Twenty-two members of UGA’s Ad Club headed north to Chicago recently. From October 24th to October 28th, the students and their faculty escort, advertising lecturer Dr. Jennifer Griffith, participated in the Chicago advertising agency tour, visiting six different agencies in their travels. Explains advertising major Thomas Pulliam, “The trip was a chance to explore the Second City of advertising, visit some of the best known ad and media agencies, and view the world from 14, 500 feet up atop the Willis Tower.”



And view the world they did! Over the weekend, the travelers had a terrific time exploring the Windy City and enjoying Chicago’s famous deep-dish pizza, taking in some theater and live music, sailing Lake Michigan and the river on the architectural boat tour, and strolling and shopping the Magnificent Mile.

Monday and Tuesday, the group set out for the agencies; this year they made stops at Novus Media/OMD, Draft FCB, Rise Interactive, Starcom, Leo Burnett, and Laughlin Constable.
“My favorite part of going on agency tours, whether it is in Atlanta or Chicago, is seeing the inner workings of the agencies,” says Chelsea Gattung, a senior in the advertising major, “Every agency has a different feel, the interaction between coworkers is different, and the type of work they produce differs between larger and smaller agencies.”
Ad Club first visited Chicago in 2007, and the Chicago advertising agency tour now alternates with the New York trip, so they’ll journey back to the Big Apple in fall of 2010. For now, though, it seems that the trip to Chicago has given some advertising students new and interesting ideas about their futures. Graduating senior and ad major Wilson Long had this to say: "The Chicago tour revealed that there are countless opportunities existing outside of both NYC and the southeast. If I could manage to brave the winters in the Windy City, I would love the opportunity to work for an agency in Chicago."