Chapter 1: A Lot Can Change in a Year

Just 12 months ago, I was a senior at the University of Alabama, working to complete my degree in creative advertising and English. And I had no idea what I was going to do once I graduated.

The members of my portfolio program, however, had been discussing a particularly intriguing option for weeks: an internship.

Snagging an internship as an advertising creative, especially one fresh out of school, is a daunting proposition. From competing against a talented and deep applicant pool to deciding where you will call home next, it’s an experience racked with excitement and anxiety.

What I did know was that I didn’t want to move back home to California. And as much as it sounded exciting to work at an agency in a big city, such as New York, Boston or Chicago, I knew that wasn’t the place for me.

So I focused my search on advertising agencies in the Southeast, where I wouldn’t feel drowned out by the city noise, choked by smog and challenged to find affordable housing on an intern’s salary. I reached out to my connections on LinkedIn, did profile reviews with alumni from my program and spent countless hours scrolling job sites. All the time wondering, “How will I know if I fit here?”

Chapter 2: What the FORM?

Eventually my networking paid off when a friend of a friend told me about Wray Ward in Charlotte. He had been a member of the agency’s FORM internship program a few summers before, and he shared the positive impact the experience had on getting him started on his career in marketing.

After learning more about Wray Ward’s culture and work/life balance, which were just as appealing to me as the work itself, I decided to apply. With fingers crossed, I anxiously waited a few weeks before hearing that I was chosen to interview for the internship program.

Leading up to the interview I continued to doubt that I would actually be selected. When I clicked the Zoom link, however, my imposter syndrome vanished. The women I interviewed with — now my desk neighbors and friends — were kind, intelligent and excited to talk to me. Me! It was the first time I gave myself the space to believe that I could not only secure the internship but also my future.

After more anxious waiting, I received an email where I was offered a spot in Wray Ward’s 2024 FORM cohort. Needless to say, I accepted the job and began planning my move to Charlotte.

Chapter 3: Writing and Wayfinding

The first day of my FORM internship was in late May. When I stepped inside Wray Ward’s office, I immediately felt like I fit right in. “This is the place,” I thought to myself as I was ushered about the office on tours and a blur of meet-and-greets over the course of those first few days.

My fellow cohorts, Mara Vicario and John Marenic, quickly became my closest friends in the office as we bonded over inside jokes, the stress of last-minute deadlines and discussions about the future.

Almost immediately, I became wrapped up in the work. While I thought I’d be doing the equivalent of fetching coffee and writing emails all summer, it turns out Wray Ward’s interns do so much more.