STUDENT INTERNSHIP: TAI Students’ Takeaways from Summer Internships

BRENDA RIVERA (Dec ’19)

“I spent this summer working at Marina Maher Communications as a Digital Marketing Intern in New York City. At Marina Maher, I was able to work with big brands daily, such as Novartis and PlanB One Step. I conducted extensive research and in-depth analyses of different brands. I learned about the healthcare industry, and grew proficient in several tools including Brandwatch and Unmetric.”

 

ILSE AREVALO (May ’20)

“This summer I interned at Blu Creative, which was started by a Temerlin alum! I learned about influencer marketing and social media management on their digital marketing team. I organized photoshoots, created organic growth marketing strategies, and designed social media decks for two clients.”

 

 

WHITNEY WILKERSON (May ’20)

“This summer I interned at Southwest Airlines on the paid media team. I have learned about influencer management from an in-house perspective and worked with a team to coordinate an onsite influencer event!”

 

 

 

MARY ELIZABETH CORDIA                      (May ’20)

“As a social intern at the Infinite Agency, I have worn many hats this summer which has been incredible. I have been able to travel to shoots, work on social calendars and copy for clients, help build out audits for potential new businesses, to even creating and concepting an entire campaign for our intern project. Infinite is truly helping me create a future in advertising!”

 

VICTORIA JACKSON (May ’21)

“As an intern for the Dallas Cowboys, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to see advertising and branding play out on a large scale working for the NFL. I’m happy to say that I’ve gained extensive first-hand experience about how branding works on such a large scale and can’t wait to take this knowledge out into the real world!”

 

SOPHIE MOORE                               (May ’20)

“As the Ad Review Intern for BBB Dallas I’ve been able to apply what I learned in Dr. LaFerle’s Advertising, Society, and Ethics to practice and enhance my knowledge of ethical business practices in advertising and the marketplace.”

 

 

KALEB MULUGETA                         (May ’20)

“As a Copywriting Intern at TracyLocke Chicago, I’ve been learning the art of crafting stories for brands to articulate and amplify their presence in shopper marketing.”

 

 

 

MAX WALTON (Dec ’20)

I had an amazing experience this summer as a Digital Yield Management intern at WarnerMedia, NYC.

I further developed analytical skills and was introduced to many aspects of forecasting and business insights tools. My internship not only taught me about revenue management but also gave me the opportunity to work on creative partnership projects myself.

After many dollar slices, I walk away from NYC with new connections with amazing people and invaluable knowledge that will certainly help my career.

Kaleb Mulugeta

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: TAI Student Kayla Griffis Speaks About Her Academic Experiences and Achievements

I am a junior majoring in Advertising with a specialization in Digital Media Strategy with minors in Graphic Design and Spanish. I’m also participating in the 4+1 SMU Advertising program that allows me to take undergraduate and graduate classes simultaneously in order to obtain bachelor’s and master’s advertising degrees in five years. During the 2018-2019 academic year, I received the following honors:

  • 2019 Dallas Area Alliance for Women in Media Irene Runnels-Paula McStay College Scholarship
  • 2019 Washington Media Scholars Foundation Media Fellows Scholarship
  • SMU Pi Beta Phi Foundation Scholarship
  • SMU Decima Chapter of Mortar Board National Honors Society
  • Finalist for 2019 AAF Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Internship
  • Finalist for 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program

I applied for these scholarships, internships, and honors societies at the end of the fall semester and was extremely nervous during the application processes because of the programs’ prestige and competitiveness. Managing deadlines, requesting letters of recommendation from professors and mentors, staying on top of daily homework assignments, and studying for tests was no easy feat. Nevertheless, I was determined to submit my applications, in case I wasn’t accepted as a junior, to refine my skills and experiences before becoming a senior.

When I was first notified that I received the 2019 Washington Media Scholars Foundation Media Fellows Scholarship, I was shocked! I couldn’t believe it until I spoke with a representative of the foundation who told me that my application was impressive and well-received. And while this was surprising, receiving two other scholarships–the 2019 Dallas Area Alliance for Women in Media Irene Runnels-Paula McStay College Scholarship and Pi Beta Phi Foundation at SMU Scholarship–was even more overwhelming. Additionally, qualifying for the 2019 AAF Vance and Betty Lee Stickell Internship and the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program were both amazing opportunities, though I ultimately decided to participate in the 4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program because of its focus to promote inclusion and diversity in the advertising industry. I am very passionate about this. My induction into the SMU Decima Chapter of Mortar Board National Honors Society is a privilege in itself and I am grateful to be a part of this organization that recognizes leadership, community service, and scholarship among students. As a 2019 MAIP Fellow, I will work at Digitas in Boston as a Media Buying and Planning intern this upcoming summer and am extremely excited.

SMU Advertising has provided me with amazing opportunities to network with professionals and connect with my peers as we prepare for future careers in the advertising industry. I hope to help foster a world where minorities are celebrated and accurately represented. I believe that I will make a difference in the industry, as a voice for minorities, and receiving these honors is just the beginning.

Kayla Griffis

TAI Creative Student Jennifer Nelson Shares Copywriting Experience with Award-Winning Ad Agency: McGarryBowen

Last summer, TAI creative advertising student Jennifer Nelson worked as a Copywriting Intern at McGarryBowen’s headquarters in New York City, NY. Internship experiences can give you a greater understanding of how a large agency functions according to Nelson.

Jennifer Nelson at McGarryBowen’s office

“I was hired as a Copywriting Intern so I was responsible for writing headlines/taglines/commercial scripts, concepting ideas, assisting my Art Director partner, and working on the summer-long intern project,” Nelson said. “I was put on the Chevron and Brand USA accounts, but I ended up working on mainly Chevron as well as a bit of United Airlines. There is a commercial that will air for the Sochi Olympics this winter and I helped write the script!”

Nelson learned many important skills from this internship, but she claims that by far the most important skill she learned was working with others. She partnered with a talented Art Director intern and worked on every project almost entirely through collaboration. “If I needed help with a headline, I would ask for her opinion. If she was stuck on some art, I would give her ideas,” Nelson said. Through this method, Nelson was always prepared for client meetings.

Every day was different depending on Nelson’s schedule, but she typically got to work at 9 A.M. and headed home at 6 P.M. Once she got to the agency, she made herself oatmeal and coffee, checked her e-mail for any meetings she could have, and talked with her intern partners about their plan for the day. In the mornings, she and her Art Director partner gave each other feedback on their concepts and worked on them until lunch. Sometimes the interns had informational meetings that allowed them to learn about the different departments and roles within the office. For lunch, she typically ate outside with the interns and then headed to a client meeting.

One of her favorite memories from her internship experience was working with other interns to present an Intern Project to the agency. “It was basically a campaign pitch for Champion. The interns were split up into three teams so it got pretty competitive,” Nelson said. “To set my group apart, I wrote a rap for us to perform at the beginning our presentation. We received a huge round of applause as well a couple chuckles. A few of the executives even praised my rap writing skills when we finished.” This experience allowed Nelson to sharpen her presentational skills.

Nelson has learned how to be a good team player from her advertising classes, and this helped her be the best partner she could in the internship.

During her internship, Nelson primarily worked with the Chevron creatives who became like a family for her. Nelson and her Art Director partner developed concepts for Snapchat games, videos, gifs, and more. Nelson also worked on a Chevron STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) event for women in Washington D.C. “That was super cool because I learned so much about the rich history of women in STEM,” Nelson said. “My partner and I ended up having the most accepted concepts for both Fresno and STEM on the team!”

On the creative floor

This internship gave Nelson amazing opportunities to create work, and was therefore allowed to experience the duties of a copywriter. In the future, she sees herself working for an advertising agency in a big city as a copywriter.

Advertising students are strongly encouraged to complete an internship prior to graduation. The hands-on experience allows students to learn about the advertising industry outside the classroom. Nelson highly recommends TAI students to apply for McGarryBowen’s summer internship!

Check the TAI Weekly Update for current internship opportunities.

 

 

TAI Student Molly Murer Talks About Her Internship at The Richards Group

Molly Murer
Molly Murer, Advertising Major

This summer, I am working as a Brand Management Intern at The Richards Group. I work mainly on the H-E-B account, as well as the PODS account. I have a wide array of tasks that I manage for the team, including scheduling out of home jobs (by creating posting instructions, quantities worksheets, purchase orders and communicating with vendors), compiling media traffic (including TV, Radio, Digital, Hispanic, Digital Out of Home,and specialized markets), creating weekly Competitive Dailies to send to the client, researching and compiling competitive decks for the creative team and client, opening jobs and purchase orders, and scheduling internal meetings with the team as well as external meetings with the client. Throughout the internship, I also give two major presentations to my entire team, including the principal. I have learned so much through this internship and am excited to see what the last few weeks bring. I have been entrusted with important tasks and appreciate the hands on experience.

Interested in learning more about the internship experiences of TAI students? Click herehere and here.