The Vanderbilt alumni network is a tremendous resource for students who are preparing for life after graduation. Last summer Carson Crocker, a sophomore at Peabody College, enjoyed a rewarding six weeks at the Dallas digital marketing agency Belo+Company thanks to an opportunity made available by Tim Storer, BE’96.
“I was thrown into the fire right away,” says Crocker. “I wrote copy for newsletters and websites, tweets for different companies, and helped redesign websites to improve their SEO. I even built an augmented reality program as a demo.”
Just like a full-time employee, he worked side by side with the marketing team, absorbed information over meetings and lunches, and learned more over conversations with his supervisors.
Crocker also discovered how his Vanderbilt education is preparing him to succeed in a future profession.
“While I had some previous marketing experience, I had not built an augmented reality app or redesigned a webpage, but I was able to deliver real work for Belo’s clients,” says Crocker. “I realized that I am well-equipped to solve problems because of my liberal arts education.”
And he had a great introduction to the power of the alumni network.
“No matter what industry you want to explore, you can find alumni who are leaders in that field.”