Settling for a University Degree

1. Admission Process

   The admissions process for any university will always end the same way, with either a rejection or acceptance letter. In SFU’s case, getting to that point is the easy part. Everything you need is outlined on their website and pending that you have the correct documentation, your application should go through. Based on your high school GPA, you should have a pretty good idea if you’ll get into your department of choice. If not, you will always have the opportunity to transfer faculties once you’re a registered student. It’s really not a big deal and most students will switch minors/majors at some point in their university careers.

   Aside from the process of applying, there’s something to be said about the admission requirements for the School of Interactive Arts. Whereas most faculties can use GPAs to determine how well a student will be likely to succeed, SIAT should probably not rely on the same methods. In creative environments, it’s important to work with exceptional people. To be amongst peers that challenge you to become better at your craft, that introduce you to new points of views or to even compete with. That’s why most respectable creative institutions use portfolios as a major prerequisite for accepting students. Emily Carr does this, OCAD does this, Hyper Island does this; SFU's School of Interactive Arts does not.

   How this will affect your education is really up to you. There will always be plenty of talented students in the program and if you’re able to build a network of these individuals to work with, your projects shouldn't suffer. The majority of all final projects will be team-based, and having a team-dynamic that you’re prepared for will save you major headaches late in the term.

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   B+

2. Tuition & Finances

   University is expensive and SFU isn’t any different.

   A single credit at SFU currently costs $160, approximately totaling $20,000 for the degree alone. This doesn’t include any supplementary fees for U-Passes, student health plans, books, or materials. If you take a look at SFU’s projected costs for domestic students (without housing fees included), they estimate a degree will realistically cost closer to $36,000.

   Even with such an enormous price tag, it’s sad to say that at some point in time you’ll just stop caring about tuition fees. You’ll eventually accept the fact that each semester it’ll be due and you’ll pay it. During my time there, tuition consistently increased every year and still SFU posted record enrollment numbers. Once you’re set on finishing your degree, there’s little you can do to curb expenses other than trying to finish as efficiently as possible.

   A word of advice: try your hardest to refrain from getting a student loan if you can. It's entirely possible to work during your summer semesters or when courses you need aren't offered. It's a tragedy to see young students take out enormous student loans, not knowing the financial burdens that await them in the future.

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   B-

3. Curriculum

   The first thing to know about SIAT is that the majority of classes are predominantly theoretical in nature. The amount of time spent on documentation is completely disproportionate to the amount of time spent on actually creating projects that are well made and complete. There were of course a few exceptions, but this theme carried through from IAT 100 to the final undergraduate project, Capstone.

   In terms of structure, SIAT is divided into 3 distinct streams: design, media arts, and informatics. More information about these programs can be found on their respective websites, but you should know that Design is probably the only stream that has a somewhat focused direction.

   The Media Arts stream is really a mishmash of technologies and mediums with little focus on any particular industry. It provides a very generalized education only skimming the surface of most digital mediums. Animation, film, and game design for example only have 2-3 courses dedicated to each of them, with few 400 level courses teaching an advanced set of skills.

   This doesn’t mean that the courses themselves do not teach enough. You will become a jack-of-all trades, but it’s just my opinion that learning any of these skills well requires much more education than 2 courses spread throughout your university career. You really do need to put in your 10,000 hours and if you’re consistently jumping in-between unrelated projects, you won’t have the time to develop these competencies.

   What this means is that if you’re interested in any particular industry, you really need to develop those in-demand skills on your own time. Any chance that you get, incorporate this focus into your school projects and graduate with a portfolio that demonstrates your capability in these areas. The curriculum that SIAT teaches will provide a great foundation to build upon, but it's really your responsibility to make something more of it. This is an understanding that I've come to realize studying at SIAT. At the end of the day, your education is your own.

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   B-

4. Faculty & Administration

   Every teacher at SIAT has the qualifications to teach, but many lack teaching ability. Some of the inspiring teachers that I started out with have now moved on to bigger and better things. Ron Wakkary, who really preached good design became an associate dean of FCAT and I’ve rarely seen him around campus, let alone teach. One of my favorites, Jim Bizzocchi is now the MDM Program Director at the Centre for Digital Media. Russel Taylor, a professor who really defined the design stream is no longer teaching some of the core lower-level design courses. All of this means one thing: you'll likely be educated by mediocre professors.

   SIAT also isn't immune to the same problems that plague any other university and it probably doesn’t help that it's a relatively new program. In fact, the program wasn't even an SFU initiative. Rather they bought out what was then TechBC and transformed it into the SIAT of today. With the program still in its infancy, there are still some administrative problems, the most important of which deal with class availability. As there is always a huge influx of new students every semester, you will not receive all the classes you want as they become filled relatively quickly. For some semesters, fundamental classes are not even offered because of faculty scheduling. Just like any university degree, it takes a LONG time, and these kinds of administrative issues will not help you graduate any faster.

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   C+

5. Equipment & Facilities

   The equipment and facilities that SIAT has to offer is quite impressive and is one of the benefits of going to a university that is substantially funded. Both campuses are open 24 hours and have several PC and Mac labs located throughout the school. The library offers an extensive media collection dedicated to animation, film, and design. They also rent out equipment reserved just for SIAT students.

   There are a few caveats with the list above. Studios and labs are consistently booked or filled to maximum capacity; the same goes for team meeting rooms. Library equipment rentals are often restricted to single course and can only be rented by registered students.

   Still, it’s entirely possible to make do and finish your assignments while leaving plenty of room for your own personal projects.

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   A-

6. Career Preparation

   As with every student, my biggest concern was always if I would be able to find a job in the industry; to see if I could take the relevancy of my courses and apply it in real life. CO-OP will give you this opportunity even before you graduate.

   The general lack of career preparation courses and workshops for SIAT is abysmal but can all be made up for by joining the Co-operative Education program. It is essentially a work term that can count towards your degree. They help students prepare resumes, hold interview workshops, and list jobs in their directory board for students to apply. The majority of successful students at SIAT have joined CO-OP at some point in their educational careers, padding their resumes with interesting positions at RIM, SAP, and other major companies. These positions not only give students the opportunity to make descent money, but more importantly they gain industry-related work experience.

   Ironically, I’ve benefitted from CO-OP more than most students and have yet to join the program. In 2007 and 2009, they held video contests to promote their services. I won both times and was awarded a MacBook Pro and tickets to the Olympic Opening Ceremonies in the process. In doing so, I thought the only respectable course of action was to sign-up. I uploaded my portfolio to their database and began taking the necessary steps to apply for CO-OP. Before I had even finished the process, I received a call from FutureShop, Canada’s largest e-commerce site to work with their web design/development team. As it turned out, CO-OP had sent my portfolio directly to them. I was subsequently interviewed and hired. All of this, without even asking for it.

   On a side note, there are plenty of university related jobs on campus. TAs, lab technicians, and librarians are constantly needed throughout the semesters. It’d be an easy way to keep a part-time job, stay on campus, and get access to equipment that you might need.

   For those who have an entrepreneurial itch (many in SIAT do), a new initiative at SFU called Venture Connection connects students with business mentors to help convert their ideas into business plans. Art School Reviews is currently a member of Venture Connections in the concept phase and their guidance has been an educational process in itself.

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   A-

7. Social Life

   The one thing that you’ll constantly hear about SFU is its lack of community. It’s true as both campuses (Burnaby and Surrey) are commuter schools. People come, take their courses, and then get the hell out.

   Still, the people at SIAT really defined my university experience and I'm glad to have met them all. From the all-nighters to the last-minute preparations, we hung in there together and pulled through. These are people that you’ll end up seeing pretty much everyday, so you're bound to make friends.

   Aside from that, the people that you encounter at SFU will eventually become part of your professional network, so take every opportunity to meet new people and showcase your talent. You never know who might need your help in the future.

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   A

8. The Bottom Line

   Was it worth it? That’s still debatable and it really depends on what happens within the next little while. I just recently graduated and have spent the time since working on the launch of Art School Reviews. I’m just now putting together my resume and portfolio and will soon see if my skills are in-demand.

   Regardless of the outcome, I do feel SFU provided a sufficient education to build a career from and deserve some credit for any success that I've had thus far. They gave me the opportunity to do what I love and that's all I really asked for; what happens next is up to me.

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