Pre-Management Marketing Board

Product, place, price, promotion- the heart of marketing that we all know and love so well. However, there's so much more to marketing! During the Pre-Management Panel event last Tuesday, students learned what marketing is really about and how to be part of program. The panel was made up of four people: Ryan Elder, a marketing professor; Tyler Morgan, a BYU alumni; Mallory Reese, a current marketing student; and Sarah Long, a pre- management student. All were vocal in answering the questions the MA had prepared for the board.

Starting with some broad questions, a few elements of marketing were shared. The board felt that Marketing isn’t as direct of a program like med school would be, in the fact that Marketing can go many different directions where med school would lead only one way. Why does that matter? Just simply being in the program isn’t enough to kick-start a successful career, rather, you must make the best out of it and really find out what YOU like about marketing.

Then they shared the numbers most students get excited about. The Marriott School, specifically the marketing program, places 96% of students within three months of graduation. And the average starting salary for a marketing student is $51,641.

Want to get into the program? Then it’s time to get to work. The program only accepts about 90 students out of the 200+ that apply. So how do you become one of those ninety? Stand out.

For many years the program was run very differently than it is today. Before, GPA was the most important determining factors for acceptance. Today, grades are still very important but now more emphasis is placed on a person’s experience. Your resume should show that you’ve had marketing experiences and that you’ve made a difference while doing so. Focus not on your responsibilities, but on what you did to make the position and the company better.

This is when students panic (like most of us did) and realize they don’t have any real-world marketing experience. Well, you’re not alone. But there is hope! Every fall and winter semester there is an on-campus internship class where the students get to work on real projects from corporations. If you don’t have any real experience, sign up and jump into marketing now! Just search OCI (on campus internship) on BYU’s website.

Lastly, when considering the marketing program, it’s important to remember this key point: Marketing is for people that not only love numbers, but also love making the numbers creative.

Sound like you? Then don’t miss another MA meeting. Jump in and come to our next event! Stay involved and participate when you can!