Five Qs About You and TMU: Geneva

My home faculty here at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) is The Creative School, which is where you’ll find all of our media and communication-based programs. I personally think some of our coolest programs are in this faculty, but I might be a bit biased! I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Geneva, a fourth-year Media Production student, to learn about her TMU life.

Jenna: Can you describe your program to me in one sentence?

Geneva: A combination of everything creative.

J: Why did you choose to study at TMU?

G: I chose to study at TMU because the Media Production program was really hands-on. You're able to not only learn about theory, which is really important to me, but compared to a lot of the other schools I looked at, TMU has a very artistic program. It was just a really good mesh. Also, the facilities available to students, such as the Allan Slaight Radio Institute and all the studio space and computer labs, were really enticing. 

J: Can you tell me about any experiential learning that you’ve participated in?

G: I went to a bunch of networking events, and one of those events introduced me to the Nia Centre for the Arts (external link, opens in new window) , which is a centre that is helping BIPOC students get into the media industry. I was actually able to get an internship through them with an editing company — they've been helping me throughout the past few years. I was also a member of WIFT (Women in Film & TV Toronto) (external link, opens in new window)  for one year, and I met them through TMU. I went on exchange this past summer as well. I was gone in May for two weeks to a school called Hochschule der Medien (external link, opens in new window)  in Germany. It was a social media marketing course, and it was a good experience. 

J: What is your favourite thing that you have experienced on campus?

G: I'd say one thing that was really fun was a fashion show I did with some of the Fashion students a few years ago. We had to make sure that we followed all the COVID-19 guidelines. We filmed right near the Student Learning Centre, then went into the Dundas subway station. It was a 15-minute film featuring fashion pieces from students. 

I also enjoyed the motion design course I took in my third year. It essentially introduced me to motion design and my current career path. When I came to TMU, I thought I was going to be an editor, and then when I started these classes I realized I actually loved motion design, which I didn't know was a career until I started here. 

J: What advice would you give to someone who is starting their research about which university or program they want to pursue? 

G: I would definitely say look at the criteria that are the most important to you, and then rate them. Look at the schools in terms of social life, look at what the actual courses are, then what extracurricular activities you might be interested in. When I did that for all the schools, I was able to kind of see which ones checked off the boxes that I was looking for. I also tell students to look at the actual courses offered. A lot of people look at the program title, but not the courses. That's what helped me understand this program, because when I went in I saw courses like RTA 312: Motion Graphics, and I knew it was the best fit for me.

Thank you to my fellow Creative School classmate Geneva for chatting with me! If you’d like to follow in her footsteps, take a look at our How to Apply page. 

Be sure to check out the rest of the blog for more interviews with students from across our six TMU faculties. 

Until next time, 

Jenna