Email: admission@champlain.edu
Call or Text: 802.625.0201
Email: admission@champlain.edu
Call or Text: 802.625.0201
DJ Miller on Discovering Their Passion for Marketing, How Core Changed Their Perspective, and Completing Over Six Internships in Two Years
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Minor
Digital Marketing
Hometown
Eustis, ME
Pronouns
they/them
Internship
Event Planning & Sales Intern at the Vermont Tent Company in Essex, VT
”In my first two years, I have had over six jobs and internships that were directly related to my major.
What made you choose the Marketing major?
I came into college as a Criminal Justice major, and decided to take a marketing work-study job at the Leahy Center for Digital Forensics & Cybersecurity (The Leahy Center). After my first week working as a Marketing Assistant there, I decided to switch my major to Marketing because I loved it so much. It was so easy to switch majors since my professors and Faculty Advisor were so helpful with the entire process.
What has been your experience with the Core Curriculum?
One of my favorite things at Champlain is the Core. When I came to college, I was a totally different person. I grew up in a small town and had no idea how the world worked outside of that. In my Core classes, we discuss so many different perspectives and deeper-level topics. This has molded me into a strong activist who looks for multiple ways to achieve a goal. Core really allows you to explore your personal ideas and beliefs while connecting with others in your classes.
How has Champlain prepared you for the professional world?
Being a Marketing major at Champlain has opened so many doors for my future. In my first two years, I have had over six jobs and internships that were directly related to my major. It's truly an amazing experience to show up to class and have representatives from Seven Generations, Ben & Jerry's, Burton, and other big names there to work with you on class projects.
Bekemeh Airewele on Creativity in Marketing, the Office of Diversity & Inclusion, and Living in a Victorian-Era Mansion
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Hometown
Lynn, MA
Pronouns
she/her
Studied Abroad
Shanghai, China and Dublin, Ireland
Favorite Class
Concepts of Community
”Champlain College is filled with so many opportunities. Because Champlain is so small, you just have to do one thing and all of a sudden you're involved in all these different programs on campus. It's so easy. I love that.
Why did you decide to pursue Marketing?
I knew I wanted to do something in the business world, but I wasn't quite sure what. With the Upside-Down Curriculum, I was able to take a few marketing classes from the start and realized I really liked them. Marketing is perfect for me. It involves a lot of creativity and talking to people.
What organizations are you involved with on campus?
I could talk all day about my experience with the Office of Diversity & Inclusion, or the ODI as students call it. Champlain feels like home, but the ODI is like going back to your own room. There's a lot of support for all students from all different types of backgrounds, which I really love. If you ever go there, you will be laughing within 10 minutes. It's so fun.
What do you think of the Victorian-era mansions?
My first year, I lived in Lyman Hall, and I loved it. I'm from a city, so all the old houses I'd ever seen were in museums. When I pulled up on move-in day, I thought, "This is great. It's like living in one of my books."
Jennifer Yee on the Upside-Down Curriculum, Core, and Discovering Her Passion for Skiing
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Minor
Psychology
Hometown
Sharon, MA
Pronouns
she/her
Internship
Marketing Intern at Marketing Parters, Inc. in Burlington, VT
Post-Grad Job
MBA Candidate at The Open University of Hong Kong in Hong Kong, China
”What I love about the professors here is how they're really interested in helping you be successful. They've inspired me to go out and get involved in a lot of different things.
How did the Upside-Down Curriculum impact your education?
The Upside-Down Curriculum is incredible. I enjoyed how it put us right into our major at the beginning. I was able to work with a lot of local companies around Burlington in my first year, and that got me really interested in what I want to do in my field. I got some experience talking to some of the founders of Queen City Brewery and understood what kind of business direction they were going in. Queen City Brewery is a relatively new company, so they wanted help in their marketing scheme, and we were definitely able to work on that with them.
What was your experience with the Core?
The Core class that had the biggest impact on me was my Aesthetic Expressions: Street Art class my sophomore year. That class was really eye-opening, and I was able to see the world in a whole different way. Street art is everywhere. You can turn a corner and see something that you would never intentionally look for. It's something subliminal. That class opened my eyes to how a lot of things aren't as obvious as they seem.
What do you do for fun in your free time?
In winter, I like to go skiing. I started skiing my sophomore year, and I'm completely hooked. I started going with my friends. I had a Friday off in my schedule, and we ended up going every Friday of that year. I love the environment, and the world that opened up to me when I started skiing, especially in Vermont. Champlain even offers a discounted Sugarbush pass, so it's pretty inexpensive to ski around here, if you already have gear.
Emma Katz on Champlain Professors, Studying Abroad in Prague, and Turning an Internship into a Post-Grad Job
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Minor
Communication
Hometown
Brunswick, ME
Pronouns
she/her
Internship
Brand Strategy Intern at Fuse in Winooski, VT
Studied Abroad
Prague, Czech Republic
Post-Grad Job
Associate Account Manager at Fuse in Winooski, VT
”With Champlain's Marketing major, we do real, hands-on work with local clients. Our projects aren't hypothetical—they're applied.
What is the best thing about professors at Champlain?
My professors are so personable and kind. They get to know me and what my career goals are, and they always help me pursue those goals. I've had professors recommend internships to me and help me network with companies. Our professors really want to see their students succeed in class and in their careers.
Did you get the chance to study abroad?
I went to Prague in the Czech Republic, where I studied at the Anglo-American University. While in Prague, I took courses like Brand Management, Project Management, EU Policies in the Business Market, and I did two classes for our Core curriculum: Prague Art & Architecture and Cultural Journalism. I learned a lot about the city, brand management, and even myself. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone, met new people, and had a lot of fun.
Can you tell us about your internship?
I was a Brand Strategy intern at Fuse in Winooski, Vermont my senior year. Fuse is a local marketing agency that works with national companies on event-based marketing aimed towards millennial and Gen-Z audiences. Towards the end of my senior year, Fuse started searching for a junior associate to join the team. They were looking at all of the applicants, but they just kept thinking about me and my work. My supervisor said she didn't want somebody new to apply, and she wanted to hire me because of all of the amazing work I did as an intern. Now, I work there full-time.
Gabby Mastropolo on Preparing For the Future, the Career Collaborative, and Advice for Incoming Students
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Minor
Public Relations
Hometown
Upper Saddle River, NJ
Pronouns
she/her
Internship
Ted Moudis Associates, New York, NY
”The amazing folks over at the Career Collaborative make sure we have everything we need to be prepared for our futures starting in our first year.
How has the Upside-Down Curriculum enhanced your education?
The Upside-Down Curriculum is hands-down my favorite part about Champlain's academics. Who wouldn't want to start studying in their major starting day one of their college career? There is a lot of pressure on 18-year-olds to somehow magically know what they want to do for the rest of their lives. In many other schools, you don't actually start in your major until as late as your junior year. Not at my school!
How has your Champlain experience prepared you for your future career, both in and out of the classroom?
One of the best things by far about Champlain is how career-focused they are. The amazing folks over at the Career Collaborative make sure we have everything we need to be prepared for our futures starting in our first year. We learn everything from how to optimize our résumé and LinkedIn to creating our own elevator pitches. They even have job fairs every semester to connect local employers with student job seekers.
What advice do you have for students thinking about coming to Champlain for college?
There are so many incredible experiences for you at Champlain. What are you waiting for? Come join the fun!
Shelsea Henry on How Her Major and Minor Fit Together, Travel Courses, and Black Girls Code
Division
Stiller School of Business
Major
Marketing
Minor
Data Science
Hometown
Boston, MA
Pronouns
she/her
Post-Grad Job
Service Job in Washington DC for a nonprofit
Internships
Boss Enterprise in Boston, MA & Fuse Marketing, Burlington, VT
”I never thought I would travel at all, but Champlain provided me with that opportunity.
How does your Data Science minor enhance your Marketing major?
Data Science and Marketing are a great fit because a lot of companies are looking for analytical skills. In my marketing internships, it's been an extra bonus to have a Data Science background.
What was it like to take a travel course?
The first travel course I took was in my sophomore year, and it was to Zanzibar. It was with Professor Gary Scudder. The class was on aesthetics expressions, and it was basically about art, looking at different types of art and the world in general. We went to Zanzibar during winter break, and it was an amazing experience. I never thought I would travel at all, but Champlain provided me with that opportunity, so I took it. It was mostly about looking at different cultures in the area and expanding our knowledge on different types of art. One of our projects when we were there was to pick an artifact, it could be anything at all, and basically analyze it and see how it differs from different types of art in the world in general.
I also went to India in my junior year, also with Scudder, and it was a religion class looking at Islam and how, in different parts of the world, it affects different mechanisms in terms of how people worship. That was also very educational, and I loved it.
How have you gotten involved on campus?
During my freshman year, my first year here, there was a volunteer workshop at Black Girls Code. Black Girls Code is a company that tries to help women of color get into tech world, and they focus mostly on programming. So, getting women to code and stuff like that, but mostly minorities in different regions that they might not have the resources to. I did a volunteer workshop and I taught an HTML class, so that was really great. It was very hard teaching kids, but I definitely learned through it, and I was able to teach the class really well.