My essay that got me my internship, which got me my job.
Why are you applying for a spot in the 2011 Multicultural Advertising Intern Program
and what department(s) do you think you are best suited to intern in?
What is the role of your department(s) of choice in an advertising agency? What are
your career plans after completing the 4Aʼs Multicultural Advertising Intern Program?
How does MAIP fit in to your long‐term career goals?
I am applying for a spot in the 2011 Multicultural Advertising Intern Program because…
Iʼll be honest. Iʼve been sitting here, writing and erasing, writing and erasing, trying to
figure out what would best impress you. “I am applying because this position would
allow me to fully immerse myself in a culture that I would financially be otherwise unable
to experience.” Or, “…because MAIP offers placement in the best, most respected
agencies in advertising.” Or, “…because placement in MAIP allows me to experience,
firsthand, a world Iʼve been studying and obsessing over.” These reasons are all true,
but more-so, Iʼm applying because itʼs where I want to be.
There.
At a great agency.
Copywriting.
I want to write copy. I want to tell whole narratives in 30 seconds. I want to impact and
shock people, leave them laughing, crying, fuming–ready to take up arms and attack.
Or maybe just sit back and reflect. I want them to see how clever I am, how clever I can
be. I want them to sit there and smirk because they know what theyʼve just come
across–what Iʼve just told them–they couldnʼt come up with on their own. I want them to
steal it and use it as their own the next day at work, when they try to impress that
person whoʼs more impressive than they are. I want them to tell that person my quip
and I want this impressive person to feel jealous that he or she didnʼt come up with it
first. I want that to be my job–to come up with a whole premise, a ridiculous scenario, a
common misunderstanding, and turn it into a 15 second episode. I want to hear about a
problem and I want to come up with a solution to help the public realize that they
actually really do need what Iʼm offering. I want to change a personʼs perception in 10
seconds.
Coming away from MAIP, Iʼll have not only been impacted from actually being in the
midst of the advertising industry, but Iʼll have (hopefully) made an impact on others. Iʼll
have made contacts with people who can help me get back into the thick of it after I
graduate. MAIP not only gives me an upper hand with my credentials, but also gives me
actual concrete experience that I can brood over and build upon.
Quite literally, in every way possible, this is what I want to do. I want to work for an
agency as a copywriter. I want to impact people through the advertisements I write. I
want to create something unique. I want to help people in precarious situations. I want
to invigorate. I want to cause a ruckus in 5 seconds. I want to make you jealous. All I
need is 2 seconds. Just hear me out.
