Focusing on the interpersonal communication course offered at Golden West College in California, this paper describes the competency-based approach of the course, the involvement of peer tutor/evaluators, and the use of the speech laboratory, where students demonstrate six specific skill competencies an average of two times during the course. The major portion of the paper consists of two attachments. The first outlines the knowledge and skill objectives for the eight units in the course: the interpersonal context, initiating relationships, clarifying perceptions, expressing ideas verbally, nonverbal behavior and the expression of feelings, listening in the interpersonal context, disclosing self to others, and managing interpersonal conflict. The second section provides details and the evaluation scale for each of the six skill competencies that students must demonstrate: (1) making statements of observation/behavioral description; (2) initiating, maintaining, and ending a conversation; (3) perception checking; (4) reflecting ideas and feelings of others; (5) giving relational feedback; and (6) using self-descriptive statements of feelings and ideas. Additional material outlines lab and course requirements and procedures and includes a student evaluation form. (RBW)