When I started college, I knew I wanted to be a government major and eventually wanted to go to law school (in fact, I knew both since I was 10). But by the time senior year rolled around, I was certain I wanted to be a lawyer eventually, I wasn’t ready to go to law school just yet. For the first time ever, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do! Graduating into the COVID world didn’t help the anxiety that comes with not knowing what you want your first post-grad job to look like. My senior year I met a Hamilton alum who worked in public affairs, and that’s when I realized it was an industry that checked off a lot of boxes for my ideal work environment.
Still, when I began the job search process, I wanted to cast a very wide net. I ended up going to the alumni directory and used only these search filters: majored in government and works in Washington, D.C. As you can imagine, there were plenty of results. I knew I wasn’t interested in working on Capitol Hill, so that helped me narrow it down. Eventually, I came across a 2013 grad who worked in a boutique public affairs and government relations firm I thought I might like. I reached out and a few days later we got on the phone to talk about his work. I think there is nothing better than hearing about a workplace from a fellow Hamiltonian. Since we had the shared experience of being government majors, he was able to tell me how that experience connects to a job in the communications industry, and at this firm specifically. I left that conversation feeling confident that the communications and media industry, as well as this company, was the perfect place for me right now.
The communications and media industry is a lot of fun. I have to be plugged in at all times and think about the news in a more nuanced way than the average consumer, which I love. If I had to pick my favorite part of my job, it’s feeling like I have some small part in shaping the way people think about things. Every time I get to see a client using talking points I wrote in an interview or see a social media post go viral, I see the work that my team is doing to ensure important conversations are happening.
My Hamilton experiences help me in work every day, including things I learned both in the classroom and elsewhere. Communications work requires thinking outside the box, something I think every Hamilton grad is great at! I can feel my liberal arts degree working every time I come up with an angle for a media pitch or a social media campaign idea. After spending years thinking critically and backing up my opinions, I was ready to step into brainstorming sessions and felt confident enough to voice my ideas. Another Hamilton skill I use every day is the ability to learn things quickly. My firm is a bipartisan “one-stop-shop,” which means our clients include everyone from social justice organizations to Department of Defense contractors. As such, I’ve had to become an expert on industries I knew absolutely nothing about a year ago. Researching well, organizing information effectively, and asking questions when I need to are all skills I learned at Hamilton that allow me to work on any client team, regardless of industry or subject matter.
When it comes to what I’d tell current students, my advice can be summed up in one word: Network! And I don’t just say that because I worked at the Career Center all four years of college. If I hadn’t networked, I wouldn’t have found my current job, but even more importantly, I wouldn’t have discovered that communications and media is a perfect industry for my skills and interests. There are so many jobs and industries out there, your perfect job might be something you don’t even know exists yet. I’d also remind everyone that your first post-grad job does not have to be something perfect that necessarily sets you up for what you want to do next. I know I won’t work in communications and media forever, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t a great way to spend my first few years of post-grad employment.
Posted December 30, 2021
