AdPR Alumni Spotlight: Rebecca Hoerner

Rebecca Hoerner

Rebecca Hoerner, an advertising major and participant in the New Media certificate, is from Newnan. She graduated in Spring 2013.

What encouraged you to apply to Grady College?  

I toured UGA as a junior in high school and fell in love with the campus; I saw myself doing well at UGA. I was pretty set on getting into the Advertising program because Grady is one of the top Communications colleges in the country. I knew a degree from Grady would offer me a diverse range of opportunities.  

What activities are you involved in at Grady/UGA/Athens?

I am currently the VP of Educational Programming for AdClub, the Webmaster for University Union Student Programming Board, and Account Executive of the Olivia Anne Hellwig Foundation through Talking Dog. I just finished up an exclusive project with six of my lovely Grady peers for PHD NY on Millennial insights and media habits. In Athens, I volunteer with the Athens Area Humane Society and HandsOn Northeast Georgia.

What kinds of internships have you been involved in, and what were your responsibilities?

Last summer I interned at Amsterdam Worldwide in The Netherlands as an Account Management Intern. I assisted in the launch of the social music application, NightTag, for Istanbul, Turkey. I conducted competitive research for current clients and new business pitches and assisted with organizing presentations for client meetings and internal projects such as Scalpel (Pernod Ricard). I was also responsible for gathering media/PR clippings to show campaign progress to clients

What were the best parts of your internship experiences?

Amsterdam Worldwide is in Amsterdam-Centrum, so I had an amazing time exploring every day after work. The agency is international, so I was surrounded by so many amazing people from different countries and definitely learned a lot about different cultures and languages. I was a part of so much interesting work and I got to learn a lot about the clients and specific markets and aid anyone in the agency with insights and research. The agency also had a garden out back, so we would have drinks in the garden (on a pretty regular basis) to celebrate new client pitches and just as a break from working so hard.

What part of your Grady experience (classes, professors, etc.) will you always remember?

I love AdClub and will always remember it as a weekly gathering of my favorite ad nerds. I think the PHD project will stick with me forever because it was a 6-month project and I was able to work closely with Dr. King and 6 brilliant Grady students. I will always remember Dr. Reichert because he fostered the relationship with Amsterdam Worldwide, accompanied our PHD group to New York, and encouraged me in a lot of my Grady endeavors.  

What advice would you give to someone who is considering pursuing an Ad/PR program?

I would say go for it because I think the AdPR department has the most encouraging and intelligent faculty and offers an incredible range of opportunities for its students. Grady AdPR definitely takes care of students who are willing to work hard. I personally think Grady AdPR is the best program at UGA, especially for someone who wants a challenge and is willing to seize opportunities.  

What are your career goals and interests?

I am very interested in Strategy (digital and traditional), Account Planning and Account Management positions and I am looking at New York City as well as internationally for job opportunities.  In my career, my goal is to work in international markets and I am excited to see where life takes me.

AdPR students research Millennial media behavior for PHD Worldwide

The PHD team, from l. to r., top row: Christabel Belonwu, Stephanie Wright, Rebecca Hoerner, Asia Martin-Ingram. Bottom row: Chelsea Franklin, JoAnn Anderson, Lucas Holt. 

Seven graduating Grady students participated in a six-month research initiative to study Millennial consumer behavior for PHD Worldwide, a global media and communications agency. They presented their findings to PHD and some of their clients in New York this March. The program, now in its second year, allows advertising students to get experience in consumer research and have a chance to present their work to a leading global agency.

This year’s “PHD Worldwide – Grady College Creative Collective” consists of: JoAnn Anderson, a second-year master’s student from Lawrenceville with a concentration in advertising; Christabel Belonwu, a senior advertising major from Loganville; Chelsea Franklin, a senior advertising major and Spanish minor from Charlotte, N.C.; Rebecca Hoerner, a senior from Newnan majoring in advertising with a New Media certificate; Lucas Holt, a senior advertising major from Blythe; Asia Martin-Ingram, a senior from Atlanta and Rochester, N.Y., majoring in advertising and psychology; and Stephanie Wright, a senior advertising major from Marietta.

Through focus groups, interviews and surveys, the Creative Collective spoke to Millennials in school and in their careers, and researched hot technologies, information context, digital advertising, television, Facebook and brand storytelling. In addition, they surveyed senior advertising students about their knowledge of different kinds of advertising agencies. Based on the students’ findings, they created a report and delivered a one-hour multimedia presentation and fielded questions about Millennial behavior in a Q&A.

"This project challenged the selected students to move beyond just collecting and analyzing research data to employing critical thinking skills and stretching their thinking to provide real insights for advertisers,” said Dr. Karen King, Jim Kennedy Professor of New Media in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations, and advisor to the Creative Collective. “Being able to execute and deliver a professional research-based presentation to 30-40 advertising agency executives and their clients in New York is a unique opportunity for our students to showcase their talents. The end product was impressive."

The PHD-Grady team, along with Drs. Tom Reichert, Karen King,
and 2012 PHD-Grady alumna Lexia Farris.

PHD executives enjoyed the research findings, and have plans to expand the program in coming years. “The students really over-delivered and blew away the audience,” said Craig Atkinson, president and chief digital officer at PHD.

“We shared the book with the group account leads and they absolutely loved it. Truly very impressive,” said Tara Nolan, associate director of marketing and communications at PHD.

The students learned from their own research about Millennials. "The research made me more aware of the things going on around me," said Chelsea Franklin, who researched and presented hot technologies and student perceptions of agency work. "I paid closer attention to the conversations my friends had, and really noticed any and every advertising technique."

“I was really surprised about Millennial use of cable television,” said JoAnn Anderson, who researched television and multi-video content. “I expected a lot more cordcutting, but there was a difference in cable subscriber levels between older and younger Millennials based on age, as well as lifestyle and economic factors.  It was interesting to find deeper, complex insights in my own generation’s technology use.”

I learned more from this project than I could have ever predicted and it definitely got me excited about the work we'll all soon be doing on a daily basis. - Lucas Holt

“The PHD Worldwide/Grady program challenged me to conduct primary and secondary research among my age group and pull out significant insights for what is so natural to me--Millennial media consumption habits,” said Rebecca Hoerner. “I was given the privilege to work closely with Dr. King and six stellar Grady peers.  It was a challenging experience, but I will treasure it forever and it has definitely made me a stronger researcher and advertising student. "

The day of the presentation was a great experience for the student team as well. “When we walked into PHD Worldwide to present our project, I felt as if I was stepping onto a movie set,” said Stephanie Wright, who researched and presented hot technologies. “Everything we said was being filmed and recorded so that they could review our insights. It was at that moment that I realized how big of a deal the Grady program was.”

"Walking into the agency was a bit intimidating, to say the least," said Franklin.  “But it was so rewarding, and everyone was completely attentive and awesome."

The opportunity for students to work with PHD Worldwide will be “an experience I will always remember,” said Wright. “Not only did I get exposure to what it's like to work in strategy and insights but I was also able to meet incredible advertising professionals while we were in New York City.” 

“Working with PHD on this project was such a great experience from beginning to end,” said Lucas Holt, who researched and presented on digital advertising. “It challenged us with the rare opportunity to explore consumer insights very early in our careers. I learned more from this project than I could have ever predicted and it definitely got me excited about the work we'll all soon be doing on a daily basis.”

PHD Worldwide is part of the Omnicom Group, a global leader in marketing and communications.

Students research Millennial consumers in PHD Worldwide-UGA partnership

The PHD-Grady Creative Collective with Dr. King (not pictured: Chelsea Franklin)

Seven ADPR students were chosen for this year's PHD Worldwide – Grady College Research Fellows Program. The collaborative media planning program, now in its second year and exclusive to UGA, allows graduating Grady students an opportunity to research Millennial consumer/media behavior with PHD, a global media and communications agency, and report their findings at PHD Media’s offices in New York. The students are advised by Dr. Karen King, Jim Kennedy Professor of New Media, in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations.

This year’s “PHD Media – Grady College Creative Collective” consists of: JoAnn Anderson, a second-year master’s student from Lawrenceville with a concentration in advertising; Christabel Belonwu, a senior advertising major from Loganville; Chelsea Franklin, a senior advertising major and Spanish minor from Charlotte, N.C.; Rebecca Hoerner, a senior from Newnan majoring in advertising with a New Media certificate; Lucas Holt, a senior advertising major from Blythe; Asia Martin-Ingram, a senior from Atlanta and Rochester, N.Y., majoring in advertising and psychology; and Stephanie Wright, a senior advertising major from Marietta.

"We are very appreciative that our best media students have an opportunity to work with one of the best media agencies in the world," said Tom Reichert, Department Head for Advertising & Public Relations at UGA. "Our students learn a tremendous amount about media and share their findings with PHD. It's a true win-win relationship."

The collaborative program was launched in 2011 to give students an opportunity to work on real-world challenges in the media area, as well as the opportunity for talent identification for PHD. Last year’s inaugural Creative Collective students researched several timely questions related to media-multitasking, mobile payments, and prevalence and attitudes related to online streaming. The first PHD-Grady cohort landed jobs quickly after graduation in cities such as New York, Atlanta, Chicago and Scottsdale. In fact, Lexy Farris, one of last year's participants, was hired by PHD and is serving as the liaison for this year's Collective.

This year's six-month initiative project allows students to research a new set of questions focused on Millennial media consumption related to television, digital advertising, Facebook, emerging media and brand storytelling. In addition to being flown to New York to present their findings to PHD, each student will also receive a $500 stipend.

UGA advertising student chosen to intern at Amsterdam Worldwide

Rebecca Hoerner, a senior advertising and Spanish double major, was selected by Amsterdam Worldwide for an exclusive account management internship this summer. The opportunity was only offered to AdPR students at the University of Georgia.


Amsterdam Worldwide, a global advertising agency, specializes in work for multinational companies such as Intel, Panasonic, ASICS and GM, among others. The eight-week internship runs from June 1 to August 1, and internship duties include aiding the account team in its workload, pitching business opportunities or internal projects.


Hoerner said her past study abroad experience influenced her decision to apply. “I receive email notifications from LinkedIn and saw Dr. Reichert's post about an internship opportunity in The Netherlands and instantly thought how amazing it would be to do what I love -- advertising -- and get agency experience abroad,” she said. “ I met with Dr. Reichert and my Message Strategy professor Elli Roushanzamir and they were both excited to hear that I was seriously considering applying for the internship and assured me it would be such a unique and amazing experience.”

Hoerner will be living in The Netherlands this summer, working with the account management team at the company. She hopes to do some traveling around Europe during her time abroad, including places like Cannes, Paris, Stonehenge and Italy.

To follow Rebecca’s internship and travels abroad, check out her blog here.