AdPR Alumni Spotlight - Sarah Armstrong (‘05)

Sarah Armstrong

Sarah Armstrong currently works at Arnold (NY) as an Account Supervisor.

What was your major and when did you graduate? I graduated Cum Laude in May ‘05 with an ABJ in Advertising.

What activities were you involved while in Grady/UGA? Though I graduated with a degree in Advertising, I was initially a PR major so my activities spanned between both areas of communications.  I was a member of a sorority for four years and during that time I served one year as the PR chair.  One of my favorite activities was being a Hoop Girl for the Men’s basketball team for 3 years. And during my senior year I became involved in the Ad Club (since I finally picked my major!) and came to New York City for the annual Ad Club trip.

What are you doing now and how did you get there?  I’m currently an Account Supervisor working on Unilever at Arnold.  Right after graduation I came to NYC with a friend - neither of us had jobs but we were determined to make it work.  I had a PR internship the year before and used that experience to secure a position at a leading PR agency.  After a few months, I decided to switch to advertising and joined JWT, where I worked on a few J&J and Diageo brands for 4+ years. Ready for a change, I came to Arnold 3 years ago.

What is your day-to-day like at your job? (Any interesting projects that you can share with us?) On any given day I'm doing whatever I can to make the account run smoothly. That could mean pulling together a presentation for a creative meeting, visiting the clients' offices, attending focus groups or even a shoot somewhere exotic (or in Queens for that matter...) Right now I'm working on a project that will simultaneously relaunch a brand in some global markets, launch a new product and help the brand become relevant to millennials who may have passed on it in the past. So, I've got my work cut out for me!

What part of your Grady experience (classes, professors, etc.) has been helpful in your career today? The passion of my professors in Grady is what drew me to Advertising. Learning about all aspects of communications (research, art direction, strategy, media and even law) gave me a solid base of knowledge.  Not to mention it allowed me to try my hand at different roles within communications to get a sense of where I excel (leading a team, making killer PPT decks) and where I'm perhaps not so gifted (Photoshop, writing newspaper articles).

What is your favorite Grady memory? Definitely the Ad Club NYC trip. I met so many wonderful people, visited a ton of fantastic agencies and got to see all that NYC -- my home now of 8 years -- had to offer. It gave me the excitement and confidence I needed to make the leap to move here. In a nutshell, that was a life-changing trip.

What advice do you have for current AdPR students? 1) Don't be shy! Network and meet people. We all got our start from meeting someone on the inside who was kind enough to listen to our dreams and offer a way in. 2) Ask thoughtful questions and let your passion and personality shine through, especially when interviewing for that first job. 3) And once you have that first job, remember you have a lot to learn. Grady is fantastic at preparing you for your career, but there's nothing like good old fashioned experience that comes with time, and the wisdom that comes from working under seasoned mentors.

AdPR Connection to Host 50 Companies for Workshops and Career Fair

The Department of Advertising and Public Relations at UGA will host more than 50 companies and corporate partners at its annual AdPR Connection, which will include development workshops featuring talks from industry professionals, and a career fair for students. This year's AdPR Connection,which is sponsored by Omnicom agencies BBDO and Porter Novelli, will be Tuesday, October 23 in Tate Grand Hall from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The event is free and open to all attendees.

"We are really excited about the event this year. We are hoping to make it even bigger and better than last year, with more students and more professionals attending," said Ali Campbell, a senior studying public relations and a co-chair for the AdPR Connection publicity committee.

The four professional development workshops at this year's event include: 

• 1:15 – 2:00 p.m.: #DigitalRevolution - the Impact of Social Media on the Industry
• 1:15 – 2:00 p.m.: The Key to a Lasting Impression - What Employers Look for in New Hires
• 2:15 – 3:00 p.m.: Off the Beaten Path – Oh the Places your Degree can Go 
• 2:15 – 3:00 p.m.: Reality Check – Life Post Grady

In addition, resume and portfolio critiques will be offered from 1:00 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.

Companies scheduled to attend the career fair include Porter Novelli, The Coca-Cola Company, Fleishman-Hillard, Ogilvy, JWT and many more.

A full schedule and list of companies attending can be found at the AdPR Connection 2012 tumblr page. In addition, updates can also be found on the AdPR Connection 2012 Facebook page.

AdPR Alum Spotlight: Kristen Green

Kristen Green graduated from Grady in 2007. She earned a degree in Advertising and a New Media Certificate.

What are you doing now and how did you get there?

I am currently a Content Strategist at JWT in Atlanta. After graduating from Grady in December 2007, I began my career in Account Service at JWT in February of 2008. I learned a lot about the advertising business in my first few years, as I had the opportunity to work across multiple clients that spanned the gamut from cell phones to the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In December of 2009, I hopped the fence and began my foray into Digital Strategy as an Assistant Digital Strategist. Digital Strategy was a perfect fit for me and I was now able to apply both my passion for all things digital as well as the knowledge I had gained through Grady's New Media Institute. I was able to use my nerd love for apps and gadgets to make recommendations and positive impacts on clients' businesses.

In May of 2010, I was promoted to Content Strategist on the United States Marine Corps account. Not only is it awesome to work for such a prestigious client like the Marine Corps, but the burgeoning field of content strategy has been a fun field to dive into head first. I've had the opportunity to do so many things in my role ranging from drafting the content for a major web redesign to all the way to being on a Marine Corps base collecting video content that will live on our websites. I have loved every minute of it. Digital and content strategy is where I have found my niche, and I am excited to see what the future holds as I plow forward in my career.

What is your favorite Grady memory?

Although walking across the stage and receiving my diploma and Grady pin will always be precious to me, I have to say that my favorite Grady memories are the long nights I spent in the halls of the building formerly known as the SLC (now the MLC) working all night on projects with fellow Grady classmates. Putting in those long hours on projects with a team is an exact replica of what you will be introduced to in the real world of advertising: teamwork, collaboration, long nights, lots of red bull and making memories that last a lifetime.

What advice do you have for current AdPR students?

Soak it all in. Campus. Athens. Football games between the hedges. Ringing the Chapel Bell. Lectures from brilliant professors. The ability to sleep in until noon. The vast array of knowledge from professors and peers. Soak it all in. College goes by so fast. The irony is that while you are in college, you can't wait to get out into the "real world", but once you're out, you would give anything to go back. So savor the late night cram sessions and take advantage of this time in your life to focus solely on learning and bettering yourself.

Go above and beyond in your projects. Seek out internships, opportunities to study abroad and be a hand raiser when called upon to go the extra mile. Not only do these things look good on a resume, but they make you a better person. When you go to those first terrifying interviews you'll learn that its less about what awesome accolades you can cram onto one piece of 8.5" x11" paper, and its more about the experiences that have molded you into who you are. People want to work with a team player who is passionate about what they do. So be passionate, soak it all in and relish away the days that you get to walk down the hallowed halls of Grady and across our beloved Athens campus before you move on to the "real world."