BIG News to Share!

I have some very exciting news to share, but I think I will leave you wondering what it is until the end of my post (DON'T just scroll down to the end! I suppose I can't stop you, but it will be more fun if you wait until you get there).

First I will talk about some recent events that were very beneficial to me, and should be hugely beneficial to anyone and everyone looking for a job. As I mentioned in my last post, I recently attended an event at Cabrini College called "Careers in Advertising and Communications: Where the Jobs Are!" which was hosted by the Philly Ad Club. The event featured panelists who work in the advertising field, ranging from ad. agencies to media companies to event planning agencies. This was an awesome event, and I left with great advice and a pretty substantial to-do list! Some of the main topics that were discussed were the importance of using LinkedIn, NETWORKING (as I've probably mentioned a million times in this blog), and writing thank-you notes. Although the panelists definitely had different opinions on some of these topics, one thing they all agreed on was the importance of following up after interviews, networking receptions, etc. People in advertising are busy, they might just forget that they met you at a networking event a few weeks ago...that is why it is YOUR job to contact them and remind them who you are. This shows initiative and that you mean what you say when you express interest in their organization.

Another piece of advice that was stressed during this event, and I feel like I have heard multiple times recently, is that adults in the advertising world (and this likely goes for the business world in general) genuinely want to help college students like us. They were in our shoes once! They know how it feels to try and find that first job out of graduation. It is obviously too difficult to say that EVERYONE wants to help you, but I believe it is true to say that most people are willing to give you a hand when possible. Whether it be getting you in contact with a friend/relative/etc. that works at a company you are interested in, or agreeing to meet with you to discuss their career path and advice about getting into the _____ industry, people are usually receptive and will do what they can to help out. It should go without saying of course, that it is how you approach these people that determines how willing they are to go out of their way to help you. As we have all heard plenty of times (I hope!) there are certain things you should do when building a network, and things you should not do. For example, you should NOT email a contact you received through networking and ask them to find you a job; likewise, you should NOT email a Villanova alum you found on the Alumni Database and ask them for a job at their company. The more I hear professionals in the advertising industry say things like "we genuinely want to help you, otherwise we wouldn't be here" the more I believe it! That is why students like us should, and quite frankly NEED, to attend events and networking receptions that will help us build contacts for the future.

Which brings me to my exciting news...I HAVE OFFICIALLY ACCEPTED A JOB AFTER GRADUATION!!! A few posts ago I mentioned the Marketing Professionals Showcase that took place at Villanova, which featured a networking reception with area professionals. I spoke with two employees at a Philadelphia marketing agency, and after keeping in touch with them, I was given the opportunity to come in for an interview. The first interview went really well, and I was eventually asked to come back into the office for a second interview. After that, I was offered a position!!! It is an amazing opportunity that I gladly accepted. The workplace atmosphere and the dynamic between employees seems like a place I can fit right into! As I have mentioned before, everyone at this company seems to truly love their jobs and enjoy what they do, and I could not ask for more :-)

The next steps are to finish up my last semester of college strong, and also find somewhere to live now that I am officially sticking around the Philly area!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

I don't know about you, but I hate this rain! Maybe it's because I don't own a raincoat or rain boots...two things I really should invest in. I think one of my goals for Easter break will be to purchase at least one of these things. My other goals, however, are much more related to this blog and my quest to find a job. Things have been super busy these last few weeks, but I'm hoping over the holiday I will finally have some time to do some more research and look into potential job opportunities that I simply have not had a minute to look into lately. I will admit, part of me worries a little bit that I may have missed out on some chances, but I calm myself down by realizing that I have been doing my best to take advantage of all of the opportunities that have come my way. There are simply just not enough hours in the day! During Easter break I plan to use GoNova and other resources at my disposal to look for more job opportunities out there. I also have a few contacts I have acquired through networking and my role as an intern in the Clay Center that I would like to reach out to as soon as possible.




Wondering about the interview I had last week? I think that it went pretty well. To be honest I don't want to jinx anything, so we'll just have to wait and see! I should be hearing back in the next week or so :-)



Next, I am excited for an event that is coming up the week we get back to campus. On April 6th and 8th, the Philly Ad Club is hosting two events at Cabrini and Temple. The event is titled "Careers in Advertising & Communications: Where the Jobs Are!" Clearly this sounds like exactly the type of thing a person in my shoes should attend! It is basically the same event presented twice, once at Cabrini and then a second time at Temple. I will likely go to the first event at Cabrini. The flyer for the event discusses the opportunity to hear from a panel of advertising and communications professions, from advertising agencies, media buying firms, PR firms, and media companies. There is also an opportunity to network with these professionals after the panel discussion. I believe this is an incredible opportunity and an event I definitely need to take advantage of - in fact, it's simply one I cannot afford to miss! The flyer also states that students are welcome to bring copies of their resumes, so this is something I will make sure to do as well. I am very happy that an event like this is available to Philly-area college students in general, not just from one single university. I'm looking forward to April 6th, and will let you know how the event goes! Until next time - Happy Easter!!

Spring is in the Air!

I know it's been a few weeks since my last post, but these have been the busiest weeks of this semester by far. Spring break was amazing (and obviously went by too quickly) and then I flew home less than 48 hours after I returned to 'Nova. I had those two informational interviews I previously mentioned, both with ad. agencies in New England. Both interviews went really well, and I learned a great deal about what agencies look for in entry-level candidates and how the hiring process works. I have begun to come to terms with the fact that I may leave Villanova without a job when I graduate in May - but I understand that if I want to land the job of my dreams, I need to be patient and keep searching until I find it.

Basically, ad. agencies don't hire for entry-level positions like many accounting and finance firms do. They can't really hire classes of graduates in the fall of senior year or even (right now) in March, because they simply do not know what their needs will be come May or June, when graduates like me will actually be available to start. The more I hear this from employers, the more I better understand that I may just have to wait until April/May to interview for a full-time position at an agency. Every day I am attempting to accept that a little more, while still remaining focused on continuing my job search and not leaving any doors unopened.

Last Thursday night, 'Nova hosted it's 4th Annual Marketing Professionals Showcase in the Villanova Room. The keynote speaker was Mr. John Hayes, Chief Marketing Officer of American Express. It was a great event, and I am very happy that I was able to attend. After Mr. Hayes spoke, we heard presentations from two groups of marketing students, and then there was a networking reception with alumni and employers from the Philadelphia area. I had a "buddy" during the networking reception (who may or may not also be writing a blog for the Clay Center!) that I walked around and spoke to employers with. I enjoyed being able to experience the reception with her, because I felt more comfortable/less awkward walking up to employers when I had someone with me in the same boat. We spoke to a good number of people about their organizations and their experiences in marketing. I was very happy to hand out my resume and learn about potential job and internship opportunities. Overall I think it was a very successful and worthwhile event, and I am very thankful that Villanova gives us opportunities like this.

The most exciting news I have to share is that I have an interview next week with one of the companies I spoke with at the Marketing Professionals Showcase! The two representatives from the company were so friendly and willing to talk about their experiences. I could quickly tell that they both absolutely love their jobs - and that made me extremely interested in hearing more! This is because overall, I really want to LOVE my job. I want to wake up and look forward to going to work everyday. I want to be passionate about what I'm doing and feel like I am serving a purpose in life. So to hear about how much they love where they work - the people, the office, the work itself - was amazing to say the least. As you can probably tell, I am very excited for this interview and just hope that I will be able to convey that I am looking to feel exactly how they do about their jobs.

Next time I'll fill you in on how this interview went and what else is going on in my job search adventures. Happy St. Patrick's Day and enjoy the finally nice weather!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Snow is falling once again, spring break starts in three days - how can I concentrate on anything right now? All I know is I have to try, because this whole job search thing is not going to solve itself.


I am looking forward to the next few weeks for all sorts of reasons. First, spring break - I couldn't be more excited to spend a week relaxing and enjoying life with the people I have gotten to know and love during my four years at Villanova. This will likely be the last time I can go on a trip like this for a long, long time. That's a little depressing to think about, so let's pretend it isn't true. But the reality is that when we head back to 'Nova during the second week of March, the pressure is really on for me to find that job of my dreams.


The good news is that I have my fair share of possibilities coming up, which brings me to the second reason I'm looking forward to the next few weeks. Right after spring break, I'll be back at 'Nova for just one night before I fly home for two interviews. As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, they are both informational interviews, meaning that it is simply an opportunity to meet employees and get to know more about the company. I'm not interviewing for a specific position or anything like that. Therefore, my goal is to make a great and lasting impression, so that if a job opening comes up, the employers will think of me.


I'm sure you've heard this more times than you can count: networking is key. I always believed it, but I never really knew how it would help me. I thought to myself "Well I don't know anyone who works in marketing or advertising, so I don't even have anyone to network with." I could not have been more wrong! In the last couple months, I have realized just how incredible and helpful networking can really be. Basically all of the opportunities for jobs or internships that have come my way recently have been through networking. From family friends to friends-of-friends to alumni, there are an infinite number of ways to network and find out about opportunities. All you have to do is talk! To family, friends, coworkers, faculty, staff, etc. - you never know who they might know! I am (finally) learning how effective networking can be in terms of opening doors to new opportunities I may not have had otherwise.

It's getting to be about that time for me to go brave the weather - my hope is that when we get back from spring break, all of the snow will have melted away and it will be spring! I know that this is wishful thinking, but I can't help it :-)

Ad. Agency Tour in NYC

A few Fridays ago, about 25 students (including myself) went on a tour to three advertising- related organizations in New York City. We started the day off early at around 7:45am and took a bus to the city. The ride went by quickly, and then we reached our first stop: an ad. agency called Agent 16. The agency's office was really cool - take a look at some pictures! There are also more pictures from the tour on the Clay Center's Facebook page (search for "Clay Center at VSB" and become a fan!)

We heard a great presentation from some of Agent 16's employees, including the President of the agency and members of the creative team. They first spoke to us about careers in advertising, and all of the different jobs one can pursue at an agency. There are so many different roles at an agency: creative, account management, strategic planning, traffic, art buying, production, studio, and so on. They also discussed how Agent 16 is unique - the agency adheres to the belief that "culture is our business" - and differentiates itself by using culture branding while developing campaigns. Next, the team presented various case studies about successful campaigns they have worked on in the recent past. These cases included advertising campaigns for Three Olives Vodka, 1800 Tequila, Atari, and Zappos.com. The team shared television commercials, magazine advertisements, and other forms of media with us, and discussed the success factors of each of the campaigns. It was really interesting to learn about the process it takes, from coming up with an initial idea to shooting a television commercial. To finish up, we were told about internship opportunities with the agency...which is something I definitely wanted to hear!

Next we visited RJ Palmer, a media buying agency. Whereas an agency like Agent16 creates a message and produces the advertisement, a media buying agency like RJ Palmer uses planning, buying, and analytics to place the advertisement in the media. For example, say Company X creates an ad targeting mothers, RJ Palmer would figure out what television channels, magazines, etc. to run the ads in, in order to best reach these targeted consumers. We also were fortunate to hear from representatives from Turner Broadcasting (a division of TimeWarner), who are clients of RJ Palmer. The speakers included the Senior Vice President of CNN Digital Sales, and associate account executives and planners from various divisions of Turner. They discussed where they started in the company and how they moved up into the positions they fill today, as well as what it takes to "break in" to the industry. Their main points were to network and keep contacts, reach out to alumni, use social networking, and sell yourself! The SVP of CNN Digital Sales pointed out that when he interviews potential employees, he wants to here how they can help him, and what new ideas they can bring in order to help his team stay relevant.

Lastly, we visited a company called EUE/Screen Gems Studios. The NYC studio features multi-level production facilities for shooting television shows and commercials. EUE/Screen Gems is the full-time host of the Rachael Ray show, so we had the opportunity to walk around the set! This is something I had never seen before, so it was really interesting to get the chance to walk around the "kitchen" and see what it takes to produce a show like Rachael Ray. On our tour of the studio, we also got to see other stages that are used to produce a variety of media, from television commercials to viral videos and more.

The agency tour was a great experience that helped me to learn more about advertising and the different types of agencies that are involved in the process. From creating the advertisement (ad. agency), to actually producing the commercial (production studio), to placing the advertisement on tv channels (media buying agency), we were able to gain an excellent grasp of how all of these organizations relate and work together to successfully execute an advertising campaign. It might have been windy and cold, but it was a wonderful day that was definitely worth the trip! In terms of my personal job search, the agency tour helped me to build contacts and find out about possible job opportunities that I will definitely be taking advantage of. If you have the chance to take a tour like this, I strongly encourage you to do it!

Until next time, adios!

Keeping My Eyes on the Prize

Well, I have a little bad news to start with, but then lots more good news to follow...

I didn't get that job I interviewed for a few weeks ago that I wrote about in my last post. What can I say besides "oh well"? It was a very competitive program, and I honestly feel proud of myself that I was even selected for an interview. I thought the interview went pretty well, but I am sure there are always things I can improve on. As I said before, practice is key - so this interview can definitely be seen as a positive experience, even thought I was not offered the job. Getting more comfortable and into the right mindset will definitely help me with interviews to come in the future.

So enough about that, and on to the good news - I have plenty to keep me busy in terms of my job search at the moment! I have one or two "informational interviews" coming up in March back home in the New England area. "Informational interviews" are not usually for any currrently open positions, but more of a way for an employer to meet me, learn more about my skills and experiences, and see if I would be a good fit if any positions open up. I am looking forward to these interviews, because they will also be a great way for me to get a feel for the employers and see if either is somewhere I could see myself working.

On top of that, I feel like I have more jobs than I can count to apply for right now. Most of them seem to be summer internships, that mention something along the lines of "seniors who complete the program may be offered/can interview for full-time positions." Although these may be seen by some as less than ideal positions for a graduating senior like me, I think that they are definitely worth applying for. It goes without saying that jobs in advertising are by no means the easiest things in the world to get, and I know that I cannot pass up an opportunity to break into the industry, even if it starts at the internship level. Then I can just work as hard as possible during the summer to prove that I deserve a full-time position!

Next time I'll fill you in on the Ad Agency Tour some marketing and communications majors took to NYC!

My First Interview

Well, not my first interview ever - I gained some experience interviewing for internships last summer, and a few part-time positions here and there. But this is my first interview as a graduating senior, looking to begin a full-time job after leaving 'Nova in May.

To start, I'll discuss what I did to prepare myself for the interview. Hands down: research is key. Not only should you read (and reread) the job description you have applied for, but take some time to research the company. The more information you know about the company you are interviewing for, the better impression you have the ability to make. First and foremost, explore the company's website: read background information and "Who We Are" pages, as well as information about their partners, clients, etc. A great place to learn about current and recent developments in the organization is to read the "News" and Press Releases section of a company's website. These features will provide you with many of the basic facts you should be aware of. Researching the company's website will also help you to come up with questions to ask the employer during your interview. Note: I'm not just saying all of this because it's what I have read or been told to do - all of the above is what I did to prepare myself for my interview the other night! I probably spent a good two to three hours on the company's website, trying to gain an understanding of the organization as best as I could. It definitely helped me to come up with some great questions to ask during my interview as well.

Next, practice practice practice. The more familiar you become with frequently asked interview questions, the more comfortable you will be when those questions are asked during a real interview. How can you practice? There are lots of ways! For one, you can set up a "Practice Interview" with a Career Counselor in the Career Services Office (to make an appointment, call 610-519-4060). You can also take advantage of Mock Interview Days, like the one coming up tomorrow - Friday, January 29th! Sign up on GoNOVA to participate in a mock interview with a real live employer, from companies such as ING Financial and Northwestern Mutual. I did a practice interview in Career Services last spring while I was preparing to interview for some summer internships. I admit that it felt a little bit silly/awkward to be videotaped during the interview and than watch it back afterwards. But it really REALLY does help and make a difference! It gives you a chance to see what you're doing wrong (and right of course) during an interview and helps you take active steps to change the "bad" things. For example, I realized how much I could not sit still - in the video I watched myself twisting back and forth in the chair! Now I know to make a concious effort to sit still and be calm and collected during an interview.

Want to know what else to do to prepare yourself for an interview? And how my interview actually went? Keep an eye out for my next post to read more!

My Last Semester of College...

I can't believe it's already here! The summer before I arrived at Villanova to start my freshman year, everyone I spoke with basically told me the same thing: "Enjoy it, the next four years are going to fly by!" At the time, I didn't pay too much attention to them, but looking back, I must admit they were right. Now, with one semester to go, the comments have significantly changed. Everyone I speak with asks "How do you feel about graduating?" and "Do you have a job lined up yet?" Well, the answers to those questions are sad/anxious/excited and NO. I am sad about having to leave the place I have called home for the last four years, while at the same time excited to move on to the next phase of my life. I am determined to enjoy my last semester of college, and also work hard to use all of the resources available to me to find a job (and hopefully a great one at that).

As you may have guessed by the title, this semester I will be writing a blog about my search for a job. I am a marketing and international business co-major, and I am highly interested in working in advertising. Ideally, I would love to land a job at an advertising agency. I am aiming to work in Boston or NYC, as a resident of Massachusetts I would love to stay relatively close to home to be near my family. While many of my accounting and finance major friends have already received job offers and can breathe a sigh of relief this semester, I know that marketing majors and other like us have only recently began to see job postings (besides a few here and there). The time is now for us to research, apply, and hopefully have the chance to interview for that job of our dreams!

From working as a Career Assistant in the Career Services Office here at Villanova for the last couple of years, I have learned a great deal about job search strategies. From networking and interviewing, to navigating GoNOVA and perfecting resumes, I will share all of the tips and advice I have learned along the way, as well my experiences through internships and other activities. Stay tuned for my next post!