Career path of a Project Program Manager at German American Chamber
Alexandra's career path began with "a lot of different clubs on campus," leading to an American Marketing Association role and subsequent internship at the German American Chamber of Commerce. This experience, combined with their foreign exchange program in Germany and president role at the AMA, culminated in a full-time offer as a project/program manager, focusing on "market entry and innovation consulting for German companies."
Project Management, International Relations, Marketing, Career Development, Networking
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Alexandra Banning
Project/Program Manager
NGO/International Trade and Development Office
UC Santa Barbara
N/A
Communications
Government & Public Sector, Nonprofit, Foundations & Grantmaking
Operations and Project Management
Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, Transfer Student
Video Highlights
1. Taking initiative to seek professional experience early on by joining campus clubs and actively looking for internships.
2. Leveraging personal interests and experiences (e.g., foreign exchange program in Germany) to secure relevant internships and jobs.
3. Developing valuable transferable skills such as marketing, branding, management, and project management through hands-on projects, internships, and leadership roles in student organizations.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Did you have any internships or jobs before your current role?
When I came to UCSB, I transferred as a junior from community college. I knew immediately that I wanted to gain professional experience.
I joined many clubs on campus and ultimately landed with the American Marketing Association. Through that, we worked on hands-on projects, honing marketing, branding, and business skills like case studies. This sparked my interest in marketing-related work.
I had an internship lined up with a tech company for summer 2020, but it was rescinded due to circumstances. I was fervently looking for something else, scouring LinkedIn and having coffee chats. I then saw a posting for a marketing communications intern at the German American Chamber of Commerce in San Francisco.
I had been following them because, even before college, I did foreign exchange in Germany. I learned the language and culture and continued to take German classes at UCSB, so I had that connection. With my marketing background, I decided to go for it.
I created a PowerPoint presentation to show them why I was the best candidate, and it paid off. I then worked for my entire senior year, doing that internship remotely while also attending school. During my senior year, I was also the president of the American Marketing Association, which helped me hone management and project management skills.
All of this led to a full-time offer to stay at the German American Chamber of Commerce after I graduated. I'm still there today as a project slash program manager, doing market entry and innovation consulting for German companies.