Love Advertising? Join the Club

Five Reasons Why College Students Should Consider Joining an Advertising Club

Posted by Adrienne Waldo on 09.28.09 @ 01:28 PM


Adrienne Waldo

I recently got an e-mail from the secretary of my alma mater's advertising club about a campaign they're working on to recruit new members. The plan is to have alumni come speak about the opportunities the club exposed us to and how the skills we learned in the club translated to a career in the field.

As I started brainstorming my talking points, I realized I wasn't just making it up -- the club really was one of the most beneficial things I did in college. I think any college student who's serious about a career in advertising should consider joining or starting an advertising club, in fact. Here's why:

1. You get to be around other people who love marketing as much as you do. A lot of advertising and marketing majors don't really know if this is what they want to do for a living. In fact, a lot of them will decide that we're all insane and they'd rather not. It is so energizing to be in a room full of people who are passionate about marketing.

2. It's the closest thing you'll get to real-world experience inside the four walls of a school. The best thing you can do to prepare for your career is to get an internship or a part-time job in the industry. The next best thing is an advertising club. You're on a team that's working with a real client to create real campaigns. You face a lot of the same challenges you face in a job -- deadlines, teamwork, competition, coordination, organization. It's not always fun, but it's worth it when you see the finished product.

3. The people in your club will be contacts for life. I keep in touch with a lot of people from my group, and they are all doing amazing things. And your group members aren't the only great contacts you make -- my club's adviser was a reference for me when I graduated, and I've since given her students first dibs at various internships and part-time job opportunities.

4. You can use the work in your portfolio. Whatever your club does, whether it be community work, the AAF competition, or even just ads promoting the club around the school, you're creating real work that produces real results. Save everything for your portfolio and make sure to keep track of the outcomes. If you can go into an interview and say "I was on the team that created this campaign for the ad club and we saw a 30% increase in new recruits," you're that much closer to a job offer.

5. You'll get unique opportunities you might otherwise miss out on. Instead of just attending campus seminars, you'll be planning them and greeting the guest speakers. Instead of reading about local advertising events after the fact, you'll be recruited to work them. If you wind up creating ads for the local community or doing the AAF competition, you'll have your work in front of important industry decision-makers before you've even graduated college.

Like anything else, you'll get as much out of a club as you put in. Showing up at meetings once in a while so you can put it on your resume as an "activity" you were involved in probably won't do much. If you really want to benefit from it, get involved. Go to meetings, get creative, speak up, plan events, and I think you'll find it was a very rewarding experience.

6 Comments

By AesopRockOn | Elon, NC September 29, 2009 03:51:58 pm:

Hey Adrienne, do you have any advice for people at clubs that just started? Here on campus (Elon, NC) the club just started last semester and is looking to grow and prosper. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on it; I'm really glad to see that you think the experience will be good. I'm looking forward to it.

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By jdavidknepper | Plant City, FL October 8, 2009 02:29:42 pm:

If you happen to be at a school in a town that only has a regular AdFed, consider joining there right away, even before you start to build a student chapter. You'll have nearly all the benefits mentioned in the article, plus you will find the support of advertising professionals as you pull your own organization together. No need to reinvent the wheel. Get help where you can.

Most federations have a student rate. Ours (Imperial Polk Advertising Federation meeting in Lakeland, FL) has scholarships.

That you would have the opportunity to work on projects elbow to elbow with people who may someday hire you is a bonus.

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By AdrienneWaldo | New York, NY October 16, 2009 11:28:53 am:

That's a good question... I've never started a club myself, so I can't offer any advice from experience, but I have some ideas. With any club or organization, I think communication is key. For our club, I created a new position called Director of Communication, whose only job was to make sure everyone knew what was going on, and I think that would be really helpful for a start-up club. I would also take advantage of the social media tools out there. I was thinking if I was still in Ad Group, I would start a Ning social network, which would be a really cool way for the group to communicate, plus it would be an interesting project. Our club had a facebook page, which was a good way of spreading the word about activities and events, so I would recommend that. Ultimately though, if you can recruit a core group of people who really love it and will spread the word, that will be your biggest advantage. Hope this helps!!

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By kelslang | Lawrence, KS October 18, 2009 12:15:55 am:

Adrienne-

You say it's really important to get involved with your Ad club by doing things such as planning events and getting creative, but in the instance of my club at college, those skills and jobs are granted to the officers of the club. What would you suggest to respectably take initiative in order to help facilitate events and creative ideas? I'm fairly new to the club and don't want to overstep my "member only" boundaries.

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By AdrienneWaldo | New York, NY October 22, 2009 10:04:48 am:

@kelslang, that's true. It's sometimes hard to get super involved without being an officer, but I wouldn't let that stop you. I would say go ahead and make your voice heard. Don't be afraid to give your ideas. If it's a good club, they will take everybody's ideas into account. Take advantage of every opportunity to volunteer - it won't be long before they know you and your ideas will carry more weight. And seriously, try not to worry too much about the perceived boundaries. You only have a limited amount of time to be in school, so you might as well make the most of it!

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By cjrullman | Birmingham, AL October 28, 2009 12:07:19 pm:

Adrienne,

I apologize for just now having the chance to leave you a comment. You know I always enjoy reading your helpful Gen Next posts. This one really speaks to me, and I completely agree students should take up on every opportunity in college that will give them better understanding and experience in their field of interest.

Just last week, a younger friend of mine called to get some advice on a class at my university, Platform Magazine. This is a selective class that allows students to maintain this online public relations magazine. Students write, edit, and market it. as well as work in a team-environment, allowing them great real-world experience. It is the type of class you put on your resume as WORK experience. When my friend asked if she should go for it, I couldn't say enough about it. "Are you kidding me?!" I said. It is so worth the time and workload to join something like Platform and any other advertising clubs at your college. It WILL pay off.

Adrienne, great topic! Thanks for sharing. Hope all is well up in NYC!

- Carly

www.scoutbrand.com

Oh! and here is Platform Magazine I mentioned... www.platformmagazine.com

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