Former BOLD Presidents Offer Industry Insights To Members As Part Of FIU’s Panther Alumni Week Programming
In light of Panther Alumni Week (PAW), BOLD invited all four of its former presidents to a roundtable discussion this Tuesday, February 2nd. Erenia Lemus-Vazquez, Valentina Lara, Carlos Andres Fernandez Jr., and Sabrina Chi talked to students about how BOLD has impacted their career journeys as well as the valuable lessons they have learned since graduation. Coming from vastly different career paths, the former presidents gave students insightful information about the reality of beginning a career in an ever-changing job market.
Carlos Ortiz, current BOLD president, and roundtable moderator began the conversation by asking the former presidents about their experiences at BOLD and how they earned the role of president. In response to the question, all of the former presidents shared similar BOLD journeys by starting as general members and working with several clients before becoming president. This progression gave them a clear understanding of the agency from all levels which better equipped them to lead. Their individual experiences fall in line with one of BOLD’s biggest objectives which is for all students to have opportunities for growth within the agency.
When talking about their careers, one word stood out amongst the rest: adaptability. Although the former presidents hold vastly different jobs, they could all relate to the notion that you truly never know where you might end up. This holds true to the first BOLD president, Erenia, who encouraged students to be open to all the different types of opportunities that might arise. “If you got offered an internship and it’s not the one you wanted, it’s fine, take that opportunity and I promise you that you are going to learn something from it. For my first job, I told them that I didn’t do math. The opportunity came up where I had to manage a budget for my team, I agreed, and now I know how to manage a three million dollar budget, “ she said. Another president whose career took an unexpected turn is Carlos, a business major who was interested in working in digital marketing but is now in the public relations space within the music industry. He told students, “ Don’t close yourself off to different opportunities, in my head I wanted to do digital marketing and that was what I was going to do but now I ended up being a publicist at Universal Music Group, where I work with my team in developing a strategic PR plan to sell music,”.
As the roundtable discussion came to an end, all of the presidents touched upon the importance of networking. “There’s a saying in MAIP: your net worth is your network. As you are navigating your career and climbing the ladder make sure to help the community that has really supported you and gotten you to this place,” said Sabrina. All of the former presidents agreed that BOLD provided them with a trusty network which helped them reach the point where they are in their careers. When the presidents were asked about the resources they used when going into the job market, Valentina answered, “I am not joking when I say applied everywhere. I got lucky enough to be positioned in Edelman Miami, but I literally applied to every single Edelman position in the nation. There are so many candidates out there and it’s hard to push through your resume. But BOLD is full of great people, great alumni, and Lily (BOLD faculty lead) knows so many resources that you will be able to tap into.”
At a time where it seems like everything is uncertain, many students are dreading the idea of entering the job market. Sabrina, who graduated amidst the COVID-19 pandemic left students with an inspiring closing remark as they embark on their career journey during this difficult time.“Imposter syndrome is a real thing. The things that you are feeling about not being valuable enough and not having enough skills, and the nights that you spent crying thinking is this really for me, trust me when I say everyone has gone through that. If you do a lot of self-reflecting and find those you can relate to I promise you won’t feel as alone,” said Sabrina.
Here are some of the biggest takeaways from the roundtable:
– Be encouraged to grow within BOLD. The more you put into BOLD, the more you will be rewarded.
-Be open to all different types of opportunities and remember to stay adaptable.
-Networking is vital when starting your career. Help your network and they will help you.
Connect with our former presidents!
Erenia , Valentina, Carlos, Sabrina
BOLD is a student-run strategic communications agency at Florida International University. Click here to learn more.
Written by: Alejandra Chahine, Director of Public Relations