Comments on: SFU – Specializing In All Technologies

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 21:34:06 +0000

Hey Greg,

Thanks for the input. As an upcoming SIAT graduate, it’s nice to see students who have gone on to excel in the real world.

That being said, I’d have to disagree that the “design” stream is worth it. Yes, Russel and Ron are standout teachers and are much more inspirational than others, but 3 classes (233, 333, 338) shouldn’t define an entire education.

And as an important update, Ron has been promoted to associate Dean and I don’t believe he teaches anymore, and 338 will now be cycled between Russel Taylor and Andres Wanner. So the great experience you had, will be much harder to come by for future students. The only way I can see the “design” stream being worth it, is if you’re part of the chosen few who make it into the Italia Field School.

Other than that, it’s great to hear that SIAT is a joke amongst the design elite of Vancouver. :).

Good luck with your Master’s degree.

By: Greg

Greg — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 19:05:08 +0000

SIAT was unique and interesting.

If not for Russell Taylor and Ron Wakkary, I would consider my four years there a complete waste of time. Wonderful experiences, made great friends, but without those two profs, a lot of wasted money. On the other hand, being taught and guided by Russell Taylor will, when I look back on my life at the end of it, probably be one of the most important things that ever happened to me.

I would say if you are going to take the Interaction Design program (or whatever it is called now, I believe it is called Design but it certainly is not a valid design program), it is worth it. I would certainly do it again based on my experiences with those two profs. If you are going to take something else other than Interaction Design, I personally would not. Another consideration is to take some other somewhat related, more employable program, and supplement with the amazing thinking skills you would get in the pure ID classes.

Derek’s point about people who just want to learn software is somewhat true. I agree, the focus on the program is more. But what I would say in response is that knowing software, programming, web design, etc., is vital to landing a job at the entry level. That gets you in the door, and once you are, that is when SIAT’s skills of *thinking* become powerful. That is when you impress. The skills I learned about process and how to think are first rate (again, because of R Taylor). But because SIAT is so unbelievably inept at teaching practical skills, it is very difficult to get in the door to begin with. The fact that Eric Yang still has a job says so much about where the priorities of SFU are: research, not students.

Check out http://www.sfu.ca/italiadesign and see if this type of work interests you. Check out the interviews.

I spoke with the head of Cause & Affect last year, one of the cool design companies in Vancouver. He asked me where I was educated. I said SIAT. He replied that SIAT produces the largest amount of unemployable grads in the city. That should tell you a lot about what you need to know. Again, that said, I have just applied to one of the coolest experimental architectural schools in the entire world to do a Masters and am very confident that I will get accepted. I would never have found that interest without R Taylor, R Wakkary, and the ID program. And to those two men I am unendingly grateful.

By: Alex S

Alex S — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 02:21:24 +0000

This is the third article I have read where students complained about the Max/Msp course and said it was a waste of time. That is shocking! Max/Msp is probably one of the most unique and valuable design tools I have ever got my hands on.

By: Julian

Julian — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 17:15:57 +0000

The article fails to address job prospects after SIAT. Derek P’s comments are valid, but then again neither he nor the poster of the article have firsthand knowledge of the efficacy of the program in getting people into the workplace.

As an undergraduate degree holder with several years of real work experience and considering a postgraduate program, I know how important real workplace skills are. In particular, knowing that employers generally want someone to start right away instead of hiring a “great individual” with no knowledge of their systems, basic procedures and software. It worries me that no graduates from the SIAT program have chimed in about how effective the program has been for them in finding employment to pay for the tuition they’ve given to SFU for their education.

I don’t want to spend my whole life in SIAT spending money to love the courses. I see it as a stepping stone to get me into a position to do what I love, but get paid for it instead of dishing out my own money (or for some of you, your parents’) to follow a passion.

By: Stephanie

Stephanie — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 02:49:10 +0000

I had taken some SIAT courses and while I agree with the idea of not spoon-feeding your students I didn’t enjoy paying thousands of dollars for what I could learn online for free.

That said, I have still been tinkering with the idea of fully applying to the program – as I’m a 2nd year SFU student – instead of switching schools.

Still, the do-it-yourself learning style and the inability to specialize worries me – especially since I know people at other institutes and people in the field who have all warned me to specialize in order to get a good job.

I am still on the fence about SIAT.

By: Chan

Chan — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:42:29 +0000

As a graduate of SIAT with an outstanding CGPA, even with a master degree. This program got me nowhere. I must admit that SIAT is good in a way that it covers a variety of things and compared to other technical schools we are more flexible. Unfortunately, employers do not look for such things, they want their employees to master every program there is and be specialized in at least one field. Knowing bits and pieces of each program does not guarantee a decent job. I did not attend a post-secondary school and spend over $25,000 on tuition to learn on my own at home through outside sources. SIAT can only lead out their students to everyday success if they are more concentrated mastering what they are learning rather than teaching a lot of general things.

By: OEJack

OEJack — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 04:19:29 +0000

You will be better off learning from google and books than wasting time and money to go SIAT! Most profs in there don’t even know what they are doing *cough* Gromala *cough* and some weird profs that comes and goes in one sem. who know less abt the software they are teaching than the students.
It’s not only a general school that offers shallow, meaningless courses “Design by Numbers, Max/MSP” just to name a few, it’s too unpractical you won’t be able to apply any of it to real life jobs. It’s a school that’s all talk and no real action.

By: Derek P.

Derek P. — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 18:40:04 +0000

WELL SAID, Karen. You covered a lot of key points about our program that many, MANY people seem to not be aware of. Three in particular stood out, and I’ve added my own comments to them:

1) “SIAT is not a school that specializes. It is very general in a lot of ways, and the specialization really depends on the individual and their ambitions to hone their skills on their own time.”

I get really tired of hearing people complain that they’re “not learning” in our school (and by that, they mean they’re not learning how to use specific software). There is SO MUCH MORE VALUABLE things to be learned than just knowing how to use Photoshop, Dreamweaver, and 3D programs. You have instructors with a wealth of knowledge and years (even decades) of experience in their respective industries, and people are complaining about software?! If you want those things, go to a technical school, or heaven forbid, crack open Google and search for some free tutorials!

2) “You really get to know what it feels like to work with others and learn firsthand about team dynamics, problem-solving, staying on track, and time-management.”

Another common complaint surrounds having to work in teams- either their teammates are too lazy, they feel like they are the only ones doing work, teams suck, etc. WAKE UP- not everyone you’re going to work with in school or in “the real world” will be as knowledgeable and driven and talented as you! You have to learn how to work around these issues to get the BEST out of your team, no matter who you’re working with.

3) “…passive learning will get them nowhere.”

This gets back to point number one- people who complain that they’re not learning as much as they thought they would be usually don’t have the inclination to learn things on their own! If you really love, and are passionate about, what you’re doing, whether it’s in design, or new media, or informatics, or anything really, you’ll surround yourself with things related to your field and will constantly be learning and soaking it in. Being a passive learner, and just waiting for things to be handed to you during class, will get you an education for sure, but a very uninspired and straight-laced one. Be active in your education- talk to professors about their experiences, meet and hang out with everyone in the program, become part of the community, create networks now that will help you in the future, visit websites and blogs from all over the world that deal with your chosen path so you can see what the rest of the world is up to. Learning doesn’t end when the bell rings.

Once again, absolutely fantastic article, Karen. I hope people in high school, people in SIAT who feel disillusioned by the whole program, and just people in general give it a read and realize what SIAT can do for them… if they’re willing to be open to new ideas, and willing to learn.