Competency Alignment and Time Budget
Course Competencies
By the end of AVC 248 you will be able to:
- Evaluate the appropriateness of your personal goals and objectives to market needs.
- Develop a self-marketing plan, including a resume and business card.
- Develop a leave-behind.
- Use networking skills in the classroom.
- Identify the appropriate markets to target.
- Identify points of discussion for a standard operating contract with a client.
- Demonstrate the ability to interview and communicate with clients, including professional interview etiquette.
- Develop a portfolio for online and printed presentation purposes.
Objectives and Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy
Every module objective is written to the revised Bloom’s taxonomy (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001) and sits at or below the level of the course competency it supports. Every graded assessment has had an AI-exposure check using Oregon State University Ecampus’s Bloom’s Taxonomy Revisited, so that the graded evidence shows your own thinking, decisions and work. The Competency Alignment and Time Budget page lists every objective with its level and the assignment that measures it.
Levels follow the cognitive process categories of the revised taxonomy (Anderson and Krathwohl, 2001): Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate and Create. Competencies 5 and 6 are written at the Remember level (“Identify”); the course’s market, contract and copyright work identifies, then applies what it identifies in later projects, and the objectives tagged to those competencies use Remember-level verbs to stay at or below them.
| Objective | Statement | Competency (level) | Objective level | Measured by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Set up and verify every account and piece of software the course uses. | 4 (Apply) | Apply | Technology Setup |
| 0.2 | Record and share a short explanation of your work with the recorder that fits your field. | 8 (Create) | Apply | Technology Setup |
| 0.3 | Introduce yourself and your work to the class on Discord and comment on four classmates’ introductions. | 4 (Apply) | Apply | Technology Setup |
| 1.1 | Explain why employers expect AI skills, and the real costs of AI. | 1 (Evaluate) | Understand | AI Primer |
| 1.2 | Explain in plain terms how a large language model produces an answer, and why it can be wrong. | 2 (Create) | Understand | AI Primer |
| 1.3 | Write, test and revise a prompt, and verify the result against a source. | 2 (Create) | Apply | AI Primer |
| 1.4 | State a personal position on using AI in creative work, backed by two sources. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | AI Primer |
| 2.1 | Evaluate your career goals against three real postings or opportunities in your field, and describe your target job by industry, type of organization and typical workday. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Discussion: Career Services Overview; Personal Goals Statement |
| 2.2 | Produce a one-page resume in the GCC Career Services format, and revise every bullet to begin with an action verb and correct each item flagged in feedback. | 2 (Create) | Create | Resume 1st Draft; Resume 2nd Draft; Resume 4th Draft |
| 2.3 | Write a cover letter for one real posting that connects two specific details of your own experience to its stated requirements. | 2 (Create) | Create | Cover Letter |
| 2.4 | Locate job postings and portfolios in your field, and identify the skills, software and presentation strategies they repeat. | 5 (Remember) | Remember | Discussion: Industry Job Posting; Discussion: Portfolio Inspiration |
| 2.5 | Classify interview questions by type, and answer one behavioral question on camera with the STAR method. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Interview Practice 1: Question Types; Interview Practice 2: The STAR Method |
| 2.6 | Explain two ways a Gemini edit improved a section of your resume and two ways it misrepresented you, comparing your original with the edited version. | 2 (Create) | Understand | Discussion: AI Resume Experiment |
| 3.1 | Plan a personal identity system (audience, two typefaces, a palette with hex codes and a list of deliverables) in a one-page design brief. | 2 (Create) | Create | Identity Design Brief |
| 3.2 | Develop three business card directions and a designed resume from your identity design brief. | 2 (Create) | Create | Resume 3rd Draft; Business Card |
| 3.3 | Develop a leave-behind concept from three sketches, and justify any scannable or tappable element. | 3 (Create) | Create | Leave-Behind Concept |
| 3.4 | Deliver a 10 to 20 second elevator pitch and two STAR answers on camera without reading from notes. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Elevator Pitch; Interview Practice 3: Recorded STAR Answers |
| 3.5 | Identify who owns client work, which fair use factor a court weighed, and what a Creative Commons license allows. | 6 (Remember) | Remember | Copyright for Digital Media Artists |
| 3.6 | Answer the weakness and salary-expectation questions on camera, citing a researched pay range for your target role. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Interview Practice 4: Weakness and Salary Questions |
| 4.1 | Present four portfolio projects in a two to three minute recording, stating the goal, your role, one key decision and the outcome of each. | 8 (Create) | Create | Midterm In-Process Portfolio Presentation |
| 4.2 | Plan a week-by-week production schedule that addresses the priority feedback on your portfolio. | 8 (Create) | Create | Midterm Portfolio Preparation Plan; Portfolio and Reel Plan |
| 4.3 | Summarize one current development in your creative field and explain how it affects your career plan. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Discussion: Industry News |
| 5.1 | Identify three financial, legal or professional risks of freelance work and one way to reduce each. | 6 (Remember) | Remember | Freelancing Risks and Resources |
| 5.2 | Identify the questions, clauses and terms (scope, schedule, payment, revisions, cancellation, ownership) a client agreement must cover. | 6 (Remember) | Remember | Spec Sheet; Project Brief with a Contract |
| 5.3 | Evaluate a three-month post-graduation plan against your Personal Goals Statement and revise the items that do not fit. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Post-Graduation Action Plan |
| 5.4 | Explain, in a 60 to 90 second recorded answer, why you want to work for one organization, citing three facts from your research. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Interview Practice 5: Company Research |
| 5.5 | Locate one stretch posting in your field, and identify one requirement you meet, one you do not, and a plan to close the gap. | 5 (Remember) | Remember | Discussion: Stretch Job Posting |
| 6.1 | Use LinkedIn (or a Google Sites profile page) to connect with five professionals and write three specific comments in your field. | 4 (Apply) | Apply | Networking on LinkedIn |
| 6.2 | Draft a mentor outreach message that names a specific person or role, where you found them and a small request. | 4 (Apply) | Apply | Finding a Mentor |
| 6.3 | Give three classmates portfolio critique that names a specific project, one strength and one concrete change. | 8 (Create) | Create | Portfolio Check-In |
| 6.4 | Walk an interviewer through one project and ask two researched questions about the organization, on camera. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Interview Practice 6: Project Walkthrough |
| 6.5 | Evaluate a working professional’s portfolio the way a hiring manager would, naming what works and one change. | 8 (Create) | Evaluate | Discussion: Hiring Manager Portfolio Review |
| 6.6 | Produce a complete LinkedIn profile (or Google Sites profile page) with a headline, About section, experience, skills and portfolio links. | 2 (Create) | Create | LinkedIn Profile; Updated LinkedIn Profile |
| 7.1 | Apply five video interview practices (background, lighting, audio, framing, appearance) to your own setup. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Virtual Interview Setup |
| 7.2 | Answer six unseen interview questions on camera, each in one to two minutes, using the STAR method where it fits. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | Mock Job Interview |
| 7.3 | Explain which two pieces of AI interview feedback you will use and which one you reject, with a reason for each. | 7 (Apply) | Apply | AI Mock Interview |
| 8.1 | Compile your final resume, business card, leave-behind and one digital asset into one PDF that uses a single typeface pairing and palette throughout. | 2 (Create) | Create | Final Identity Package |
| 8.2 | Produce a print-ready PDF or a working digital leave-behind that follows your concept and identity system. | 3 (Create) | Create | Final Leave-Behind |
| 8.3 | Write a description for each of five portfolio projects that states the goal, your role, the process and the outcome. | 8 (Create) | Create | Updated Portfolio |
| 8.4 | Present three portfolio projects in a two-minute recorded video, stating the goal, your role, one key decision and the outcome of each. | 8 (Create) | Create | Final Portfolio Presentation |
| 8.5 | Produce a final resume that applies your identity system and corrects every item flagged across four drafts. | 2 (Create) | Create | Final Resume |
| 9.1 | Evaluate your career goal against market needs, explain the five parts of an AI agent, and state the goal as one an agent can act on. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Step 1: Set Your Agent’s Goal |
| 9.2 | Identify the markets, organizations and sources your agent should target, and list the rules it will follow. | 5 (Remember) | Remember | Step 2: Plan Your Agent on Paper |
| 9.3 | Test your agent against its own rules across three runs and judge which rules to revise from the evidence. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Step 3: Build and Test Your Agent |
| 9.4 | Justify your agent’s goal, rules and delivery choice in a recorded presentation, using two scheduled outputs as evidence. | 1 (Evaluate) | Evaluate | Step 4: Schedule and Launch Your Agent |
Alignment Map
Every competency has graded evidence, and every graded item maps to a competency. Process work in each module builds toward the projects listed in the last column.
| # | Competency | Modules | Project evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evaluate the appropriateness of your personal goals and objectives to market needs. | M1, M2, M4, M5, M9 | Step 4: Schedule and Launch Your Agent |
| 2 | Develop a self-marketing plan, including a resume and business card. | M1, M2, M3, M6, M8 | Final Identity Package |
| 3 | Develop a leave-behind. | M3, M8 | Final Identity Package |
| 4 | Use networking skills in the classroom. | M0, M6 | Process work and exercises |
| 5 | Identify the appropriate markets to target. | M2, M5, M9 | Process work and exercises |
| 6 | Identify points of discussion for a standard operating contract with a client. | M3, M5 | Process work and exercises |
| 7 | Demonstrate the ability to interview and communicate with clients, including professional interview etiquette. | M2, M3, M5, M6, M7 | Final Portfolio Presentation |
| 8 | Develop a portfolio for online and printed presentation purposes. | M0, M4, M6, M8 | Final Portfolio Presentation, Midterm In-Process Portfolio Presentation |
AI-Exposure Check
Each graded assessment was rated with the Bloom’s Taxonomy Revisited lens (Oregon State University Ecampus, 2024): low where the graded evidence is a recording, a live act, hand work or real participants; medium where some evidence comes from the student’s own sources or process; high where Gemini could produce the evidence from the prompt alone. No assessment is rated high.
| Assessment | Exposure and the human evidence graded |
|---|---|
| Syllabus and Course Overview Quiz | Low: the quiz checks course rules and is open book by design. |
| Technology Setup | Low: the evidence is the student’s own accounts, recording and introduction. |
| AI Primer | Medium: the recorded check shows the student opening a real source, and the position must cite two sources. |
| Discussion: Career Services Overview | Medium: the target job is the student’s own; comments must name a detail in the classmate’s post. |
| Personal Goals Statement | Low: the 90-second recording with real postings on screen is the graded evidence, and AI use is disclosed rather than banned. |
| Resume 1st Draft | Medium: the content is the student’s own history, reviewed across four drafts. |
| Discussion: Industry Job Posting | Medium: the posting is real and verified by the student; comments must name a requirement in the classmate’s posting. |
| Cover Letter | Medium: tracked changes against any Gemini suggestion, an AI-use log row, and two details only the student could supply. |
| Interview Practice 1: Question Types | Low: a 60-second recording and a classification task. |
| Resume 2nd Draft | Medium: revision against instructor feedback on the student’s own history. |
| Discussion: Portfolio Inspiration | Medium: the chosen portfolio and screenshots are the student’s; comments must name a detail in the classmate’s post. |
| Interview Practice 2: The STAR Method | Low: a recorded STAR answer about the student’s own experience. |
| Elevator Pitch | Low: the graded evidence is the on-camera delivery. |
| Identity Design Brief | Low: the student’s own design decisions; Gemini never designs. |
| Interview Practice 3: Recorded STAR Answers | Low: recorded answers about the student’s own projects. |
| Resume 3rd Draft | Low: the student’s own layout in InDesign or Illustrator. |
| Business Card | Low: the student’s own sketches and print files. |
| Leave-Behind Concept | Low: sketches, mock-up and an on-camera concept explanation. |
| Copyright for Digital Media Artists | Medium: answers are anchored to the student’s own clause, medium and portfolio piece. |
| Interview Practice 4: Weakness and Salary Questions | Low: recorded answers using the student’s own research. |
| Midterm Portfolio Preparation Plan | Medium: the project list and fixes are the student’s own. |
| Midterm In-Process Portfolio Presentation | Low: an on-camera presentation of the student’s own work. |
| Portfolio and Reel Plan | Medium: the plan answers the student’s own critique. |
| Discussion: Industry News | Medium: the source is chosen by the student; comments must name a detail in the classmate’s post. |
| Discussion: AI Resume Experiment | Low: AI is the subject; the graded evidence is the student’s comparison of their own resume with the edit. |
| Resume 4th Draft | Medium: revision of the student’s own designed resume. |
| Freelancing Risks and Resources | Medium: the evaluation must cite the student’s own goals statement. |
| Interview Practice 5: Company Research | Low: a recorded answer built from the student’s own research. |
| Post-Graduation Action Plan | Medium: the graded evidence is the student’s marked changes judged against their own goals statement. |
| Spec Sheet | Medium: AI suggestions are allowed and logged; the student selects for their own practice. |
| Discussion: Stretch Job Posting | Medium: the posting is real; comments must name a requirement in the classmate’s posting. |
| Project Brief with a Contract | Medium: AI drafting is assigned; the student’s own clause, scope note and corrections are graded. |
| Networking on LinkedIn | Low: screenshots of real connections and comments. |
| Discussion: Hiring Manager Portfolio Review | Medium: the evaluation is of a portfolio the student chose; comments must name a detail in the classmate’s post. |
| LinkedIn Profile | Low: a live public profile. |
| Finding a Mentor | Medium: the person and community are the student’s own. |
| Portfolio Check-In | Low: a live portfolio and critique of named classmates’ work. |
| Updated LinkedIn Profile | Low: a live public profile. |
| Interview Practice 6: Project Walkthrough | Low: a recorded walkthrough of the student’s own project. |
| Virtual Interview Setup | Low: photos of the student’s own setup. |
| Mock Job Interview | Low: an unseen-question recording. |
| AI Mock Interview | Low: the transcript of the student’s own answers and their judgment of the feedback. |
| Updated Portfolio | Low: a live portfolio of the student’s own work. |
| Final Resume | Medium: the student’s own history, revised over four drafts. |
| Final Leave-Behind | Low: the student’s own finished design. |
| Final Identity Package | Low: the student’s own design system across finished pieces. |
| Final Portfolio Presentation | Low: an on-camera presentation of the student’s own work. |
| Step 1: Set Your Agent’s Goal | Low: hand brainstorm, test log, scheduled outputs and an OBS presentation. |
| Step 2: Plan Your Agent on Paper | Low: hand brainstorm, test log, scheduled outputs and an OBS presentation. |
| Step 3: Build and Test Your Agent | Low: hand brainstorm, test log, scheduled outputs and an OBS presentation. |
| Step 4: Schedule and Launch Your Agent | Low: hand brainstorm, test log, scheduled outputs and an OBS presentation. |
Time Budget
AVC 248 is a three-credit online course: 3 credits times 40 hours is about 120 hours. The build totals about 119 hours. Each item’s estimate assumes a student new to the tool and includes Discord critique and captioning time; study time (videos, slides and readings) is counted in the week it is assigned. Every instructional week falls between 6 and 9.5 hours.
| Week | Dates | Modules | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan 18 to Jan 24 | M0, M1 | 6.5 |
| 2 | Jan 25 to Jan 31 | M1, M2 | 7.5 |
| 3 | Feb 1 to Feb 7 | M1, M2 | 8.25 |
| 4 | Feb 8 to Feb 14 | M2 | 7.5 |
| 5 | Feb 15 to Feb 21 | M3 | 6.5 |
| 6 | Feb 22 to Feb 28 | M3 | 6.5 |
| 7 | Mar 1 to Mar 7 | M3 | 7.75 |
| 8 | Mar 8 to Mar 14 | M4 | 7.25 |
| 9 | Mar 22 to Mar 28 | M5 | 9.25 |
| 10 | Mar 29 to Apr 4 | M5 | 7.5 |
| 11 | Apr 5 to Apr 11 | M6 | 8 |
| 12 | Apr 12 to Apr 18 | M6 | 6.5 |
| 13 | Apr 19 to Apr 25 | M7, M8 | 8.5 |
| 14 | Apr 26 to May 2 | M8, M9 | 9.25 |
| 15 | May 3 to May 9 | M8, M9 | 8.75 |
| Finals | May 10 to May 14 | M8 | 3.5 |
| Total | 15 weeks plus finals | 119 |
Grading Groups
| Group | What goes in it | Weight | Items and points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Process Work | Every project step, submitted with process evidence (10 points each) | 40% | 23 items, 230 points |
| Projects | The midterm presentation, the identity package, the final presentation and the career agent launch (30 points each) | 35% | 4 items, 120 points |
| Exercises | Quiz, discussions, interview practice, readings and reflections (5 or 10 points each) | 25% | 24 items, 145 points |