91ĹÝÜ˝

91ĹÝÜ˝ (SFU) English honours alumnus Meghan Danyluk never thought she would find a full-time communications and marketing position before she finished her degree. However, the knowledge, skills, and experience she acquired while completing her major, and volunteering with the prepared her for this exciting career.

When Danyluk transferred to SFU from Douglas College in 2022, she planned to major in history—that changed when she took ENGL 113: Literature and Performance with professor Ronda Arab.

“I was blown away by a play we read called, Sweat by Lynn Nottage,” says Danyluk. “It affected me deeply and revealed the strong passion I had for reading and dissecting literature. “

That same semester, Danyluk also joined the ESU to meet other students the only way anyone could during the COVID-19 pandemic—via Zoom.

“I can’t understate how game-changing it was for me,” she says. “Making friends, especially with upper year students who could help me navigate university, made my time at SFU so much better.”

During her time with the ESU, Danyluk volunteered as its communications coordinator and president. She used what she learned in class to help her write engaging bi-weekly newsletters, develop social media marketing campaigns, and generally communicate effectively with other students.

Danyluk found ENGL 371: Writing: Theory and Practice with professor Peter Cramer particularly beneficial, as the class focused on how to write clearly and concisely, as well as how to find the appropriate tone for the intended audience.

In general, Danyluk says her classes and experience with the ESU have made her a stronger writer and editor, better at receiving and implementing feedback, and more organized with her time. Also, she became more connected to the SFU English community, including former “ESU legend” and honours student Nim Basra, who encouraged her to join the program.

In addition to excelling academically, Danyluk had unexpected career success. While in the service industry, she applied for an internship at The Improv Centre. After getting and successfully completing the internship, she received a permanent digital marketing coordinator position.

“I didn’t expect to find a job like the one at The Improv Centre where I’m planning to stay,” says Danyluk. “I didn’t think that my degree would lead me to a job so quickly that was so aligned with English, and where I’m also learning new things like video editing, photo editing, and more marketing-specific skills.”

Danyluk submitted samples of the newsletters she wrote for the ESU when she applied for the position, and believes that the quality of her writing, and the tone she established in the newsletters got her the job. Since being hired, she has found many similarities between being an English student and a communicator.

“It feels like a very natural transition from English to marketing or communications,” she says. “Writing, doing revisions, and taking feedback is helpful in an office environment. When you write for a living, people have to give you feedback or critique your work. You might get defensive if that’s new to you, but I was so used to it from school, it was a very natural thing for me.”

Danyluk’s supervisor, marketing manager Johnny Hamilton, also made the same transition from English to marketing and communications. Hamilton graduated from SFU with a Bachelor of Arts in English in 2013.

“We had similar professors and took the same classes, like professor Torsten Kehler’s speculative fiction courses, so it’s funny that we have these reference points in common,” she says.