The American Advertising Federation has selected University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications students Olivia Wilson of Norfolk and Jane Ngo of South Sioux City for its Most Promising Multicultural Students program.
AAF National will give a nominator award to UNL advertising and public relations professor Sriyani Tidball, who worked with Wilson and Ngo on their applications.
“This is a very prestigious award not just for our two students, but also for our college and university,” Tidball said. “You need a very high GPA and an impressive resume just to apply because the competition is tough.”
There are 50 winners each year across campuses in the United States. Since its inception in 1997, the program has jump-started the careers of more than 600 multicultural advertising professionals. Eleven winners have been selected from UNL.
“MPMS has proven itself to be an exemplary program helping to fuel the continued diversification of our industry,” judge Lori Hawthorne, head of talent acquisition at Razorfish, said. “Many MPMS alumni have gone on to become the budding leaders and trendsetters within the advertising business. (This year) will mark the program’s 20th class and the caliber of excellence is once again higher than it has ever been.”
Senior advertising and public relations majors Wilson and Ngo will be featured in Advertising Age, USA Today and the Most Promising Multicultural Students program book. Their resumes will also be included in the 2016 Most Promising resume database, which will be available to human resources and media professionals nationwide.
The program connects the advertising industry with the nation’s top multicultural college seniors. Each year, students from AAF’s 200 college chapters apply for the program, and a group of advertising professionals convene to select a new class of Most Promising students. The students participate in a four-day industry immersion program in New York City that includes professional development workshops, agency visits and a recruiter’s expo.
Wilson and Ngo will represent UNL in New York City from Feb. 15 to 18. They will meet and network with top professionals and other top minority students during their time there. They will also visit many advertising agencies and attend a Broadway show.
For more information on the Most Promising Multicultural Students program, click here.
