✨ 5-second summary

• Marketing is a dynamic and exciting field of study
• We spoke with marketing professional Chris Dargiewicz about his studies and career
• Chris gives insight and advice to prospective marketing students

Marketing is a swiftly growing and rapidly changing industry. For those interested in exploring this exciting field, start by pursuing a course or degree in marketing. It's a great way to get one’s foot in the door.

There are a lot of other factors that go into finding success in the industry. While a degree is a great starting point, having hands-on experience can prove invaluable when it comes to not only being a competitive prospective employee but also having a successful career in marketing.

We recently sat down with Chris Dargiewicz, a higher education marketing professional, and asked him about his career in marketing. Chris has over 15 years of experience in the industry and was excited to share his knowledge with others.

Here's what Chris had to say about study and working in marketing.

We asked Chris to tell us a bit about how he got involved in student marketing and what the role entails.

In my current role I help education institutions recruit more students. When I started, one of my first opportunities that I received was at my university. I attended Buckinghamshire New University. Back in 2007, they were looking for strategies to recruit more students from the EU. One of the countries was Poland, where I’m from. They were looking for input from students, like how they found out about the university; was it through the website? Was it through online ads? They interviewed me and I got involved in helping the university recruit students from the EU, and from Poland.

Chris explained what made him curious about various marketing strategies.

I started my studies in 2006 and changed course. I started with a video production course, and changed to marketing after the first year. That’s my degree that I finished, and working for my university was my first experience with the industry. This got me curious about marketing, and about social media, and digital technologies. It was the phase where Facebook ads were just starting, and the digital revolution was in the beginning days. It’s a very exciting industry; it’s ever changing and ever growing. You can constantly develop and grow.

When we asked Chris about his marketing degree, he gave us some great insight into what marketing students learn and why.

A large part of my studies was learning about communications, learning about PR, and learning about how stakeholders have a say or input into the marketing communications industry. I think that’s a key area to the whole picture.

I think [marketing is] about telling a story. It’s about communicating the values a company or an institution has to offer to its customers, whether that’s a university trying to get more students, or a start-up trying to get more customers. All of these are stories that we’re trying to tell. Obviously, those who tell them the best and the most effective ways win. It’s also about effective communication.

We wanted to know what Chris thought was important when it comes to choosing a marketing program.

One thing is obviously having a good graduate diploma, and the grades on that diploma. Probably first class is what you’re aiming for. A big part of the picture is having that extra edge, having that extra experience from work, an internship, or a placement under your belt and completed. That will let you make connections with your friends and fellow colleagues. They can introduce you to the opportunities that will come after you graduate. Moving from that, and building on that foundation.

Nothing will happen on its own. Just by sending a CV saying that you graduated from a marketing degree, that’s probably a shortcut and taking the easy way out. Many graduates do that and are fine, but basically you are in the pool of recent graduates who don’t have that much experience who are kind of alike to each other.

We wanted to know more about what Chris does now and how he feels about his role and career.

What I specifically like about this job is that it gives opportunities as well for young and ambitious professionals. From the institution standpoint it gives them the opportunity to share their values with the students themselves.

Chris also had some great advice for prospective marketing students.

Get involved and get your hands dirty, so to speak. The more you allow yourself to explore opportunities like internships, placements, competitions, and things like that, the more you understand from the practical side of the industry.

[And be] active, [be] proactive, and [use] a lot of research especially when choosing a course and choosing a university. Try to dig deeper into what the course has to offer, what modules you’ll be studying, and what work placement opportunities does the university have to offer? All these things matter in the whole complex of becoming a marketing professional.

My last key point is never stop learning. When you stop learning you stop growing as a professional. All of these things go hand in hand.

Conclusion

Marketing is an exciting field that changes and adapts to new developments in society and media technologies. Studying marketing allows students to be involved in various industries and careers.

We're glad we had a chance to speak with marketing professional Chris Dargiewicz about his studies and career. His insights and advice are a great resource for prospective marketing students.