Industry Advising and Career Counseling

Our team of Industry Advisors and Career Counselors are available for appointments via Handshake.

• Our team of Industry Advisors provides industry-specific career support to students and young alumni with focused career goals within a particular company or industry area. They possess knowledge of recruiting practices, trends, hiring timelines, and employer relationships to enhance your job or internship search.
• The counselors on our Career Development team aid in developing application materials (resumes, cover letters, personal statements, LinkedIn profiles), practicing interviewing and networking skills and learning the fundamentals of any successful job or internship search.

Resumes, Cover Letters and More

Resumes, cover letters, and other professional correspondence you send during the application process are critical to your job or internship success. It is important that these materials adequately represent who you are as a professional and that you are showcasing your brand as a candidate seeking an opportunity in the advertising and public relations industries. For information on resumes, cover letters, and more, check out these resources here.

The Center for Marketing and Consumer Insights Microsite
CMCI built this microsite to offer insights, resources, and skills to grow your knowledge of marketing. Whether you’re only starting to explore career possibilities or you’re further down the path, you’ll find videos, articles, and training that will give you a deeper, real-world perspective. Plus, here you can find employers that value diverse ideas and perspectives.

Develop Relevant Skills with LinkedIn Learning
LinkedIn Learning is a leading online education platform featuring thousands of courses taught by industry experts. Courses on the site enable you to explore and develop expertise in a range of subjects to boost your marketability. Villanova offers LinkedIn Learning to all students, as well as alumni who graduated within the past 12 months.

Critical Skills, Tools and Technologies utilized by Professionals in Advertising and Public Relations on LinkedIn:

• Digital Marketing
• Adobe Photoshop
• Graphic Design
• Instagram Analytics
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Social Media Content Creation
• Digital Media Marketing Analytics
• Paid Social Media Advertising
• Figma
• Adobe Illustrator
• Google Analytics
• WordPress
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
• Facebook for Business
• Omni-Channel Marketing
• YouTube Analytics
• Market Research
• Google Ads
• User Experience (UX)

Update Your Career Interests in Handshake

• Click your photo in the upper right-hand corner to open the drop-down, then choose Career Interests
• Which industries interest you?
  • Select “Advertising, PR & Marketing” / “Journalism, Media and Publishing”
• Which kinds of jobs, or job functions, interest you?
  • Select all that apply. Make sure you don’t forget “Advertising, Media & PR” / “Marketing – General” / “Marketing – Brand Management.”
• Be sure to update all of your Career Interests, including where you’d like to live after graduation, to ensure that you receive the best-targeted information from the Career Center. Remember, you can update your interests at any time!

Annual Events to Attend at Villanova University

• BRIDGE Society Careers in Entertainment, Communications, Media, and PR event (Spring)
• Villanova at the Agency May Immersion Program (Applications due spring semester)
• Internship & Full-time Career Fairs (Spring)
• Wix.com How to Build an Outline Portfolio Workshop (Fall)
• Employer On-Campus and Virtual Recruiting: information sessions, coffee chats, career fairs, information tables
• Student Society Events and TREKs

Villanova Student Societies

PRSSA | Lambda Pi Eta | Villanova Marketing Group | Villanova Professional Selling Society

Find a Mentor

A mentoring relationship is a learning and development partnership between two people, typically a more experienced person (mentor) and a less experienced person (mentee). The relationship can last days, weeks, semesters or even years depending on the goals and experiences of the people in it. Mentors and mentees discuss topics like personal and professional decisions, explorations of career paths and ways to navigate a career.

• Find a mentor through Formal Mentor Programs at Villanova, Faculty, the Nova Network, LinkedIn, as well as your own personal network.

Informational Interviews

• An informational interview is a conversation where you have the chance to ask someone else questions about their profession, career path, and more. It is common in the working world to conduct informational interviews with individuals who currently have jobs you think may be a fit for you.
• Find professionals to interview using resources like the Nova Network, LinkedIn Alumni Tool, as well as your own personal network.
• Here are some groups on NovaNetwork that can help you get started – Villanova Communication Alumni Network (VCAN) and CLAS BRIDGE Society