When I was little, I loved to write stories. I wrote short stories about my stuffed animals, long stories about imaginary characters, and plays for my younger sister and I to act out. I composed song lyrics and melodies, always writing the lyrics down but rarely writing the melodies, so I never remembered the songs for more than a week. I played the piano when I was younger, so I sometimes would sit down at my dad’s black Yamaha piano and translate the melodies in my head into piano pieces. I was a dancer, too, and I loved listening to techno, hip-hop, jazz, classical, and contemporary music and creating choreography. As I grew older, I learned how to use programs like Canva, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Illustrator, and I began creating graphics for jobs, extracurriculars, and internships. Using my Canon Rebel T6, a camera initially for the whole family that has now become my own, I create art through seeking visually-appealing angles, shapes, and objects and snapping a photo of them.

As a senior in college, I knew it was time to start figuring out what career I might want to pursue. Being an integrated marketing communications major gives me a plethora of options - from social media to advertising to brand strategy to copywriting and many other fields in between, the possibilities seem endless. To some, this might be ideal. For me, it was terrifying because I realized, when I sat down to consider the future, that I have absolutely no idea what I want to do. This is the plight of probably the majority of college seniors, but being in the majority gave me no comfort. I was scared.

However, as I looked back on my time at Ole Miss, I had two realizations: 1) what I love most about my major is the aspect of creating and 2) I have always loved the aspect of creating. Putting words together to form stories; visualizing music notes in my head and stringing them together to make a song; thinking of different ways to move my body to various beats and melodies. This is all some type of creating, and I had been doing it my entire life.

I would be lying if I said I am 100% sure of what I want to do post-graduation, but I am sure about one thing: as long as I am creating in some capacity, I will be okay. Luckily, the marketing communications field encompasses many creative opportunities, so whatever career I end up following, I know it will be the correct one for me. My time as a student - the only full-time job I’ve ever known - is coming to an end, but I am excited for what the future holds, and I can’t wait to begin a new creative adventure.

Organizations

rebelTHON: Fall 2023 - Present (2023-24 Director of Graphic Design)

Ole Miss School of Journalism and New Media Ambassadors: Spring 2023 - Present

Public Relations Student Society of America, Ole Miss Chapter: Fall 2022 - Present (2023-24 Vice President)

The Ole Miss Big Event: Spring 2021 - Present (2022 Group Leader, 2023-24 Public Relations Committee)

Alpha Delta Pi Sorority: Spring 2021 - Present

Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College: Fall 2020 - Present

American Association of Marketing, Ole Miss Chapter: Fall 2020 - Spring 2022 (2021-22 Social Media Coordinator)

Jobs/Internships

The University of Mississippi Museum: Communications Intern, Fall 2023 - Present

UM Speaking Center: Peer Consultant, Fall 2021 - Present

Red Window Communications: Communications Intern, Fall 2022

Memberships

Kappa Tau Alpha: Spring 2023 - Present

Public Relations Student Society of America: Fall 2022 - Present

The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi: Fall 2022 - Present

Certifications

Hootsuite Platform Certified

Google Analytics Certified

Fundamentals of Digital Marketing - Google

Business Promotion with Online Advertising - Google