Business-, people-, and leadership-savvy, our Creative Brand Managers lead client and agency teams to meet business objectives through creative solutions.
Representing the voice of the client, they build and nurture relationships with their client-side counterparts and understand the account or business on the macro and micro levels. Comfortable with multitasking, they see projects through from start to finish and lead creative teams to harness their creativity in service of solving business problems.
If you want to be an Account Manager at ad agencies, in-house agencies, design agencies, or strategic/new product consultancies, or maybe one day have a C-suite role within an agency, transition to the brand side, or start your own business, the Creative Brand Management concentration is for you.
You might be a Creative Brand Manager:
If this sounds like you:
You enjoy leading teams to do extraordinary things; are great with people and enjoy building relationships
You prefer your work to be varied and can multitask without breaking a sweat
You take pride in prioritizing your to-do list and seeing projects through to completion
You can be both in the weeds and in the clouds; you can see the week’s to-dos and the five-year bigger picture
You have a competitive streak and love to win
You enjoy being around creative spaces, projects/work, and people
If a day in the life of an account manager sounds fun:
Leading and managing teams
Building and maintaining client relationships
Understanding your client’s business—position, category, and competitive set; their financial and business objectives
Understanding business and marketing strategy
Building a case for, presenting, and selling creative work
Managing the development of creative work from assignment through production
Growing the account/business financially
Setting measurement programs and goals
Understanding the relationship between creative and media
The Task: Increase growth and engagement with “in-the-know millennial foodies,” letting them know about Omsom’s new product line, Omsom Saucy Noodles.
The Problem: Instant noodles are historically seen as a “value” buy with little nutritional value. People struggle to see the significance of another noodle brand.
The Solution: Reclaim instant noodles and celebrate Omsom Saucy Noodles as the graduated, elevated premium noodle that can be eaten whenever, however.
The Team: Led by Vivian as the Creative Brand Manager and creative executions by Kendall Boron (Art Direction, 2023), Mark McColey (Copywriting, 2023), and Francis Phan (Experience Design, 2023)
Creative Brand Management at the Brandcenter
Studying Creative Brand Management at the Brandcenter prepares you to hit the ground running as an Account Manager at ad agencies, in-house agencies, design agencies, strategic/new product consultancies, or in a brand marketing role within a company or organization.
Alumni Job Placement & Careers
Creative Brand Management alumni work at top agencies, consultancies, brands and more.
Average Creative Brand Management alumni salaries
Our Alumni Salary Survey, fielded every two years, captures our graduates’ average starting salaries, career trajectories, and more. Read the full survey.
Junior – $60,500
Mid – $96,450
Senior – $168,600
Director – $210,500
Executive – $260,100
Creative Brand Management careers & positions
While titles can differ at individual agencies and companies, we’ve gathered the top job titles for Creative Brand Management alum to give an idea of potential career trajectory. Read the full Alumni Salary Survey.
Director – Group Account Director, Brand Director, Head of Marketing
Executive – CEO, Director of Marketing and Communications
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Graduate Program Curriculum
You will not only perfect your craft, but you will also work collaboratively with your classmates across concentrations.
Here’s what you’ll do on all-concentration team projects as a Creative Brand Manager, as well as what your teammates will do:
What each concentration does on all-concentration team projects
CREATIVE BRAND MANAGERS
Focus on a client’s business, category, and competitors
Lead internal, cross-functional teams
Ensure creative work meets business objectives; evaluate ROI when possible
ART DIRECTORS + COPYWRITERS
Using business insights from creative brand managers and consumer/cultural insights from strategists, develop creative ideas to solve business challenges, engage consumers, and bring brands to life
While copywriters generally focus on writing and art directors generally focus on visual design, most AD/CW teams collaborate on all creative aspects
EXPERIENCE DESIGNERS
Develop and design digital products and/or physical experiences where brands and people interact
Focus on the user experience for the product or experience they’re designing
Provide guidance and ideas regarding new/emerging technologies
STRATEGISTS
Focus on consumers and culture
Lead research efforts (develop a research plan, conduct field research, and analyze results)
Turn research data into insights; develop strategic direction and work with creative partners to create concepts/work inspired by strategic direction
Summer Between Your First and Second Years / Internship
A summer internship is not required, but we’ll give you the tools to help you land a great one at agencies and companies doing some of the industry’s best work. See Placement for more about internships.
Semester 3 (Fall) / Weeks 31-45
Brand Experiences (All concentrations)
Persuasion for Creative Brand Managers
Advanced Brand Management
Semester 4 (Spring) / Weeks 46-60
Innovation (All concentrations)
Applied Brand Management
Advanced Portfolio for Creative Brand Managers
Creative Brand Management Prerequisites
All applicants must have a bachelor’s degree.
Creative Brand Management applicants must have completed a college-level math/statistics or accounting course (We don’t expect you to be an accountant, but you should be comfortable with learning about basic business math.)
Essential skills for Creative Brand Managers
Build, work in, and lead teams, contributing ideas and caring about the output of a project
Demonstrate an interest and skill set for understanding business situations and making informed business decisions
Be interested in business and markets, especially looking for trends on where things might be going
Show mental toughness during challenging situations
Have a knack for building relationships with others and striking up conversations with just about anyone
Be good at talking, thinking on your feet, and making compelling arguments
Have an interest in entrepreneurism and the idea of working to help a business grow
The Ask: Identify KPIs and business objectives that can be measured and quantified through a brand analytics dashboard for Chick-fil-A.
Dashboard Overview: The dashboard was created to address two key business objectives using appropriate metrics, based on research takeaways.
Tuition & Financial Aid
Tuition & Fees
Tuition and fees for the 2025-26 school year (one year of the two-year program):
In-State: $26,960
Out-of-State: $27,650
Tuition and fees are subject to change. We’ll update tuition and fees for the upcoming year when it’s available. Visit VCU Student Financial Services for tuition and fee details.
Parking, room and board, and meal plans are not included in tuition.
Early Applicant Awards
Brandcenter students who complete their full application by the Early Deadline (January 15, 2026) and who are admitted within this first round, willreceive:
a guaranteed one-time $2,500 award upon admission
and will automatically be considered for:
a $10,000 award
a full-tuition award for the 2026-27 academic year
No additional paperwork or application materials are required.
Early Applicant Awards are one-time payments that will be allocated towards tuition for the 2026-27 academic year. Early Applicant Award recipients remain eligible to apply for Brandcenter Annual Scholarships.
Applicants who apply by the regular deadline of March 17, 2025 are eligible to apply for Brandcenter Annual Scholarships.
Experience Designers use the principles of human-centered design to develop digital products and physical experiences for brands. Please note, we are no longer accepting applications for XD.
