CMNS: Expectations vs. Reality
The AQ in the Autumn. Shot by Red Nguyen.
Welcome to SFU Communications! Like many of us, you’re probably wondering what your courses will be like during your time here. With the field constantly adapting to a fluid media landscape, there can be a lot of misconceptions about what communications actually “is.” Whether you're an existing or new student, we are here to dispel some of those CMNS myths so you can best understand the program!
Expectation: Communication is just about marketing, PR, and persuasive writing. Courses are about practical application of communicative strategies and industry skills.
Reality: Communication at SFU is actually an interdisciplinary field of study. We offer a breadth of courses ranging from critical theory to practical visual and soundscape design. The term Communication casts such a wide umbrella over so many topics that it can feel overwhelming. Fortunately, topic pathways are here to help! Topic pathways are groupings of courses within the program which equip you with specific skill sets directed at your future career goals and needs. Communication students can direct their courses to focus on topics like News and Public Communication, Media Production and Literacy, Tech and Society, and more! Though topic pathways do not appear on your degree parchment the same way a certificate would, it’s a great no-strings-attached way to develop your desired skill set for your next chapter!
Expectation: Communication is similar to business marketing, as they are both about delivering messages to the target audiences.
Reality: Communication studies include technical industry skills that are an asset to areas such as marketing; however, that is not the only area in which Communication comes in handy. Our program at the SFU School of Communication maintains a comprehensive balance of critical theory/thinking and industry skillsets. Students are able to tailor their learning to their interests using the topic pathways chart or with the help of our Communication advisors.
Expectation: “Communications” and “Communication” are interchangeable terms
Reality: “Communication” and “Communications” are not interchangeable terms, academically. “Communication”, as we study it, is about meaning-making and forming relationships with others and the world around us, whereas “Communications” is primarily about the distribution of messages. In fact, the “S” in CMNS stands for “School of Communication”, not “Communications.”
Expectation: CMNS is just about how to get better at communicating messages.
Reality: Communication is more complex than the simple transmission of messages from point A to point B. In our studies, this basic concept is called Transmission communication, but as you will learn, Communication is also about challenging ideology, “common sense” rhetoric, oppressive structures and interrogating social structures as well as interpersonal relationships in relation to the world around us.
To further elaborate on Communication as a discipline, I want to emphasize that we are not a field in pursuit of perfect communication or understanding of each other and the world; it’s simply not possible. But that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Our continuous drive to understand and communicate better is a very human endeavour. I offer this quote as one way to understand this:
“‘Communication,” whatever it might mean, is not a matter of improved wiring or freer self-disclosure but involves a permanent kink in the human condition. [...] Communication failure, again, does not mean we are lonely zombies searching for soul mates: it means we have new ways to relate and to make worlds with each other. My emphasis on the debt that the dream of communication owes to ghosts and strange eros is intended as a corrective to a truism that is still very much alive that the expansion of means leads to the expansion of minds.” —John Durham Peters, 1999
Hopefully this offered some clarification! Now that you’re prepared with new knowledge about Communication studies, it’s time to step into those classes and learn. We encourage you to investigate your interests in the field of Communication as you take your courses so you have the option to specialize your courses to your interests and career needs via topic pathways! Best of luck with your fall semester, and don’t hesitate to lean on your Communication community of professors, classmates, advisors, and us here at the Union if you need more information!