As a Communication Studies major, I’ve heard all the questions, jokes, stereotypes and mockeries about the degree like “What even is that?” “That’s so easy.” “You don’t know what you want to do with your life.” “How does that even turn into a career?” “So you just learn how to communicate? There’s a whole degree for that?” “You must not be too smart.” and the list goes on and on. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve learned that people always have something to say about every university major so I don’t take anything to heart about my own, especially since some of these ring just a little bit true. After all, I don’t have a clear idea of what career I want to pursue in the future. Still, I find that communication studies is an overlooked major, causing many people tend to underestimate the valuable knowledge and skills that communication students walk away with.
I feel like most people poke fun at communication studies majors because they often don’t have a clear understanding of what the degree is. Communication studies recognize communication as a central part of the human experience. How we communicate is constantly evolving and changing in this increasingly digitalized, technological era. By examining media, culture, theory and much more, we, according to Wilfrid Laurier University “learn how communication is crucial to the ways in which we organize and structure our communities, our institutions, and our modes of governance, at both the local and global levels.”
In doing so, we communications studies majors gain a vast amount of knowledge that sets us up for careers in marketing and brand management, social media, public relations, journalism, human resources, politics and more. Remember when I said that I didn’t have a clear idea of what career I wanted to pursue in the future? That’s one of the reasons why I love communication studies so much! It’s an extremely applicable degree that can take you in so many interesting directions. For me, as someone who loves the more creative branches of business, communications is a perfect way for me to focus on what interests me. In my experience, being able to take courses that perfectly align with my interests has allowed me to excel over the past four years. Perhaps that’s why people often mistake communication studies to be easy. Contrary to popular belief, communications studies requires a lot of hard work. We also experience the long days and nights of studying, completing assignments and writing countless papers. But when you love what you do, the content that you are learning, studying or writing a paper about can click all the better, allowing your workload to not always feel so daunting and difficult.
Best of all, communication studies has allowed me to hone my critical thinking skills. While this may seem insignificant, the ability to effectively and efficiently analyze information, better understand the perspectives of others, form rational and informed judgements and apply knowledge will forever be valuable throughout your personal and/or professional life.
From someone who loves being a communication studies major, I hope you’ve gained a better understanding of what this degree holds — don’t underestimate us!