When is the best time to start applying for jobs in communications and media? For many career opportunities the process will not begin until the Spring, but that is no reason not to apply for Leadership Development Programs now. Get the experience you need to get that competitive edge.
The start of the fall semester is always a very busy time for career services offices, with on-campus recruiting, fairs, panels and an explosion of advising sessions with students facing quick fall recruitment deadlines.
For most seniors interested in careers in communications and media, there aren’t that many fall deadlines. Most of these employers “hire as needed” so it makes more sense to apply 30-45 days out from when you’d like to start – so in the spring a month or two from graduation. There are, however, some really wonderful opportunities that do have fall deadlines – post-grad fellowships or internships and leadership development programs (LDPs)/rotational programs. Click here for a list of opportunities.
There is a trend with PR and AD agencies where they like to hire graduating seniors for a summer internship or fellowship (normally paid); and based on the intern’s performance, hire them on full time. Quite a few of these opportunities are posted in the fall.
Be sure to check the Elon job network and create a job alert so you don’t miss any of these opportunities!
Other organizations, like Wayfair, offer rotational programs with deadlines in September and October for jobs starting the next summer. Below is an example: an e-commerce associate rotation program
Wayfair is seeking analytical, enthusiastic, and self-motivated candidates for full-time opportunities in our 2020 e-commerce associate rotation program. The two-year program offers business associates the opportunity to gain experience in core functional areas within Wayfair's North American retail and merchandising business and contribute directly to the growth and success of the company. This is an ideal opportunity for individuals who are passionate about e-commerce and seeking to enter the tech space for the first time and jumpstart a career at Wayfair.
As an e-commerce associate, you’ll join our teams that are driving Wayfair's “best in class” online customer experience, with responsibility for owning and maintaining Wayfair's vast e-commerce catalog; executing a strategy for product categories and managing supplier relationships and continually improving the customer’s on-site shopping experience. In addition to the opportunity to explore and test different areas of the business, the rotational program offers robust onboarding programming, exposure to multiple career tracks, interaction with senior leaders across the business, and potential for substantial growth within the company.
As an e-commerce associate in our rotational program, you will gain exposure to teams such as vertical merchandising, merchandising operations, promotions, lifestyle brands, exclusive brands, 3d visualization & operations, and category management. You will navigate the rotation program together with a cohort of peers, providing a cohesive professional network to leverage throughout the program and beyond.
What you’ll do:
Analyze data, trends, and use resources to improve the quality of our product catalog in order to drive customer satisfaction, trust, and site conversion rates; researching categories and vendors to build out selection create cross-functional partnerships to advance your category through merchandising, promotions, marketing, on-trend product selection, effective pricing and profitability, and operational excellence build key supplier relationships to enable successful negotiations and drive towards a best-in-class customer experience leverage data to analyze the competitive environment, report on performance trends, and develop business cases for strategic initiatives represent Wayfair at various offsite events such as trade shows manage communication with internal and external stakeholders
LDPs and rotational programs are wonderful opportunities for those with a general interest in an industry, field or organization but are still unsure as to what their best functional role should be. Plus these programs often have wonderful mentorship and professional development opportunities.