This course covers the business communication environment. It includes business writing, business styles, business memos, short and long reports, job search and resume writing, oral business presentations, communication for intercultural business, and business ethics. This is a three credit course.

The purpose of this course is to introduce the student to the fundamentals of business communication. Student should check with their advisor/counselor to determine whether courses are transferable to other institutions. This course has no guarantee of transferability.

Required:

Business Communication Process & Product, by Guffey, 6th edition
Southwestern Publishing
Aplia Access code for homework

Suggested:

none

You can buy your books online at the NMJC Bookstore.

Students attending New Mexico Junior College will be evaluated according to the following grading scale:

						90 - 100%	=	A
						80 -  89%	=	B
						70 -  79%	=	C
						60 -  69%	=	D
					 	 0 -  59%	=	F

Retrieving Grades from Banner System
Go to the New Mexico Junior College Banner login page. Please enter your User Identification Number (ID), which is your Banner ID or your Social Security Number without hyphens, and your Personal Identification Number (PIN). When finished, click Login.

Tips for Success in Online Courses:
1. Log in to class regularly.
2. Pay attention.
3. Take notes.
4. Keep up with readings and assignments.
5. Ask questions when you do not understand something.
6. Utilize your professor’s office hours and e-mail.
7. Read the text.
8. Adhere to the deadlines posted in the course outline.

The objective of the Business program is to prepare students for entry-level employment in the emphasis areas of Accounting, Management, Entrepreneurship, and Executive Assistant/Office Manager. Students who successfully complete the program should be able to utilize various application and system software programs, apply generally accepted accounting principles, practice the fundamentals of business communication, and demonstrate an understanding of basic business concepts.

Upon successful completion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Plan, organize, compose, design, revise, and edit business documents
2. Prepare direct requests
3. Prepare good news messages
4. Prepare informative messages
5. Prepare bad news and negative messages
6. Prepare persuasive messages
7. Prepare reports and proposals
8. Prepare employment communication messages
9. Recognize communication challenges

Student Requirements
If you have not already received login information for Blackboard/Banner/E-mail, you will need to contact the Enrollment Management office at (575) 492-2546.

Check first-time login page for instructions at www.nmjc.edu/distancelearning/coursescourseschedules/blackboardinstructions.aspx.

Blackboard Assistance

• Call the Blackboard helpdesk at (575) 399-2199 to gain an understanding of the software environment for your class.

You must have access, on a regular basis, to a computer that supports the Blackboard minimum specifications and has an active connection to the Internet. See the minimum computer specification requirements at www.nmjc.edu/distancelearning/coursescourseschedules/blackboardinstructions.aspx.

Alpia.com
The place you will complete the majority of your homeork assignments for the semester.

During this course, to complete certain assignments, you will be required to access a new website dedicated to students and professosrs of Business Communication. On the first day of class, I will provide you with an instruction sheet, as well as a course key so that you can register.


Virtual office hours are scheduled in the course syllabus. Responses to course related questions will be within 48 hours for Monday through Friday. Messages left on my office phone will not get a response. Technical questions should be addressed to the Blackkboard/Vista help desk.

Students will be held responsible for the information on these pages.

Attendance Policy and Participation Expectations
It is expected that you regularly log into class at least three times weekly and check your Blackboard mail to ensure you have not missed any changes/updates. Students are expected to complete discussions/quizzes/tests/ assignments before deadlines expire.

Online Learning Environment
By participating in an online class, you undertake responsibility for your own progress and time management.

• Pay attention to deadlines and do not forget them (keep a calendar if it helps).
• Carefully read and understand all assignments.
• Complete assignments according to posted instructions and notes. Do not just glance at an assignment before attempting to complete it (this is likely to result in a poor grade).
• Questions may be posed for clarification in the class discussion area or by sending an e-mail to your instructor.

Academic Honesty
Each student is expected to maintain the highest standards of honesty and integrity in online academic and professional matters. The College reserves the right to take disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, against any student who is found guilty of academic dishonesty or otherwise fails to meet these standards. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, dishonesty in quizzes, tests, or assignments; claiming credit for work not done or done by others; and nondisclosure or misrepresentation in filling out applications or other College records. Cheating or gaining illegal information for any type of graded work is considered dishonest and will be dealt with accordingly.

Plagiarism
Offering the work of another as one’s own, without proper acknowledgment, is plagiarism; therefore, any student who fails to give credit for quotations or essentially identical expression of material taken from books, encyclopedias, magazines and other reference works, or from the themes, reports, or other writings of a fellow student, is guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism violates the academic honesty policy and is considered cheating.

Withdrawal Policy
The instructor has the right to drop any student who has failed to log on to Blackboard for two weeks or more, but it is not guaranteed that the instructor will drop you. If you choose to stop participating in an online class, you should withdraw yourself from the class by contacting the Enrollment Management Office (575-492-2546 or 800-657-6260), completing the proper paperwork by 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 8, 2010, and notifying your instructor. Failure to withdraw yourself from a course by this date may result in your receiving an “F” in the course.

Late Assignments
Assignments must be submitted by the date and time listed. It is not possible to make-up any assignments without prior approval from the professor.

Blackboard Help
If you experience difficulty with Blackboard you may reach the Blackboard Helpdesk at Bbhelpdesk@nmjc.edu, or by calling the 24 hour helpdesk phone at (575) 399-2199.

Online Tutoring Assistance
Free online tutoring services are available to all NMJC students (after the third week of class) through Smarthinking.com. If you experience difficulty utilizing Smarthinking, please contact the Blackboard Helpdesk at Bbhelpdesk@nmjc.edu, or by calling the 24 hour helpdesk phone at (575) 399-2199.

ADA Information
Any student requiring special accommodations should contact the Special Needs Student Services Coordinator at (575) 492-2576 or by e-mail at specialneeds@nmjc.edu.

Netiquette
The professor is responsible for monitoring and evaluating student conduct and student behavior within the Blackboard course. By registering for this class, the student is assumed to have entered into an agreement with New Mexico Junior College and the professor to log into the class regularly and to behave in an appropriate manner at all times. Disruptive behavior may result in the student being removed from the class and dropped for the semester. For comprehensive information on the common rules of netiquette and other online issues, please review the NMJC Online Student Handbook.