Tag: prsa

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Q&A with Ian Bragg

Meet Ian Bragg, University of Oregon SOJC alumni, who will be joining us for our PRSSA Panel and Mixer tonight! Following his graduation with a B.S. in Journalism with a focus in public relations and advertising, Ian spent a few years at Waggener Edstrom. He then joined the Edelman team to work on their Xbox account. Currently, Ian is a Senior Account Executive on the Earned Media team at CMD. As part of the Portland PRSA chapter, Ian works as the Director of New Pros where he brings his five years of large agency experience to new PR pros. 

We asked Ian some questions prior to the PRSSA Panel and Mixer. Get to know Ian before our event tonight:

Q: Did you have any internships while in college? If so, how influential do you think that experience was in helping you nail your first job? 

A: I did not have any internships while I was in college. However, I was involved in a variety of activities, including the student-run magazine, Oregon Voice, Allen Hall Advertising (AHA) and of course, UO PRSSA. Honestly, I was very lucky to get a job out of college without holding any internships. I believe they are extremely valuable to prepare yourself before entering the job market. There are even some internship programs that require candidates have at least two previous internships and/or a Master’s degree. It’s pretty competitive out there, folks.

Q: What was the application process like for you when looking for post-graduation options? 

A: My dad always taught me that “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” This couldn’t have been more accurate during my application process. A family friend introduced me to a VP at Waggener Edstrom, which led me to an informational interview, and well, the rest is history.

Beyond my personal story, I can’t stress enough how important setting up informational interviews is. Simply applying for a job is sometimes not enough. Plus, not all jobs coming down the pipeline are advertised on the company’s website. If you can demonstrate your value during an informational [interview], you’d be surprised how much that helps your chances at landing a job.

Q: What shocked you the most when starting your first job out of college? 

A: The on-boarding process can be quite intense. I was lucky enough to start on the Microsoft account, so I had to learn all the ins and outs of the tech industry – right away. It’s exciting digging deep into the accounts you work on, but it’s mentally draining for the first few months. However, I wouldn’t give up that experience for anything in the world. Starting my first “real job” is one of the best feelings I’ve ever felt.

Q: What has been your favorite project or accomplishment?

A: I had the opportunity to launch Xbox One while I was working at Edelman. This experience was by far the highlight of my career. I worked harder than I ever worked leading up to the event, but it was worth every minute of it. I got to go to New York City to help with the launch, which included going backstage at Bloomberg, Fox Business and other broadcast publications with our top executive. I also ran the VIP/celebrity check-in and watched Macklemore perform for hundreds of Xbox fans attending the event. I was truly living the dream.

Q: How has PRSA benefited you as a professional?

A: As I mentioned above, it’s not what you know, but who you know. PRSA gave me the opportunity to meet and network with the leaders of the PR community in Portland. The PRSA New Pros specifically helped acquaint me with the numerous PR and marketing agencies in Portland. This knowledge helped me locate the most recent stage in my career – working on the Earned Media team at CMD.

Q: What are the top three skills PR students should try to obtain before graduation?

A: Writing/editing is probably the most important skill for a PR professional. Agencies and clients alike expect us to have strong writing skills and perfect grammar.

Social Media knowledge: As millennials, we are expected to have knowledge of emerging social media networks and how to leverage the existing ones. Today PR isn’t just about media relations, it encompasses all forms of communication.

Networking: It’s amazing how small the PR community is across the nation. By getting to know others in the industry, you will give yourself a leg up on the competition when job searching. 

Q: What are some first steps students should take to build their networks?

A: Leverage your professors. They have more connections than you can imagine. Beyond that, join professional networks in the cities you are planning on working in. For example, PRSA New Pros and similar groups are a great way to get to know other young professionals and the various PR and marketing agencies in your community. And don’t be shy. Roll to a few meet-ups solo – chances are there are five other talented people in the room who are in the exact same boat. Finally, keep your LinkedIn updated and connect with the people you meet. LinkedIn is the number one way recruiters find candidates for jobs. You don’t want to miss out on that opportunity. 

Be sure to stop by Allen 141 tonight at 6 to meet Ian Bragg and other professionals as they share their insight with us! 

Lauren_JohnsonHall_thumbnailLauren Todd, Internal Events Director, plans internal events for UO PRSSA in effort to build relationships within the group. In her spare time, Lauren enjoys assisting with weddings and staying up to date on the world of pop culture. Follow her on Twitter at @Lauren_Todd.

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Benefits of a PRSSA Membership

As membership dues quickly approach, students frequently ask about the benefits of becoming a PRSSA member. While students don’t need to be dues-paying members to participate in PRSSA meetings or activities, there are a number of benefits to paying dues! According to PRSSA National, here are a few reasons why you should become a member:

  • Enhance your education – events, activities, competitions, scholarships, leadership
  • Broaden your network – events, social media, PRSA chapter
  • Launch your career – PRSSA internship center, PRSA job center

Once you become a member, you have access to:

  • PRSSA National scholarships and awards – Individual scholarships and awards are given to PRSSA members who demonstrate ethics, advocacy of professionalism, leadership and involvement.
  • PRSSA National news publications and web resources – PRSSA National provides news about the public relations profession.
  • PRSSA National internship center and PRSA job center – The internship and job center offer listings of openings available to PRSSA members.
  • Professionals – UO PRSSA works with PRSA and other PR professionals to encourage communication and insight among members from each organization.

In addition to these benefits, you are eligible to join PRSA as an associate member for $60 – compared to $225 for non-members – up to five months before or two years after you graduate.

Membership dues are $80 per student annually and are due Monday, Oct. 21 by 5 p.m. in the UO PRSSA mailbox on the second floor of Allen Hall. You are welcome to pay with cash or check – please make checks out to ‘University of Oregon PRSSA.’

If you have any questions, shoot us an email at prssa@jcomm.uoregon.edu!

Kathleen

Kathleen Nguyen, finance director for the 2013-2013 school year, is a senior at the University of Oregon studying public relations. You can reach Kathleen at knguyen3@uoregon.edu.

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Being a young professional in Eugene: Small market career start

You know the “six degrees of separation” theory? In Eugene, I think everyone is three-degrees apart, at most. The connectedness of a small market has some advantages and some disadvantages, depending on how you look at it and what you’re looking for.

Pros of working in a small market

In the world of agency PR, a small market has some major pluses:

  • You can learn who the movers and shakers are in the community relatively quickly. These may be your clients, colleagues of your clients, or friends and family of your clients.
  • You’ll build relationships with local media after the first few stories you coordinate for clients. You’ll figure out what stories certain reporters are interested in and how to pitch to them.
  • Starting out, you will likely earn more responsibility and autonomy than at a larger agency in a big market. You may even be able to communicate directly with clients.
  • You’ll probably be working for a small firm that provides training and support from upper management. Co-workers will become kin to family.
  • You could potentially have a five-minute bike “commute” to and from work. No traffic. Rush hour? Never. It’s more like mosey minutes.

Cons of working in a small market

I can think of two drawbacks of working in Eugene. But with time and learning, I’ve overcome them, so that may null my findings:

  • The “young professionals” community leaves a bit to be desired. Eugene is great if you’re a college student, you’re raising a family or you’re retired. After graduating from UO and getting hired in Eugene, none of those applied to me, so I had to do some digging to figure out my new identity and place in the community.

I found a few organizations that offered professional and personal connections in my playing field – the Eugene Chamber of Commerce’s Young Professionals Network and the Eugene Active 20-30 Club. The former hosts monthly networking events and the latter is a community service organization. By participating in both, I now have many new friends and see familiar faces at almost any community event.

I would imagine, however, that a larger city offers a more thriving young professional scene. Even co-workers could be of similar age and interests as recent grads.

  • There are no opportunities to work with multi-national companies with multi-million dollar marketing budgets (or at least none that I’ve stumbled upon). While Eugene is home to some manufacturing companies and industries that distribute to or operate in other parts of the nation and world, you won’t find as many as in, say, San Francisco.

But, in my opinion, here’s the catch: You might be working on accounts like Apple, Subway or L’Oreal, but you could be on the fifth or sixth rung of the ladder – a place where upper management may not remember your name and you’ll rarely get to talk with a client face to face.

Small markets take the win

My “Pros” and “Cons” list shows five-to-two. That’s a win for small markets.

From my perspective, starting your career in a small market is the perfect training ground to develop skills and experience you’ll need if and when you decide to launch into a larger market. But I’m biased because I haven’t experienced professional life elsewhere.

Eugene is indeed a small world after all. But it’s made a big impact on my personal and professional growth.

-1 Guest post by Lindsey Kate McCarthy, Account Executive at CAWOOD. You can contact Lindsey through our blog editor at cgisler@uoregon.edu.