Gia Mazzarella
Graphic Design Student Lands Internship with Advertising Agency in Boise
Gia Mazzarella是365滚球官网的一名四年级学生，获得了B.F.A. in Studio Art and Design alongside a minor in Advertising. 她主修平面设计，目前是犹他大学自己的主编 Blot Magazine.
在2020年被365滚球官网艺术与设计专业录取之前, Gia didn’t have a specific career in mind. “我在大一的时候(没有申报)就开始了一个学期的学习，因为我只是想探索各种选择,” she said. For someone who has “always been crafty,Gia说，直到进入伊利诺伊大学，她才意识到自己可以将艺术激情转化为终身事业. “In high school, I took some photography classes and got introduced to design through yearbook,” she explained. “有很多人和我属于同一类别，他们有这种激情，并希望将其转化为职业.”
她每年都获得了几项学术和艺术相关的奖学金, specifically citing the Robert J. Harder Memorial Art Scholarship.
From the very beginning, Gia决心抓住每一个机会获得工作经验，并与她的同龄人和导师建立与她的研究领域相关的网络. In her sophomore year, she joined the Blot team as a graphic designer. “我们是一份学生经营的校园刊物，专注于校园和社区生活,” she said about the magazine. As a designer, 你会看到摄影师和作家提交的照片和故事, and then you put it into a page layout spread.”
In her junior year, she would become the creative director—and now, having started in May 2023, she’s the editor-in-chief of Blot Magazine, otherwise known as her self-proclaimed “baby”.
"I've learned a lot about teamwork, leadership and organization,” she said. “Anyone of any major can join Blot. When [we’re hiring], we always look for designers, photographers and writers.”
During her junior year, she worked remotely for the university to design MyUI, a campus dashboard for Vandals. “我设计了应用程序的原型供学生测试，这样我们就可以根据他们的反应来改变设计,” she explained.
Gia将她找到所有工作机会的方法归功于同事和老师的推荐. She specifically cites Delphine Keim她是艺术与设计系主任和她的导师，是她的主要支持来源. “我知道，当你还是一名学生并开始建立自己的人际网络时，获得这种经验是很重要的,当被问及她参加这些工作机会的动机时，她说. “我知道，作为一名学生，获得这些经验会对我的职业生涯有好处，这样我毕业时就会有优势. I have a network that I can go to.”
在大四开始前的最后一个夏天，Gia在boise based Stoltz Marketing Group这是她后来所说的“我学术生涯中最好的经历”。. Stoltz is a “woman-owned, 自2016年以来，该公司一直与365滚球官网密切合作. Her connections with her peers once again assisted in her career journey, 她解释道:“我和那个在我之前实习的学生是好朋友. He specifically was pushing me to apply and recommending it like crazy.”
The Vandal roots are strong, 他们帮助Gia获得了竞争激烈的创意实习生职位——“汪达尔人的网络是真实的!” she said. After the internship, Gia said her professional network doubled. 她鼓励别人建立和利用与你的联系，只要你是一个破坏者.
在那里，她参与了社交媒体帖子、平面广告和其他设计项目的设计. She also was involved in meetings with clients, PR and account management. “They really gave me a huge rundown of every piece of the agency, which is amazing and exactly what I was looking for,” she recounted. Gia was even featured in a video produced by Stoltz about her experiences working there.
当被问及看到广告世界的另一面是否会让她考虑其他类型的职位时, Gia said, “I considered them, but I still think it reinforced that I want to do the creative side... I really enjoyed designing and being a part of brand development projects.”
It wasn’t all butterflies and rainbows, 虽然- gia分享了她在斯托尔茨实习期间如何与冒名顶替综合症作斗争. “Going into it, (我)真的很紧张，担心自己不够格，或者不会为环境做出贡献,” she said.
然而，在善良的雇主的支持下，她克服了这些情绪. "That was a big thing that I took away from it,” she said. “Yes, you can have the skills and the experience, 但做一个好人会让你走得更远……我亲自和他们联系过, but also professionally, because I was working alongside them.”
当被问及斯托尔茨是否为她未来的雇主设定了标准时，吉亚说:“当然! The bar is so high, and I don't want to work for anyone that’s not like that.”
Even though she still struggles with imposter syndrome from time to time, Gia’s learned to “[have] confidence, even if you don't believe it” the next time she experiences that feeling. “It’s an ongoing process,” she acknowledged. “我认为每个人在进入一份新工作时都会有一点这种感觉.”
“我很惊讶(实习)与我在辅修广告的新闻课上学到的东西是如何一致的, like creative briefs and press releases.Gia声称，这个职位最有价值的收获之一是，她看到自己在课堂上学到的东西可以应用到现实生活中的工作经验中. "They use the same programs that I'm used to, and they have the same kind of process from [brainstorming] to rough drafts,” she said.
她说:“在你学习的东西和实际应用它之间存在着相当直接的联系。. 她也了解了平面设计营销的职业道路, making Stoltz a “really eye-opening” experience. “我在Stoltz的实习让我了解了公司的生活是什么样的……这是一个非常快节奏的环境.”
She also learned a great deal about organization, which she later applied to Blot Magazine after returning to school that fall. “我从里面拿出了一个笔记本，它就像是我的圣经，记录了他们做过的一些小事, and I transferred that knowledge to Blot. Knowing I was going to take over my own little business, 我已经把他们的沟通和组织纳入我自己的领导岗位.”
She said, “I feel so lucky to have gotten that internship. Really, 如果你付出努力，任何人都可以做到——你不需要有一份华丽的简历或疯狂的作品集. You just have to be invested in it and do your research.”
Furthermore, Gia says to future Vandals, “寻求帮助，投入工作……有很多资源可以帮助你成功。, including the Career Services.” She encourages others to perfect their resume, 即使没有要求，也要写一封求职信，并对他们申请的职位做大量的研究. “I worked so hard on my portfolio when I submitted it to Stoltz, and they recognized that… So, look at all the details.”
Gia在365滚球官网的迷人职业生涯证明了在工作场所重视自己的重要性，并努力形成一个强大的志同道合的人的网络. Right now, Gia is most interested in continuing advertising agency work as a career, but she is still open to exploring her options, potentially back in Boise. Hoping to graduate in Spring 2024, 我们鼓励你关注她春季的实验性高级艺术展!
Victoria Kingsmore
Career Services Marketing Intern
