8 answers
Riley
Student
Rock Hill, South Carolina
3
Questions
Asked
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How would one go about finding a job in marketing and/or advertising?
Are there certain degrees or experience that you would need in order to apply for such jobs? Or are there ways to apply for internships and/or get hired and then trained?
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8 answers
Rachel Friesen English
Senior Director, Marketing Strategy & Planning
5
Answers
Portland, Oregon
Updated
Rachel’s Answer
People can come to marketing from a variety of experiences and college degrees. You can major in marketing, but a variety of degrees are applicable - English, Communications, Business, Engineering or STEM fields can be translatable as well - there are many types of marketers. There are a wide variety of roles within the marketing field so you could specialize in a variety of areas - product marketing (understanding how products work and why people would want to use them), analytics (how do you measure / track what's effective), brand and creative (graphic design or creating experiences for people), copywriting and project management skills are generally helpful across the spectrum. It helps to be curious as you often learn about the other complementary marketing areas, and you often need to investigate things further to market them.
Valery Caputi Lopez
Marketing, Digital Marketing, Content Marketing, Copywriting
2
Answers
Jersey City, New Jersey
Updated
Valery’s Answer
The best way to get started is to prove that you're capable of doing the work. So contact local student startups, charities and NGOs, and trusted partners/friends (or offer your services on a platform like Upwork), then build your portfolio!
Samantha Dillard
Communications Director
1
Answer
Lubbock, Texas
Updated
Samantha’s Answer
A degree in Communications, Marketing or Advertising would be best to go into this field. There are many classes in each of these degrees that will help better prepare you to go into your career.
Christine Tompkins
Data Analyst
5
Answers
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Updated
Christine’s Answer
There are a ton of different ways to get into marketing, as mentioned in the other posts. I think if you find a particular aspect of marketing that interests you that can help you find a niche within marketing. Marketing is such a huge field from creative (graphic design) to copy (writing) to analytics (data science) and everything in-between. You don't need to be an expert in everything in marketing to have an awesome career in the space. This link has a nice overview of the types of career paths in marketing: https://www.themuse.com/advice/marketing-jobs-careers-types
If you find one in particular that sounds interesting to you, you may narrow searches for internships or online programs that are more specific to one area of marketing or another. If you're not sure, general marketing internships that offer you a chance to explore all the different kinds of marketing to decide which one is most exciting to you.
If you find one in particular that sounds interesting to you, you may narrow searches for internships or online programs that are more specific to one area of marketing or another. If you're not sure, general marketing internships that offer you a chance to explore all the different kinds of marketing to decide which one is most exciting to you.
Nicole Mak
9
Answers
Updated
Nicole’s Answer
If I were trying to find a job in Marketing, I would recommend trying to get a business degree. Marketing and business go hand-in-hand, since marketing is about promoting a specific product or brand. Taking business classes will help you gain an understanding of where marketing falls into each company's growth strategy.
However, do you absolutely need a business degree to get a job in Marketing/Advertising? I don't think so. Other than having a good foundation in business principles, there are other skills/degrees that are relevant to Marketing, such as communications (how to write effectively or creatively to catch your audience's attention) or psychology (how to understand and appeal to your customer).
To get an internship or job in Marketing, you will need to demonstrate that you have the skills listed above. For example, my university had marketing clubs that would connect students to large companies and allow you to work on marketing consulting projects in groups. If your university has something like that, it would be good experience to include on your resume. The experience can also come from your own side projects. For example, if you can show that you are good at creating content and getting subscribers on YouTube or TikTok, that could be a good way of showing that you can be good at Marketing. Different marketing roles require different skills, so one way you can start is to look up marketing job roles that you are interested in, and seeing what requirements they typically look for!
However, do you absolutely need a business degree to get a job in Marketing/Advertising? I don't think so. Other than having a good foundation in business principles, there are other skills/degrees that are relevant to Marketing, such as communications (how to write effectively or creatively to catch your audience's attention) or psychology (how to understand and appeal to your customer).
To get an internship or job in Marketing, you will need to demonstrate that you have the skills listed above. For example, my university had marketing clubs that would connect students to large companies and allow you to work on marketing consulting projects in groups. If your university has something like that, it would be good experience to include on your resume. The experience can also come from your own side projects. For example, if you can show that you are good at creating content and getting subscribers on YouTube or TikTok, that could be a good way of showing that you can be good at Marketing. Different marketing roles require different skills, so one way you can start is to look up marketing job roles that you are interested in, and seeing what requirements they typically look for!
Stephanie Muniz
Creative Project Manager
1
Answer
Irvine, California
Updated
Stephanie’s Answer
Getting a marketing degree is a great way to learn the basics and understand the field to confirm if you are interested. Getting started as an intern or an entry-level role as a marketing coordinator is a great way to get your hands dirty to learn a lot of different areas within marketing. I started as a Marketing Coordinator at a small start-up company and wore many hats. This gave me the experience I needed to learn what I like and don't like within marketing. Once I started to realize that I liked the creative side of marketing, I started to lean into that area some more by asking lots of questions with the experts in creative. This helped me build my career within the creative team and led me to the position I am currently in and love!
Vitus Feng, CAPM, PSM I
Business Generalist
7
Answers
Sacramento, California
Updated
Vitus’s Answer
Lots of great advice here. I'd like to add that there are plenty of free courses that can help you learn the ins-and-outs of various marketing roles and from there search for internships or volunteer work to start exercising your new skills.
Sometimes you can even get creative with what you have now (one of a marketers greatest skills: creativity) - maybe you're apart of a club and could create flyers to increase club member counts and awareness. Or, maybe you volunteer at a local non-profit and offer to shadow/help with a marketing campaign to current and prospective donors.
Get creative, think outside of the box and most importantly you can do it.
Sometimes you can even get creative with what you have now (one of a marketers greatest skills: creativity) - maybe you're apart of a club and could create flyers to increase club member counts and awareness. Or, maybe you volunteer at a local non-profit and offer to shadow/help with a marketing campaign to current and prospective donors.
Get creative, think outside of the box and most importantly you can do it.
Kamille Wong
Digital Marketing Manager
1
Answer
Reno, Nevada
Updated
Kamille’s Answer
If you don't have a particular area you're interested in and just want to get your foot in the door, I recommend looking at internships or positions that allow you to be more of a generalist. You'll likely develop your own interests with greater exposure to different marketing roles. Working at a marketing/advertising agency can also be a great way to gain the hard skills you need to transition into more senior roles.