Course Title: Refine writing and editing techniques - Corporate Writing

Part A: Course Overview

Program: C5181

Course Title: Refine writing and editing techniques - Corporate Writing

Portfolio: DSC

Nominal Hours: 85.0

Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
COMM5450	City Campus	TAFE	345T Media and Communication	Face-to-Face	Term1 2009, Term1 2011, Term1 2012

Course Contact: Professional Writing and Editing Administration

Course Contact Phone: +61 3 9925 4368

Course Contact Email: brendan.lee@rmit.edu.au

Course Description

This course  Refine Writing and Editing Techniques - Corporate Writing experiments with writing and editing techniques in order to write works that meets the needs of a range of audiences. You develop the craft of professional writing, focusing on business and public relations forms while studying the principles of clear writing and plain English, and the essentials of shaping messages for specific audiences and purposes. This close language work is then applied to business writing, in particular emails, letters, memos, formal reports and business cases. You also learn the techniques of persuasive writing and apply this to speechwriting and copywriting. Copywriting forms you explore include print ads, brochures, newsletters, direct mail, media releases, websites and social media. You learn how writing for the screen differs from print, how writing for the ear differs from the eye, and how layout, typography and visuals can enhance the written message.

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

At RMIT, Refine Writing and Editing – Corporate Writing is delivered and assessed along with the following competencies.

• CUVCOR04A - Originate concept for own work and conduct critical discourse
• CUVCOR13A - Research and critically analyse history and theory to inform artistic practice
• CUECOR01B - Manage own work and learning
• CUSADM03A - Manage a project
• CUVDES05A - Interpret and respond to a brief
• CUSRAD02A - Conduct Research

Through the development of these competencies, you gain the skills needed to manage your work and learning while responding to a range of project briefs. You research the work of other writers and apply your findings to your own writing through the development of a concept into a written work or a publishing project.

National Competency Codes and Titles

National Element Code & Title:	VBP553 Refine writing and editing techniques - Corporate Writing
Elements:	1. Inform work through experimentation with writing techniques and media
	2. Develop and refine conceptual vision for writings
	3. Determine and organise resource requirements for work
	4. Plan the writing
	5. Realise writings

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, you will be able to:
• identify barriers to communication
•build a resource bank of writing samples
•critique informative and persuasive writing pieces, including speeches
•interrogate a brief, outline the scope of a task and create a plan and schedule
•research a topic and reference source material using conventional citation styles
•select and sequence information to suit the audience, purpose and form
•write in plain English and the active voice
•apply specific writing techniques to suit the task, such as hedge words and the passive voice
•write in a range of business and public relations forms
•edit and proofread your work to an expected standard
•communicate information effectively via tables, graphs and visuals
•produce documents where the layout and design supports the communication
•work collaboratively with others on a group project.

Overview of Assessment

Assessment for this course is ongoing throughout the semester. Your knowledge of course content is assessed through writing tasks, assignments, a group project, and participation in class activities and workshopping.