 4 semester hours of credits. A minimum CUM GPA of 3.5 is required.
From Andre Bazin’s analysis of de Sica’s Bicycle Thieves to Roland Barthes’ interpretation of a photo of a black soldier on the cover of Paris Match magazine, close readings of media texts have long been a valued aspect of the field of communications. This course offers students the unique opportunity to critically analyze a single, notable media text be it an album, a TV series, a graphic novel, etc.’and explore in detail the expressive significance, the artistic merit, the social impact and influence, the cultural embeddedness, and associated historical, technological and aesthetic considerations. The course will focus on some of the dominant critical perspectives that have contributed to our understanding of these media texts and their role in society, and investigate this media through a variety of theories and methods.
This course examines the mass media as complex social institutions that exercise multiple roles in societynone more crucial than the circulation and validation of social discourses. Introducing students to a variety of theoretical approaches, the course focuses on media operations and textual analysis.
This course provides students with an introduction to the fundamentals of rhetoric and how they are applied in oral communication, and how these principles and concepts lead to effective public speaking. Students will learn how to prepare and organize persuasive speeches by learning the fundamental structures of the persuasive speech. In addition, students will begin to acquire basic skills in critical reasoning, including how to structure a thesis statement and support it through a specific line of reasoning using idea subordination, coordination, and parallel structure.
This senior capstone course culminates the coursework performed in the Communications and Media Studies program. With a major research assignment in the form of a written paper, video essay, or creative project, the course is intended to assess the students development and understanding of the Departments learning outcomes. Capstone projects combine evidence-based research on a major media topic, critical analysis, literature review, ethical considerations, and express technical competency. Students are expected to demonstrate awareness and understanding of major schools of thought in media and cultural studies, and to perform critical media analysis.
The course introduces students to the various kinds of writing they will encounter in the media professions and in digital multimedia production, and prepares them for more advanced media courses in the Communications and Media Studies program. Students will also be introduced to basic legal and ethical issues, such as libel, copyright, privacy. Activities include writing for online media, press releases, strategic campaigns, and short scripts for visual and audio media as well as exercises to pitch their ideas. They will also explore issues concerning style, communicability, and effective storytelling.
This course is an introduction to the current debate around the relationship between globalization and the media. By linking theoretical conceptions with hands-on empirical research and analysis, students will develop a richer and multi-layered perspective around the increasingly relevant yet contested notion of globalization, and specifically on the role that the media have in advancing, challenging and representing social, political and cultural change across multiple regions of the world.
This is a course in basic photojournalism on location. There will be both classroom sessions and classes off campus, held on location in Rome and the surrounding area, as well as visits to photographic exhibitions. Students will gain an understanding of the basic concepts of photography and photojournalism; how cameras and lenses work; image composition; lighting conditions and techniques; shooting on location; techniques for working as a photographer; editing and producing photographs; and building a portfolio of images. Class sessions will cover learning use of a camera, lights, composition, color, documentary and candid photographic techniques, photographic software such as Adobe Photoshop, and critiques. Classes on location include practical fieldwork.
This course focuses more in-depth on the fundamentals of news reporting and writing, with an emphasis on the print, online, and broadcast media. Key skills to master include criteria for judging news, information gathering, and crafting different styles of news stories for print, broadcast and online media. The course also covers proper line-editing techniques, plus Web layout and publishing.
This course explores the latest developments in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) through critical artistic practices. By looking at different modes of cutting-edge research-based work from artists, scholars, and activists from across the planet, the course reflects upon the implications of AI in transforming traditional notions of creativity, authorship, and labor in general. Such critical works will be used to shed light on the materialities of this technological innovation, its impact on the environment, and the processes of extraction and exploitation that are embedded within the very practice of compiling a dataset and training Large Language Models (LLMs) upon which generative AI works. The course takes on a decolonial approach, considering how technology has been historically used as a tool of colonialism, and how contemporary advancements in the field of AI continue to perpetuate the colonial power dynamics of extraction and exploitation. It also considers how a de-colonial standpoint can offer alternative perspectives for understanding and critiquing the impact of AI on society, culture, and politics.
This course analyzes the ways in which diverse cultural practices have been used or understood as political weapons, as attempts to intervene in the historical world. The course will introduce students to a number of approaches both theoretical and practical, through readings of source texts and analysis of specific case studies which have investigated the possibility of cultural practice being used as a tool of conflict, dissent, affirmation of identity and resistance. One of the areas of inquiry will be an investigation of how, in advanced capitalist societies, social and political struggle necessarily happens through an engagement with dominant culture and media forms rather than in spite of them; the course will therefore concentrate on those cultural practices that, although not apparently political in content and aim, can nonetheless be used in politically productive ways. Emphasis will be placed on popular and mass culture artifacts and on the ways in which style is used by sub-cultures and other social identities in both national and global contexts.
This course examines a growing subfield of cinema studies, ecocinema, which is devoted to exploring the intersection between film and environmental issues. Ecocinema encompasses a range of movie genres, including documentary, Hollywood blockbusters, eco-horror, indigenous films, and animation. This course investigates how themes like environmental catastrophe, wilderness, animal rights, climate change, the construction of human-nature relations, ecojustice, and environmental politics are communicated through the particular medium properties of film. This course also examines the material impact of film on the environment. During the semester students will study films by combining traditional methods of film criticism with ecocriticism to explore production, aesthetics, narrative, reception, and culture in relationship to environmental themes.
Though often overlooked, the act of projection is at the heart of cinema (the act or process of causing a picture to appear on a surface). This studio course focuses on the creation of moving image-based work, exploring how time and space are used as materials to create form and inspire content within the contemporary film genre known as expanded cinema. The technical, historical and psychological aspects of the projected image will be studied in order to re-think cinema as a group and investigate how the projected image can find meaning outside the black box of theaters or the white cube of galleries. Two personal experimental video projects will lead to a final group video installation that will use the environment within the vicinity of the JCU campus (Trastevere neighborhood) to inspire site-specific works while also becoming the location of the final outdoor projection event.
This course will introduce students to feminist media studies as a critical approach to examine enduring and emerging trends in media production and consumption, and to envisioning action for change. In this course we will privilege an intersectional and transnational feminist perspective by considering how media forms, industries, and practices are shaped by interconnected inequalities of gender, race, class and sexuality in a global context. Students will become familiar with key concepts and debates in feminist media studies. They will learn how to use them in the analysis of a variety of media texts and technologies as well as in their own experience as media users and makers.
This course surveys films, directors, and film movements and styles in Italy from 1945 to the present. The films are examined as complex aesthetic and signifying systems with wider social and cultural relationships to post-war Italy. The role of Italian cinema as participating in the reconstitution and maintenance of post-War Italian culture and as a tool of historiographic inquiry is also investigated. Realism, modernism and post-modernism are discussed in relation to Italian cinema in particular and Italian society in general. Films are shown in the original Italian version with English subtitles.
This course will introduce students to contemporary Italian media and popular cultures. The course has a thematic approach and applies the analytical theories of critical cultural studies. Students will be exposed to development of various media forms as they have been shaped by and their impact on Italian culture and society. The press, film, radio, television, popular music, comics and graphic arts, sports and digital networks will be investigated from a variety of angles with particular attention on the medias role in the construction of collective identities, the role of power and capital in shaping national identity, media use by social movements, the question of representation, popular protest and subcultural and subaltern expressions within the national space. Italys role within the global media economy will also be investigated.
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From the cylinders to MP3s, from Tin Pan Alley to death metal, this is a general survey course exploring and analyzing the history and meaning of popular recorded music within mass culture and society. It focuses on the historical, aesthetic, social, political-economic and technological developments that have shaped the very definition of the popular in the musical field. The course covers various aspects of recorded music from the history of the recording industry to the concept of the recorded, from rock and other nationally specific styles to the rise of MTV and beyond.
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EN 110 with a grade of C or above; Recommended: COM 210 and/or one previous course in Literature
This course will provide students with an introduction to postcolonial studies. The first part of the course will offer an overview of the most important topics constituting the field of postcolonial studies. These will subsequently be analysed through the theoretical debates that have grown around them. Furthermore, the course will look at how such issues have been expressed in literary and filmic texts. Topics include colonial discourse analysis; the issue of language; physical and mental colonisation and oppositional discourses; the concepts of ‘nation’ and nationalism in relation to culture and media; questions of gender in relation to empire and nation; diaspora, cosmopolitanism and identity; the problems of decolonization and the post-colonial state. Emphasis will be placed on colonial and postcolonial texts in the Anglophone and Francophone world.
What is televisions fate in the global digital cultures of convergence? The course examines new programming and advertising strategies in the medium of television, the reconfiguration of traditional and the emergence of new roles within the industry, the development of new global production and distribution strategies and models as well as how these transformations shape actual program content.
Since its emergence in the late 1970s, the music video has become the dominant means of advertising popular music and musicians, as well as one of the most influential hybrid media genres in history. In sampling and reworking a centurys worth of films and other pop culture artefacts (as well as art objects and concepts), music videos have affected aesthetic style in a wide range of film and television genres, introducing experimental and avant-garde techniques to a mass audience while influencing artistic and aesthetic movements in their own right. This course will investigate the ways in which popular (recorded) music and visual cultures have reciprocally influenced one another. Music videos will be examined alongside various other media forms including videogames, live concert films, film and television music placement and curation, television title sequences and end credits, user generated content on YouTube, remixes, and mashups. The course will take a particular look at experimental, avant-garde film and video traditions and how they inform music video. Ultimately, the course will specifically treat music videos as a distinct multimedia artistic genre, different from film, television and the popular recorded music they illuminate and help sell.
This course will focus on advanced programming techniques and introduce concepts of algorithm design and analysis, using Python, a modern programming language that is popular in the industry. Topics of the course include the implementation and evaluation of advanced algorithms, the design and deployment of Web applications, and the fundamentals of programming for data management and analysis.
This course covers the main principles of algorithm design, introducing fundamental data structures and basic algorithmic techniques. It also discusses how to perform an analysis of algorithms, to establish their correctness and evaluate their efficiency. The emphasis is on choosing appropriate data structures and designing correct and efficient algorithms to operate on them, following standard algorithmic techniques. Principles of complexity theory and challenges arising in modern application domains are also investigated.
This course is designed for the general student to provide an overview of artificial intelligence (no computer programming skills are necessary). This course will discuss intelligent agents and the building blocks of artificial intelligence: knowledge bases, reasoning systems, problem solving, heuristic search, machine learning, and planning.
This course helps students develop the advanced skills that are necessary in personal productivity office applications, such as word processing, data management and analysis, and presentation/slide design. The course follows best practices and reviews available internet tools for data storage.
This course offers an overview and an introduction to the capabilities and limitations of computing and digital multimedia; the theoretical foundations of computing that drive future computing and technological advancements; computer software including operating system and application software; fundamentals of computer networks and the Internet; networks types and standard protocols; cloud computing; next generation Internet or “Internet of the things”; additive manufacturing and 3D printers for business; business intelligence, data analysis, digital contact with customers; privacy and personal data protection on the Internet; Cyber war, computer risk, and security concerns.
This introductory course provides an overview for visual representation of data. It is designed to cover the differences between infographics and visualization. Through both theory and applied practice the course covers specifics related to basic graphic design, online publishing, and corporate communication as it relates to large amounts of data and visually representing data in creative and meaningful ways.
The structure, management, and development of business information systems. The nature of business information, computer hardware and computer software, systems analysis, and the development and introduction of business information systems will be covered, as well as the impact of technological innovations.
This course introduces fundamental computer programming concepts using a high-level language and a modern development environment. Programming skills include sequential, selection, and repetition control structures, functions, input and output, primitive data types, basic data structures including arrays and pointers, objects, and classes. Software engineering skills include problem solving, program design, and debugging practices. The goal of this course is to advance students computational thinking, educate them to use programs as tools in their own field of study, and to provide them with fundamental knowledge of programming strategies.
The premise of this course is that a web site differs from a traditional media publication because its contents can be updated at any moment, many possibilities exist for making it interactive, and reader attention span is short. The course provides students with technical knowledge and skills required to build a web site, while covering design, communication, and computer-human interaction issues. Topics include web history, HTML, style sheets, and effective information searching. As a final project, students create a web site on a liberal arts topic, which will be judged by the instructor and a reader specialized in the chosen topic.
The course provides students with the technical knowledge required to deal with the professional process of designing, developing, installing and maintaining a business web site.
This course explores the fundamental topics of traditional Calculus such as limits, continuity, differentiation and anti-differentiation, with emphasis on the business and economics applications of maximization, minimization, optimization, and decision making.
This course builds on the fundamentals of the calculus of one variable, and includes infinite series, power series, differential equations of first and second order, numerical integration, and an analysis of improper integrals. It also covers the calculus of several variables: limits, partial derivatives, and multiple integrals.
This course provides an introduction to ordinary differential equations. These equations contain a function of one independent variable and its derivatives. The term “ordinary” is used in contrast with the term partial differential equation which may be with respect to more than one independent variable. Ordinary differential equations and applications, with integrated use of computing, student projects; first-order equations; higher order linear equations; systems of linear equations, Laplace transforms; introduction to nonlinear equations and systems, phase plane, stability.
This course develops the quantitative skills which a liberal-arts educated student should acquire. It is intended to give the student an appreciation for the use of mathematics as a tool in business and science, as well as developing problem solving and critical thinking abilities. The course introduces the student to important topics of applied linear mathematics and probability. Topics include sets, counting, probability, the mathematics of finance, linear equations and applications, linear inequalities, an introduction to matrices and basic linear programming.The course introduces the student to important topics of applied linear mathematics and probability. Topics include sets, counting, probability, the mathematics of finance, linear equations and applications, linear inequalities, an introduction to matrices and basic linear programming.
This course provides a review of elementary algebra for students who need further preparation for pre-calculus. Students enroll in this course on the basis of a placement examination. The course covers the basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division involving algebraic expressions; factoring of polynomial expressions; exponents and radicals; solving linear equations, quadratic equations and systems of linear equations; and applications involving these concepts. This course does not satisfy the General Distribution Requirement in Mathematics and Science.This course is a review of intermediate algebra and has few prerequisites other than elementary familiarity with numbers and simple geometric concepts such as: finding the least common multiple of two or more numbers, manipulating fractions, calculating the area of a triangle, square, rectangle, circle, etc. Its objective is to prepare students for Pre-calculus.
This course introduces students to the techniques of linear algebra and to the concepts upon which the techniques are based. Topics include: vectors, matrix algebra, systems of linear equations, and related geometry in Euclidean spaces. Fundamentals of vector spaces, linear transformations, eigenvalues and associated eigenvectors.
This is a calculus-based introduction to mathematical statistics. While the material covered is similar to that which might be found in an undergraduate course of statistics, the technical level is much more advanced, the quantity of material much larger, and the pace of delivery correspondingly faster. The course covers basic probability, random variables (continuous and discrete), the central limit theorem and statistical inference, including parameter estimation and hypothesis testing. It also provides a basic introduction to stochastic processes.
An introduction to Calculus that focuses on the study of elementary functions, polynomial, rational, exponential and logarithmic, mainly oriented towards practical applications in business and economics. Particular emphasis will be placed on functions as the first step to analyzing real-world problems in mathematical terms.
An introduction to descriptive statistics, elementary probability theory and inferential statistics. Included are: mean, median, mode and standard deviation; probability distributions, binomial probabilities and the normal distribution; problems of estimation; hypothesis testing, and an introduction to simple linear regression.
A continuation of Statistics I. Topics include more advanced hypothesis testing, regression analysis, analysis of variance, non-parametric tests, time series analysis and decision- making techniques.