I never had any intention of going to grad school, let alone going to study advertising. I had never watched Mad Men (blasphemy, I know. I finally watched it over winter break).
After finishing my BFA in Photography, I went to work for a small design museum here in Richmond. While there, I was primarily focused on fundraising, but was also fortunate enough to be on a team that was working on re-branding the museum. When working on this re-brand our volunteer advisors recommended we reach out to VCU Brandcenter for their help. One of the professors, Kelly O’Keefe, took on our project and (very quickly) came back with the perfect name and identity for our tiny museum.
Getting to be a part of that experience made me curious about the mysterious Brandcenter.
So, I decided to send in an application. I figured, what’s the worst that happens? I don’t get in? Okay, that’s fine. But, after what felt like an eternity, I was accepted into the Creative Brand Management track. I left my job and went back to school to get a Master’s.
Every day is a challenge but it’s one that I look forward to. It can be very intimidating at first; but I’ve made some pretty incredible friends who push me to try new things and help me accomplish my goals. I didn’t expect to ever be here, but I’m so glad that I am.
-Hannah Levy, creative brand management track, class of 2018