OHIO alum at major creative firm encourages students to utilize Bobcat connections

当麦迪逊·萨里, BSJ的19, MBA 20, graduated from newbb电子平台 during a global pandemic, 她不确定自己会在哪里着陆.

Growing up in Waterford, Ohio, Sury originally never saw herself moving out of the state. She was drawn to newbb电子平台 because of the well-known journalism program in the 斯克里普斯传播学院 还有运动的机会.

苏里主修的专业是 新闻战略传播 and committed to the track and cross country teams. When she finished her undergraduate degree and had an extra year of athletic eligibility, 她报名参加了 OHIO’s one-year master of business administration program.

2020年毕业后, Sury and her two friends decided to take a big leap of faith: move across the country to Portland, 矿石.

“It was a difficult time to enter the workforce because most places were not really hiring,苏里说. “So, we kind of saw that as an opportunity to go do something that we probably wouldn't have had the opportunity to do before.”

While Sury did not have a job lined up, she knew where she wanted to work: Wieden + Kennedy. 

Even if you haven’t heard of the name before, you most likely have seen an advertisement crafted by Wieden + Kennedy. The global creative company has worked with many prominent brands, 包括奥迪, 可口可乐, 迪斯尼, 脸谱网, 本田, 麦当劳, 网飞公司, 耐克等, 根据他们的网站. 

“I moved out here with the hope that I would end up there someday, 但我不确定这是否会发生,她解释道. 

OHIO experiences made her believe in opportunity, herself

She first heard of the company thanks to a Bobcat graduate who visited campus while Sury was a student and shared his experience working at Wieden + Kennedy with Nike. 在他拜访之后，苏里找到了他. Although no longer with the company, he connected Sury with his former colleagues. 

“He gave me the contact information for my now-boss and said, ‘you should email her. She’s super helpful and she’ll definitely be glad to jump on the phone with you.’他是对的，”苏里说. “I ended up emailing her and we maintained the relationship for about two years before I even met her. She told me if anything would open up, she’d try to get me in. 这一切都来自于我在开放大学的关系.”

Moving across the country eventually paid off: Sury is now a media and comms planner at Wieden + Kennedy, 为耐克品牌工作.

“I’ve been working there for a year and a half now and I don’t think the impact of what I get to be involved with, what my agency is involved with such as historical advertisements, 真的明白了,”她说。. “这真的很鼓舞人心, especially getting to work with the people that I work with, some people have been on this account for 10 or 20 plus years. It’s really cool to know that anything we put out there, that part of my voice is now in there.” 

Follow along with Sury for a day at Wieden + Kennedy

Sury currently works a hybrid schedule, with two days remote and three days in the office. 在日常生活中, Sury checks over finances for media campaigns, 为活动进行研究, 库宁汉的想法, 举行会议, and more while working on multiple campaigns for Nike. She’s contributing to many creative campaigns, 包括世界杯的比赛, 超级碗和芝加哥马拉松.

在进入newbb电子平台之前, Sury never would have imagined working for a top global creative brand across the country from her hometown. 她与newbb电子平台的关系, 包括教职员工和校友, made her believe not only in the opportunity, 而是她自己.  

“I developed super strong relationships with a lot of my professors,”她说。. “They would always take the time if I wanted to come by their office and listen to me. They would want to hear what I wanted to get into [after college]. Then they would be like, ‘oh, I know someone. 这是他们的newbb电子平台.“它为我打开了很多扇门.” 

newbb电子平台有关系”——麦迪逊·萨里

Sury is thankful for many of her professors, including Craig Davis, professor in the E.W. 斯克里普斯新闻学院, who helped her throughout her education and job searching process.

“I didn’t really know what kind of advertising I wanted to go into, so he shed light on a new route that was also new to him, 也就是媒体策划. He was super helpful and always took it one step beyond the class,”她说。. When she started her first media planning job, he also sent her his book about media planning. 

While at OHIO, Sury was also involved in the Ralph and Luci Schey销售中心 和 休·米. Culbertson Scripps PRSSA Chapter’s 1804 Communication, a student-run integrated marketing and communication firm. 她在那里获得的经验, as well as working with clients as a student, helped prepare her for her daily work now at the company. 

“There were so many immersive experiences at OU,”她说。. “So much effort goes into getting alumni to come back 和 faculty are so willing to help you get to where you want to go.” 

Sury encourages current students to not be afraid in reaching out to Bobcat alumni and fostering those connections. It’s also okay to not have the “biggest and best job” right after graduation, Sury said. Take the steps, foster the relationships and Bobcat connections can open doors. 

“Everyone a part of OHIO just wants to help everyone. 所以去找那些校友吧。. “I always say ‘Bobcats got connections,’ but it’s true. 我就是这样得到这份工作的.”