No tags yet.
The past month, I’ve gotten a new job, apartment, roommate, and car. Almost every day, I’ve done something new that I haven’t before, from budgeting a steady salary to negotiating at a dealership. The clip of these changes makes each week feel nothing like the last. Despite these new responsibilities and unknowns, there’s a certain calm that having a job affords me that was not present while in the job search.
Currently, I work at OMD Entertainment advertising for the biggest advertiser in the world, Disney. I’m still getting used to seeing a Starwars Meeting appear on my calendar or editing the Marvel Flowchart. Writing this feels unreal, since not long ago I crossed the Pitzer stage with no interviews or offers.
While trying to figure out what my move was, I tore through blogs, podcasts, and books like Earn It! to figure out how to present my best self and get interviews. The goal was to be in a position where I had multiple offers and could choose. I observed that people typically laid out general advice for how to get a job, but left out the nitty-gritty details. I want to get specific and provide tangible takeaways to show how I got to this desk.
The quick and dirty timeline post-grad related to jobs:
I had dozens of informational interviews for entertainment and entertainment-adjacent jobs
I researched companies and applied online
I reached out to a hiring manager that I had a 2nd degree connection with telling her that I applied. She informed me of other open positions, to which I applied
I flew to LA and interviewed (at a few companies)
I debated the offers, then accepted OMDe's
I moved back to LA
The takeaway:
Write down what you want. Be audacious!
Talk to people about themselves
Have your personal story down, but keep it flexible
Always follow-up. It's just as important as the meeting
Let’s start with some context. My job journey started in high school, where I had my first internship at Young Women Empowered. Working with Suzanne Hayward, a former Oprah Winfrey Show producer, I learned how much I loved entertainment as a platform to shape how people see the world and themselves.
This directly influenced my decision to study media in school. Through that internship, I also learned that I easily build rapport and trust, since part of my internship was interviewing alumni from the organization about their experience there. I leaned on and continued to hone this skill until I became the queen of the informational interview. This was critical for me to talk to everybody I could find who worked in media and entertainment.
For example, I attended every talk or panel at my school where someone speaking about the entertainment industry was featured. As a pro-tip, alumni tend to ride for fellow alumni more than non-alumni, whether this is for an informational interview, an internship recommendation, or a general good word. During one panel, I met Adam Faison, an actor and Pitzer alum. Importantly, I listened to his advice during the panel and took notes, so when I came up to him after, I could come correct. I told him about my interest in getting real entertainment experience, and he recommended me to his friend at a film studio. I prepared for the screening call and the interview and eventually got the internship.
If you want to similarly take advantage of coming correct, whether at a panel or talk, come to people using this template:
Hi Mr. / Ms. __, Thank you so much for coming to [this event]. My name is __. I especially appreciated your advice to / insight on / story about [something specific they mentioned].
Allow them to respond. Show you’re engaged, authentic, and trying to learn. When they ask what you’re all about, make sure you have your targeted story straight.
How to get your story straight:
Having your story straight is all about learning vocabulary that aligns to your audience and is honest to your interests. When I was searching for internships and eventually my job, I practiced responding eloquently, succinctly, and effectively to answer, “What do you want to do?”
Never let this question be wasted with the response, “I don’t know.” You do know. When I first answered this, I answered with anything I knew, even if that wasn’t a specific job. I wrote in my journal what I wanted:
A big company
A training program
A healthy corporate culture
Located in Los Angeles
In the Entertainment industry
Working with a major client
Opportunities to travel
I would usually start with my media degree and allow those I would also talk about my media degree. This gave the person I spoke to the foundations to filter their experience to make it more applicable to my interests and their network.
In addition to clarifying my interests, I needed to be able to talk about the skills I have from my experiences. This is called your Value Proposition. When applying for entry level roles, they’re looking for someone to invest in, someone who can learn. I would send my Value Proposition, below, to anyone willing to introduce me to others, as it gave them context for how to approach their ask.
My name is Maddie McCann and I am a recent graduate of Pitzer College, a member of The Claremont Colleges’ consortium, with a Digital Media Studies major, Sociocultural Anthropology minor, and 3.75 GPA. Through my seven previous internships in entertainment, marketing, and internet technology, I developed my vision of the power of branding through digital media.
One of my examples of my experience-based interests is below:
I am organized, resourceful, and trustworthy with professional correspondence. While assisting the pop culture journalist, Jarrett Hill, he entrusted me to represent him as the key correspondent with his media contacts before events. This prepares me to assist with the logistics and execution of key campaigns and to conduct media outreach.
I used a few examples of these to provide context for what I can do for any of my employers. Showing how you quickly learn things, even through jobs or internships, can lay out how you’re a worthwhile investment.
Meanwhile, during this time of asking questions and applying, I had to balance out my time, bolster my savings, and explore my passions. I worked in restaurants at night and during the day applied, called, and wrote. Working at the restaurant, Sawyer, was critical to my mental health during this process.
Fast forward through countless calls and no leads, I eventually spoke with a friend in HR at Amazon who suggested that I reach out to hiring managers before submitting my application. She told me that there’s two streams of applications that go to HR: inner referrals and outside submissions. I then started reaching out to HMs through LinkedIn, which was best if they were a first or second degree connection, or an alum of the Claremont Colleges. Again, alums tend to ride for alums.
When I wanted to connect with someone, I used LinkedIn to ask for a referral. Here’s what I would say:
Hi ___! I hope you're enjoying a wonderful summer. By way of reminder, my name is Maddie McCann and we met at the [event] last Spring.
I'm reaching out with some exciting news: I recently graduated from [College]! As we discussed after the panel, I'm set to launch my career in the entertainment industry post-grad, so I'm happy to let you know that I came across a job that is an exceptional fit for me. The role is "_____" at the [company] in [city].
I see through LinkedIn that you know ____ , a CMC alumnus who is currently a [position] at [Company]. I'm very excited about applying and was wondering if would be willing to introduce me to him. While I know I can reach out directly on LinkedIn, I thought it would be more personal to be introduced by you. Is this something you would be willing to do?
Thank you so much for considering. I hope you're well and look forward to hearing from you soon.
All my best,
Maddie
Alternatively, you can reach out cold to someone on LinkedIn or email to learn more about their company. In the below example, I spoke with someone in LA who was a second degree connection with a colleague from a prior internship.
Dear ___,
I hope you've had a great summer and start to fall. By way of introduction, my name is Maddie McCann and I’m reaching out to you after seeing on LinkedIn that you not only work at [company A], but that you also used to work at [company B]! I interned at the [company C] last summer and worked extensively with the [company B] team.
[Company A]'s work is striking, but I knew I had to reach out to you after watching today's Culture Briefing on LinkedIn. I was fascinated by the panel's observation that different lifestyle changes and platforms allow for different types of content, whether short-form for Youtube or long-form for Podcasts. This intersection of culture and media technology changes were my bread and butter while studying Media and Cultural Anthropology. I'm motivated to continue this work now that I’ve graduated from Pitzer College in LA and Sciences Po in Paris.
As the [position] at [Company A], I would absolutely love to connect with you to listen to your perspectives on culture-focused strategy. In exchange for a 15 minute conversation about your work and this amazing company, I will come armed with a latte of your choosing and to promise to value your time. I know you’re exceptionally busy and thank you for considering.
These tactics worked to get me an informative call with him, eventually leading to an internal referral, and a job interview.
The most stressful part of the job process was the sheer number of jobs available. Starting with your Dream List and the companies in your network are two effective filters.
Reaching out to an HM
When I came across the application for a job at OMDE, I reached out to the Hiring Manager (HM) on LinkedIn before submitting. Once I got the HM’s email, I emailed her in a cover letter-like style.
Dear __,
I hope you're well! My name is Maddie McCann and I'm [how you’re connected]. I saw through LinkedIn that you also know her, so it's wonderful to meet you. I saw that you are the hiring manager at OMD Entertainment, so I'm reaching out to let you know I am finalizing my application for the [position].
I have a Digital Media Studies Major and Sociocultural Anthropology minor from Pitzer with a 3.75 GPA. I've had seven professional internships in communications and media, and am ready to jump into my career in entertainment advertising. I became interested in working at OMDE when I learned that you pull in culture and trend data to help form creative ideas, as this aligns with my anthropology background. My internships taught me how brands engage communities, reinforced by OMD’s CSO Chrissie Hanson: “Gen Z uses brands and communities as a statement and reflection of their identity.”
Here, I added some specifics from the job description that aligned well with my internship experiences. I like to use the format, “You need __” + something I did + “I am prepared to __” to introduce how I specifically can support them. Here’s one example:
You need someone focused on accuracy and problem-solving in a fast-paced environment, but who can also pitch creative ideas. Researching industry trends was essential for me to evaluate and pitch show ideas while developing TV and film at Southpaw Entertainment. This prepares me to attend internal creative brainstorms and contribute ideas for integrated ad campaigns as a Creative Management Coordinator. I love researching and am a quick learner, so whether I was creating media lists, reference grids and other supporting documents, or keeping up with influential players in entertainment, I worked quickly to update my team of executives.
To close, I did a quick summary and thanked them for considering me.
I'm motivated to streamline my career in media planning and digital media at OMD Entertainment with the Disney Account. Thank you so much for considering me. I truly look forward to speaking with you soon.
After a few screening interviews and an in-person interview, I was offered the job. I chose the best offer, which was OMDE. My favorite part of the whole job process was following up with everyone who had supported me, from my recommenders to the alumni who informed me about their post-grad endeavors. I sent handwritten cards to my recommenders informing them of my decision and emails to those I did informational interviews with, and updated my LinkedIn.
Overall, finding a job was very nonlinear. However, the constant point is to communicate as much as you know at a given time, then coming to every conversation with purpose. Knowing my story, then thanking whoever takes the time to talk to me for theirs, gave me the direction to make the pivotal LinkedIn message.
e