Just make sure you don't get behind in this class. Very hard to cram at last minute so if you want to succeed and not let this class mess up your GPA stay on top of the readings and attend every lecture!

Everyone talks about how daunting COMM 10 is for good reason. The class is based on three exams: the midterm, paper, and final. The midterm and final are subjectively graded and cover an extensive amount of material. However, this class has many more pros than cons. The content is extremely interesting and Professor Suman really knows his stuff. If you are interested in Comm this class is a great introduction to all that the major encompasses, but it is not a class to be taken if one is looking for an easy A. You get out of this class what you put into it.

I was really scared to take this class because of some of the reviews, but I actually really enjoyed it! I took it during A sesh so everything was sped up a bit, but it was totally manageable! Suman is great although it will take some time to get used to him. I didn't enjoy his teaching style at first but ended up loving it later and now I'm currently taking another one of his classes!

There are a lot of negative reviews for this class, and most of what others have said is true. You really have to work hard in this class to keep up with all of the material and get an A. Lectures and discussions are not mandatory but absolutely necessary in order to do well in the class. I did think that the material, especially in the first half of the class and the very end, was very interesting and easy to comprehend because it is so applicable to daily life.

Notes are key! Take good notes and make use of all 20 pages you are allowed to have for the midterm and final.

Start studying early! Can't emphasize this enough. A large portion of the midterm and final relies solely on your retention of material covered in lecture (which you aren't allowed to have notes on for the tests).

On tests, time management is very important. There are simply a lot of questions and essays that need to be written within the time frame, so make sure to budget your time wisely.

Dr. Suman is a very organized professor. He gives notes for each lecture at the start of the term. His lecture doesn't deviate from the notes. He continues to emphasize and give many examples of the various theories. This is a great class if you are going into marketing, business, or advertising. And, the paper was on something you can use in that field. He responds to emails quickly. He gives book questions and if you complete all those questions and go to lecture, you will do fine on the exams, as he lets you use your notes. The exams are tough, but very doable. He is probably has the most clear and organized lectures of any professor I have taken.

Dr. Suman is a very organized professor. He gives notes for each lecture at the start of the term. His lecture doesn't deviate from the notes. He continues to emphasize and give many examples of the various theories. This is a great class if you are going into marketing, business, or advertising. And, the paper was on something you can use in that field. He responds to emails quickly. He gives book questions and if you complete all those questions and go to lecture, you will do fine on the exams, as he lets you use your notes. The exams are tough, but very doable. He is probably has the most clear and organized lectures of any professor I have taken.

TL;DR: The content of this class is genuinely interesting but the grading was VERY tough. If you don't do the readings/book guides, you will not do well. Take all notes as word-for-word as possible!!

Professor Suman is old-school; you are not allowed an electronic device to take notes (without an accommodation from the CAE), he does not use slides, and no BruinCast. He writes down all the concepts we 100% need to know on the blackboard and in PDF lecture guides, which is definitely helpful.

There are two open-note exams, the midterm and the final (final is not cumulative, just longer). Both are a series of short answer questions from lecture and required readings, along with 1-2 essays on film screenings we have to watch on our own (the topic and film choice are a surprise...). He provides book guides for the readings which you 1000% should complete. What you can (and should) bring to exams:
- Printed out book guides with handwritten answers
- Handwritten class notes (I 100% recommend rewriting your notes to (1) study and (2) make them as easy to flip through as possible)
- Printed lecture guides (use them to organize your notes)

There's also one essay due Week 7 about applying theories learned in class to a piece of media. That on its own wouldn't be so bad, but because of how the class is structured, the ONLY grade you know before going into the final is your midterm grade. Our TA was an "incredibly meticulous" grader... like absolutely brutal. The one potentially saving grace is Suman determines the grading scale based on how students do on the midterm (my B became an A- with our scale), similar to how he does in COMM 10.

I did enjoy what I learned in class, but very few get an A even with the grading scale change. Lots of people dropped halfway through the quarter. DO NOT TAKE THIS WITHOUT COMPLETING COMM 10 FIRST. If you struggled in COMM 10, you'll experience at least the same thing.

Random side notes; If you miss class, your only option is getting notes from someone else. One of my classmates had to fight tooth and nail to turn in her essay electronically because she got COVID and he wanted her to turn it in in person. Best of luck y'all 😭

I loved the content of this class. I actually really like Suman, and I found the lectures to be incredibly engaging. Although it was tough, I kind of appreciated the no technology rule because it eliminated distractions and I retained more information handwriting my notes.
The midterm and final are definitely difficult, but they are somewhat fair. Everything that is asked is something that was taught in lectures or is in the readings, so memorize absolutely everything you can. It is just hard because we learn so so much information. If you can, memorize every single list that he gives you in lecture. Those made up a lot of exam questions. But honestly, if something is listed on the lecture guides at all, you should try to know it. Take advantage of the 20 pages of reading notes you are allowed to have, start early, and make them as organized as possible. Having in-depth, organized notes felt like free points on the short answer questions because I basically had the answers right there. Before the midterm, really try to get a very in-depth feel for what your TA is expecting on the essay portion. Knowing exactly what they were looking for really boosted my score for the final. Also, manage your time wisely on the exams. It's a lot to get done in a relatively short time.
My biggest issue with the class was TA Joy Heller. She was extremely rude, unhelpful, and condescending throughout the course. I often refrained from asking her questions and even attending discussion at times because of how awful she was to us. She was so unprepared, usually only bringing her cellphone, and she would just ask questions without really contributing to the conversation herself. Oftentimes, it appeared that she was extremely unfamiliar with the content, and we usually had to guide the discussion ourselves or we would just sit in silence. Other TAs had detailed slides that seemed very beneficial for their students, while I ultimately gained nothing from attending discussion. I saw another comment that said she graded easy, but that was not my experience or the experience of a lot of people I talked to. In fact, a few of her other students and I had to get regrades by different TAs because of her simply unreasonable grading. If you can, avoid her at all costs.
Overall, people are not lying when they say COMM 10 is hard. However, it is not impossible. It requires a lot of dedication and effort, and that sometimes does not even feel worth it. Just really keep trying, and give it your all. Good luck!

Don't be scared of Suman. This class is much easier than COMM 10. The content is insanely interesting and applicable to everyday life.

It has a similar structure to COMM 10: Midterm, Paper, Final - Although the distribution of the grade may differ slightly. The midterm and final are much easier because Suman gives you a list of like 100 short answer questions about the books (which are great books btw) that you can answer before and bring into the exam. You will also know what the essays will be about so if you prepare well (and write fast) you can get an A. That being said, everything is graded harshly. But if you take good notes and prepare you will do well.

first things first, shoutout TA joy heller. her discussions were discussions, no slides unlike other sections, which sucked. but she didn’t grade as harshly as the others
secondly, the class was probably the hardest class i’ve ever taken. read the readings (like, dissect them) and literally write down EVERYTHING he says. and start your 20 open notes EARLY. i made the awful mistake of writing mine the night before and i stayed up until 4 and didn’t even finish them for the midterm. i worked really hard up until the essay worth 40% of your grade and then i just kinda slacked off. but i still managed with an A- because i still read mostly everything and my notes were p good. don’t read that damn jones book LMFAO he literally tells u what to focus on in the final/midterm guide soo just do that
for the essays on the test connect ur answer to the scenario he gives!