Overview
ADMN 233: Writing for Organizations is a course for students to improve their communication skills as they apply to the workplace. The ability to communicate effectively is essential for success in every career, from getting your desired job to submitting an impressive proposal to prospective clients or a formal report to senior executives. To succeed, you must be able to target your communications to the diverse needs of varying stakeholders.
In this course, you will develop foundational writing skills by improving your writing style and mechanics. You will also learn how to analyze audience and medium to create messages that build productive professional relationships.
ADMN 233 is an interactive and experiential course. This course provides a learning opportunity that simulates the contextual environment and situational factors of applying effective communication in the workplace.
Through a simulated work environment, you will interact with virtual coworkers and clients to complete tasks and assignments that mimic actual business communication problems and opportunities. Educational material and individual, iterative feedback will guide you through developing important professional communication skills essential to not only successfully complete the course but also to excel in your chosen career.
Topics include:
- mechanics of writing
- professional communication style
- persuasion and rhetoric
- writing tone, inclusivity, and sensitivity
- report and proposal writing
- document design and information visualization
- audience analysis and targeted communications
Find out more about this course’s use of simulated, experiential learning methods
Learning outcomes
When you have successfully completed the course, you will have learned how to
- write professional quality messages that achieve your organization’s needs.
- apply a systematic process to plan, organize, and revise business messages.
- understand the needs of your audience to target your communications effectively.
- inform and persuade people through powerful business reports and proposals.
- apply design principles to present documents that promote readability and brand values.
- demonstrate sensitivity and empathy to language and tone.
- practise the mechanics of good writing, including proper grammar, punctuation, paragraphing, and syntax.
- communicate ethically, correctly, and effectively.
In addition, as this course uses an innovative approach involving artificial intelligence, students who completed this course have reported gaining highly marketable experience in working with AI — a skill you can add to your resumé.
Evaluation
In ADMN 233, you will complete an initial writing assessment, experiential tasks and exercises, a brief report, a brief proposal, and a final examination.
To receive credit for ADMN 233, you must achieve a grade of at least D (50 percent) on the final examination and a minimum overall course grade of D (50 percent). The following table summarizes the evaluation activities for ADMN 233:
| Activity | Weight |
| Writing Assessment | 5% |
| Experiential Tasks & Exercises | 40% |
| Report | 15% |
| Proposal | 15% |
| Final Examination | 25% |
| Total | 100% |
The final examination for this course must be requested in advance and written under the supervision of an AU-approved exam invigilator. Invigilators include either ProctorU or an approved in-person invigilation centre that can accommodate online exams. Students are responsible for payment of any invigilation fees. Information on exam request deadlines, invigilators, and other exam-related questions, can be found at the Exams and grades section of the Calendar.
To learn more about assignments and examinations, please refer to Athabasca University’s online Calendar.
Materials
Registration in this course includes access to an online and simulated learning platform. This platform includes interactive and virtual discussions and exercises as well as extensive educational texts and videos.
As this course makes continuous use of an interactive online environment and online videos, it requires students to have regular access to a desktop or laptop computer with high-speed Internet connection.
It is not possible to download the course material and complete this course predominantly offline.
Although you may be able to access the course website ahead of your start date, there is no early access to the simulation platform.
Challenge for credit
Overview
The challenge for credit process allows you to demonstrate that you have acquired a command of the general subject matter, knowledge, intellectual and/or other skills that would normally be found in a university-level course.
Full information about challenge for credit can be found in the Undergraduate Calendar.
Evaluation
To receive credit for the ADMN 233 challenge registration, you must achieve a grade of at least D (50 percent) on the examination.
| Activity | Weight |
| Online Exam | 100% |
| Total | 100% |
Challenge for credit course registration form