Course Outline
CMN311 Industry Project 1: Communication, Creativity and Design
Course Coordinator:Gail Crimmins (gcrimmin@usc.edu.au) School:School of Business and Creative Industries
2026Semester 2
UniSC Sunshine Coast |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Online |
Online | You can do this course without coming onto campus, unless your program has specified a mandatory onsite requirement. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
What is this course about?
Description
This course is designed to provide you with experience in conducting research through a project within an industry. Your project will be designed cooperatively between you, your academic project supervisor, and the workplace supervisor/client.
How will this course be delivered?
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – In-class tutorial | 3hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Online | |||
| Lecture – 1 hour online content for 12 weeks (or equivalent). | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Interactive zoom tutorial | 2hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
Course Topics
Topics will be specifically determined by the discipline-specific industry partner/client or supervisor. But general topics include:
Project planning:
Scope of project; H & S audit; identifying key stakeholders; designing a communication plan/strategy; aligning project with discipline/field/industry expectations.
Developing an industry-focused project as an emerging communications/creative industries/design professional:
Maintaining professional communication and collaboration with an industry partner/supervisor; Creative thinking and problem solving; Meeting the brief established by one’s industry partner/client/supervisor.
Critical reflection on the key events and growth experienced across the project:
Critical reflection on what opportunities you harnessed, challenges you encountered, and problems you solved; Critical engagement with relevant scholarship within your field, and how it informed your practice; Critical reflection on what you learned during the project and if/how you might engage in a similar project in future.
What level is this course?
300 Level (Graduate)
What is the unit value of this course?
12 units
How does this course contribute to my learning?
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Research industry requirements and plan participation in a project. | Engaged |
| 2 | Demonstrate a coherent and advanced body of knowledge of professional practices and industry expectations within the communication, design and/or creative fields. | Knowledgeable |
| 3 | Collaborate and work with others across an identified industry project. | Engaged |
| 4 | Reflect on the culture and expectations of the workplace. | Engaged |
Am I eligible to enrol in this course?
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Pre-requisites
Completed 192 units
Co-requisites
Not applicable
Anti-requisites
Not applicable
Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)
Students should have knowledge and skills across Communication and/or Creative Industries and/or Design appropriate to an industry project.
Microcredential Information
Not applicable
How am I going to be assessed?
Grading Scale
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Details of early feedback on progress
Assessment item 1 will be discussed in Week 2, providing feedback on the approach to the industry project.
Assessment tasks
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Plan | Individual | 25% | 1000 words |
Refer to Format | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All | 2 | Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece | Individual | 40% | Participation in agreed activities across all weeks |
Refer to Format | To Supervisor |
| All | 3 | Journal | Individual | 35% | 2000 words |
Refer to Format | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Plan | |||||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | You will demonstrate professional research and industry engagement practices to develop a project plan. |
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| Product: | Plan | ||||||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||||||||
| Format: | Submit: Midway through project - to be negotiated with supervisor. The plan will be submitted in a Word document or industry specific format via Blackboard, using appropriate academic citation where required. The plan may contain headings and should cover the following: A summary of the industry project and the opportunity this presents, A plan for activity based on initial meetings, Anticipated benefits for student and industry partner, A risk assessment of project |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 2:Project Performance | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | You will engage in an industry-focused project at an emerging communications/creative industries/design professional level. |
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| Product: | Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Format: | Submit: At the end of the project - negotiated with supervisor. Project performance will be evaluated by the project supervisor. This assessment is made through observation, reporting from the Industry partner and based on conversations with the student, and the successful completion of the nominated project. You will adhere to the discipline specific code of conduct which requires behaviour that is in accordance with professional and industry standards. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Journal | |||||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | You will reflect on, and summarise, the key events and growth across the project. |
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| Product: | Journal | ||||||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||||||||
| Format: | Submit: At the end of the project - negotiated with supervisor. The reflective journal should be updated across the course, and should highlight key events, activities and opportunities as well as broader theoretical understandings and learning moments from participation with the industry.The journal can be kept using either a chronological approach or by theme (e.g. collaborations, activities, equipment, resourcing etc).The journal will be submitted in a Word document or industry specific format via Blackboard, using appropriate academic citation where required. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Problem solving, Information literacy |
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Directed study hours
A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
What resources do I need to undertake this course?
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Prescribed text(s) or course reader
Specific requirements
Students may need to work with an industry partner. This course requires some commercial software or hardware which is provided at USC campuses for student use. If you elect to do this course online, you may either; attend a campus at which it is available, discuss alternative open source solutions with your course coordinator that would enable you to demonstrate the learning outcomes, or if you prefer you may acquire this software and / or hardware at your own expense.
How are risks managed in this course?
What administrative information is relevant to this course?
Assessment: Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Assessment: Additional Requirements
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying: The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4% The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconduct.Assessment: Submission penalties
Late submission of assessment tasks may be penalised at the following maximum rate: - 5% (of the assessment task's identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - 10% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the third day - 20% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome.Links to relevant University policy and procedures
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
- Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
- Review of Assessment and Final Grades
- Supplementary Assessment
- Central Examinations
- Deferred Examinations
- Student Conduct
- Students with a Disability
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
Student Charter
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
General Enquiries
- In person:
- UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
- UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
- UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
- UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
- UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
- UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
- Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
- Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au