On Wednesday, March 22, the American Marketing Association (AMA) hosted a panel at West Campus. This event, titled “How to get a job in marketing,” featured multiple speakers from companies such as Meta, Lovesac, Boehringer Ingelheim, BIC, and Venn.
“They taught a lot of valuable information, talking about that first connection, that first job, and how to build up a resume,” said sophomore Andrew McMillen, President of the Marketing Club.
Throughout the presentation, panelists offered different pieces of advice to students, especially for making the connections that McMillen mentioned.
“One cool piece of advice that I heard was one of the panelists said he would scroll on TikTok, and would research the brands he would see advertising, and then connect with them on LinkedIn to reach out to people,” said McMillen. “I thought that was a really cool way of making that first connection, and how he was able to get so many looks at potential jobs because of it.”
During the panel, the speakers also gave direct advice on how to get your foot in the door.
“The best tip and advice that stuck with me the most was from Victoria Rosa Garcia, the media manager for Boehringer Ingelheim as well as a Sacred Heart alum,” said sophomore Emilia St. Pierre, Secretary of the Marketing Club. “Her advice was to start building your brand now, be bold, and put yourself out there. It can be very intimidating with family, friends, peers, and coworkers viewing your social media profiles, but the work you put in now will benefit you in the future.”
Throughout the event, all the panelists emphasized how important it is for students to actively update their LinkedIn pages, part of which is continuously forming new connections.
“Since the event, I have connected with many of these panelists on LinkedIn,” said sophomore Allison Ricci. “I’m looking forward to reaching out to them down the road, to strengthen connections in hopes of potential internships or jobs.”
Additionally, panelists also mentioned the current state of the marketing field, and how new technologies are affecting it.
“Another helpful thing discussed at the panel was the emergence of AI (Artificial Intelligence),” said Ricci. “Instead of thinking that AI is going to take over the workforce, we should learn how to work with AI opposed to it stealing our jobs.”
After the panel segment of the event, there was a cocktail hour with food and drinks which opened the floor for more casual networking, and smaller group discussions.
“We got to talk to the panelists one on one or in groups during this time. It was nice to be able to talk to them in a more casual setting after the event,” McMillen said. “We were able to pick their minds about what they’ve gone through, learned, and what they have experienced.”
The real-world experience that panelists bring to these events is part of the draw for students to attend.
“These events are super beneficial for us students,” McMillen said. “You can only do so much in the classroom, getting hands on experience and meeting people doing what you want to do, is really where you will learn and grow.”
“This event was definitely beneficial, because I left feeling super confident in my abilities to succeed in marketing in the future,” St. Pierre said. “I’m grateful for Sacred Heart giving these opportunities to make connections that will help us succeed in the future.”
