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Crisis Communication Certificate Program

All organizations – corporate, government, trade association, non-profit – are at risk of a crisis and require a crisis management plan. Crises interrupt organizations’ routines and attract negative public and media scrutiny. In some instances, a crisis can result in long term consequences that potentially destroy the organization’s reputation. Ideally, in these instances, the organization has expected and prepared for this event. This expectation can be easily achieved with effective crisis management and communication via actions that restore credibility, confidence and control.

The modules in this four-week certificate program enable professional communicators to act quickly to assess a possible critical situation and disseminate key messages to the appropriate audiences. Upon successful completion of this program, you will understand how to enhance your written communications to address crisis communications, issues monitoring and other public relations tactics.

Testimonials

Who Should Attend

Some targets for this program include:

Brand managers
Nonprofit leaders
Public relations specialists
Emergency management directors
Social and human service assistants
Mental health and substance abuse social workers
Healthcare social workers
Small business owners
Graduate students (Business, Communication and Operations)

Benefits

Some of the advantages of earning a certificate on this topic include:

Knowing how to define what constitutes an organizational crisis.
Being able to identify crisis warning signs and apply issues management strategies to prevent crises from occurring.
Being able to define different types of crises and apply crises communication principles within specific contexts.
Learning how to formulate strategic crisis responses for external and internal stakeholders to minimize the negative impact of a crisis.
Practicing effective messaging and communications techniques required of a skilled spokesperson.

Professional Affiliations

Topics/Syllabus

Writing and editing techniques
Information dissemination strategies
Writing for social media
Adapting messages to unique audiences
Applications of data analytics
Reporting communication outcomes
Creating budgets to optimize resources
Identify crisis warning signs
Applications of correct issues management strategies
Formulate strategic crisis responses
Crisis spokesperson preparation

FAQ

Will I earn credit for this program?
No, this program is non-credit, but may be approved for Continuing Education Units (CEU) credit. This is a professional education class with different requirements than courses taken for academic credit.

Are there course materials?
Course outline, power points, diagnostic instruments and feedback templates will be provided.

Will there be tests or projects to complete?
There will be assessments and quizzes to ensure you are learning the material.

Do I need previous writing experience?
This is a course for beginners who are competent writers but don’t need lengthy writing experience to succeed.

Is this class offered in-class or online?
This four-week certificate program is only offered in-class.

For More Information, Contact:

Janie Rollinson

Email: jrollin1@depaul.edu
Phone: +1 312-362-5792

Upcoming Class Offerings

There are no classes currently being offered in this program. Check back again!

Program Brochure

Click here to download an informational flyer.

Paper Registration

If you wish to register for a class via a paper form, click here.

Student Policies

Click here for a list of our student policies.

Contact Us

For general inquiries, please email us or call 312-362-6300.