Technical Communication Minor

College of Liberal Arts / Technical Communication and Interaction Design
Undergraduate minor

About The Program

The technologies around us change rapidly and constantly, and the Technical Communication minor teaches students how to communicate about technology to a wide range of audiences, using print and online media.

The goal of the minor is to strengthen students' abilities to write about technology and to use technology to write. You will learn basic principles of editing, document design, and web design.

Students pursuing degrees in many areas (such as computer science, natural science, business, or liberal arts) may enhance their marketability due to the applied nature of the minor.

Graduates will be able to apply principles of audience analysis to technical communication situations; analyze and create a website that effectively communicates with its audience; and apply technical communication skills to all of their writing.

How to enroll

Current students: Declare this program

Once you’re admitted as an undergraduate student and have met any further admission requirements your chosen program may have, you may declare a major or declare an optional minor.

Future students: Apply now

Apply to Metropolitan State: Start the journey toward your Technical Communication Minor now. Learn about the steps to enroll or, if you have questions about what Metropolitan State can offer you, request information, visit campus or chat with an admissions counselor.

Get started on your Technical Communication Minor

Courses and Requirements

SKIP TO COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Requirements (15 credits)

+ Required

Up to eight credits may be transferred

TCID 271 Technical Writing
3 credits

In this course, students create a variety of documents, including technical memos, manuals, proposals and reports. Emphasis is placed on document design, effective organization and readability. This course especially benefits managers or technical employees who need to communicate technical information to business or general audiences.

Full course description for Technical Writing

TCID 301 Professional and Technical Writing Careers
2 credits

Students learn about the skill set required to succeed professionally and how they might acquire these skills through coursework. They also learn about career opportunities for professional writers and technical communicators through presentations by guest speakers and readings. Students also begin to develop an online portfolio.

Full course description for Professional and Technical Writing Careers

TCID 302 Content Strategy
2 credits

Content strategy encompasses the creation, management, testing, and governance of content, whether that be a website, printed document, social media, or other forms of information. In this class students will gain a comprehensive understanding of content for contemporary information-intensive organizations as well as hands-on skills to create effective, user-friendly, and culturally sensitive content.

Full course description for Content Strategy

TCID 371 Editing
4 credits

This course covers editing principles and techniques. Topics include how readers use and comprehend texts, the editor's role in the publication process, the writer/editor relationship, and editing for organization, format, style, grammar, punctuation, usage, consistency and accuracy. Students edit a variety of texts, including technical documents and newsletter articles in print and online.

Full course description for Editing

+ Elective (4 credits)

Choose one of the following courses

TCID 372 Document and Information Design I
4 credits

Methods and techniques of document and information design, including principles of graphic design, audience analysis, portfolio development, and use of professional software tools.

Full course description for Document and Information Design I

TCID 373 Writing and Designing for the Web I
4 credits

This course introduces students to the principles, processes, and techniques of front-end Web development. Students gain solid knowledge and practical skills in HTML, CSS, website genres, design patterns, Web writing, and usability. Students will analyze and build websites. Students must already possess basic satisfactory digital literacy, such as managing files and folders, and adding and removing programs.

Full course description for Writing and Designing for the Web I

TCID 374 Creating Intelligent Content
4 credits

Intelligent content is all around us, working behind the scenes to produce instructions that come with our lawnmowers, explanations for medical devices, and user manuals for laptops, to name just a few examples. We create intelligent content through structured writing/authoring, which is both the creation of content and the method for managing this content. Because structured authoring creates controls for analyzing, organizing, and displaying content, it is key to publication workflows in organizations that provide a large amount of content. While learning a standardized approach to writing structured content, students also learn to apply rhetorical problem solving and computational thinking that results in content that is intelligent because it is inclusive, adaptable, creates patterns of reuse, and results in consistency of content across documents/publication outputs.

Full course description for Creating Intelligent Content

TCID 574 Usability and User Experience
4 credits

This course focuses on usability and user experience for technical and information products. Students learn concepts, principles, processes, and methods of usability and user experience. Students work in teams and conduct a usability study systematically to improve an information product. Topics also include usability in business and organizational settings, usability workflow and governance. Students will also interact with user experience professionals.

Full course description for Usability and User Experience