John Molson School of Writing?

New JMSB Student Publication to Focus on Business News

NewsVince Morello — Published September 5, 2016

The first edition of the John Molson Business Review, a student-run publication that will focus on current business affairs, will officially be released in September.

Founded in November 2015 by current editor-in-chief Margarita Bozhinova, the JMBR was given $2,500 from the Commerce and Administration Students Association’s Special Projects Fund in February 2016 to help them get started. Bozhinova and seven JMSB students run the publication.

“I felt like something was missing at JMSB in terms of students writing,” Bozhinova said. “There are a lot of opportunities to apply what we see in class and outside the classroom but nothing that offers the kind of freedom of writing.”

The review will focus on business affairs, economics, and researching emerging trends in business-related industries. Bozhinova and the JMBR are not looking to report on news at Concordia because other student campus media already have that covered.

However, if something on-campus does relate to worldwide business, they would consider writing about it.

“Nothing like [this] currently exists,” said CASA President Evan Pitchie. “It’s something new that will be added to the offerings and various things that students do at John Molson.”

In order to write for the publication, the JMBR will send out bi-weekly newsletters with story ideas. Deadlines are not strict, according to Bozhinova, because the print edition only comes out once a semester. This also makes it easier for writers to manage their time between class work and writing for the JMBR.

Bozhinova believes JMBR is a good opportunity for students to develop their skills in writing and speaking with industry veterans, outside of networking events.

“Let’s say you want to network with the oil and gas industry, you email someone who works in that industry, and ask them a few questions,” she said. “That way you’re establishing a relationship with someone that’s more genuine than meeting them at a cocktail.”

The publication is not only for JMSB students, and Bozhinova would like to bridge the perceived gap between John Molson students and the rest of the school.

There are hopes that they can begin publishing content online consistently to their website later this semester. They currently have 409 likes on Facebook and even a Linkedin account.

While the initial funding came from CASA, the JMBR is not a subsidiary of the group and will therefore not receive regular funding from the association.