Welcome to another Pamplin Student Spotlight! This week, we are spotlighting Junior Angelina Jannace who is majoring in Marketing with a concentration in Digital Marketing Strategy. Angelina shared more about her involvement at Virginia Tech, what brought her to Marketing, and her experience as an intern this summer.

Tell us about AMA. What is your specific role and what’s your favorite part?

AMA is the American Marketing Association. It’s a national professional and collegiate organization. At Virginia Tech, it’s a student run marketing agency. My role for the past year has been one of the VPs of Data Analytics and Market Research, so with that we do market research, website audits, updates, and Google ads and analytics for clients. This role has given me a love of designing and making websites. This past semester I have also taken on the role of DEIB chair. I went to the President and Vice President and gave them a presentation of what DEIB is and why I think AMA needs it. They were really receptive and supportive of that, so we have been working on implementing it by providing education and awareness.

What did a day to day in your life look like at your internship? 

I interned at Regeneron Biotech Pharmaceuticals which is totally outside the realm of anything I was familiar with, so I really had to teach myself a lot. My manager was great! She sent me a bunch of videos and articles to read to get to know about the medicine that I was working on and the client base. It definitely paralleled any other marketing job where you’re going to have to learn about your product and target market, it was just in a healthcare setting. I had to relocate about an hour away to upstate New York in Westchester county. It was amazing to explore a new part of New York. It was quieter and had lots of nature to explore. At work I didn't really have a normal day to day which I found exciting! There were some days where I was in 8-9 hour long meetings with people from other countries. Other days where I spent most of my time working on the assignments I had to do and giving feedback on the marketing materials. Everyday was really different, but it was really exciting and I had a really good manager who guided me and involved me in the steps of the projects. It was a really rewarding experience and I’m hoping to go back.

What brought you to Virginia Tech, specifically choosing Marketing?

My sister got her Masters in Engineering from Virginia Tech! It was the only Virginia school I applied to and I wanted to see if I could get into this really great school. I wasn’t really considering it, but then I got in and realized I needed to consider it. I looked up the typical things you look up when deciding colleges like the clubs, the community, and what the job placement looks like and everything just fit. I'm from New York so Virginia Tech is over 500 miles away from home, so it was a really big adjustment, but it was such a good choice and I’m so glad I did it. 

I was really interested in business. I like how it can really prepare you for anything and I want to start my own business one day. The thing I liked about Marketing is that I am naturally a really creative person, but I wanted to make sure I had job security. I wanted the middle ground of being creative, but also some good job security, and with some analytical skills too and marketing is the perfect mix. Now being in my third year, I didn’t give myself enough credit for how analytical my brain actually is. I learned how I like the math side of marketing more than expected and my internship helped with this realization too. Marketing has been the perfect blend of what I’m interested in, what I’m good at, and what I want out of a career.

What kind of accounts do you run as a freelance account manager? What are some challenges you’ve faced doing freelance?

I started doing freelance my senior year of high school because I knew I needed Marketing experience, but I didn’t know where to get it as a high schooler, so I decided to make experience for myself. My sister knew a Virginia photographer who needed help with her social media and website so I started there. I’ve done a few local small businesses and have recently started consulting, giving tips, and auditing for businesses. I have been doing that more lately over account management. The biggest struggle with freelance is keeping up to date with trends and constantly staying creative because everything moves so fast with social media.

What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned at Virginia Tech?

As a first generation student, I get a lot of imposter syndrome. Sometimes I can't help but think: “How did I get here?, How am I here?, Someone else should have the spot that I have.” If you are at a certain point in your life you got there for a reason. It wasn’t just a fluke and even if it was just accept it. I really like this quote, “The ocean does not apologize for its depths and the mountains do not seek forgiveness for the space they take up and neither shall I.” I love that quote because it really emphasizes the idea that you shouldn't feel guilty for taking up space or getting to where you are. I still feel that way sometimes, but tech has definitely taught me to have confidence in being where I am in life and that I put in so much work to get to this point and that I shouldn’t feel bad for getting to where I am now.

What is your favorite part of working with the DEIB office?

When I was a freshman, I didn’t know anyone. I was in a new huge school and felt lost. The DEIB office welcomed me with open arms and I automatically felt a sense of community and comradery. I love the sense of coming together and no matter who you are, where you come from, what year you are, what stage of life you’re in, there are people there to relate to you and listen. 

What’s next for you?

No matter what, I hope to stay busy and keep growing! I’m hoping to go back to intern with the same company I interned with this past summer, whether it’s the same role or a new role. I have been focusing on having a good work life balance, being a good friend, being the best aunt to my two nieces, and continuing to be happy with my successes both in and out of school. I want to continue to spread the joy that Pamplin and VT has brought me.