Career Path of a Marketing Manager at Precision Construction Services
Starting as an English major, a transfer to UC Irvine led to an unexpected passion for journalism after "wander[ing] into the newspaper office," resulting in internships at the LA Times and San Jose Mercury News; this culminated in a full-time role and a career progression through reporting, editing, and criticism before transitioning into marketing.
Career Exploration, Job Search, Internships, Journalism, Marketing
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Michalene Busico
Marketing Manager
Precision Construction Services
Pomona College, Claremont, CA and University of California, Irvine
N/A
English, Writing & Education, English
Advertising, Communications & Marketing
Communication and Marketing
Honors Student, Scholarship Recipient, Took Out Loans, Worked 20+ Hours in School, First Generation College Student
Video Highlights
1. Following your passions can lead to unexpected career paths. Michalene's initial interest in English and her need to make her college experience more engaging led her to a journalism career, demonstrating how diverse interests and proactive engagement can open doors to unforeseen opportunities.
2. Persistence and networking are key. Michalene's determination to find internships, even going through physical files at a university, showcases the importance of proactive job searching and building connections within the industry. This resulted in a paid internship that transitioned into her first job.
3. Career paths are rarely linear. Michalene's journey from journalism to marketing shows how skills developed in one field can be transferable and valuable in another. This highlights the adaptability and continuous learning required in many professional fields and how one can transition across industries or roles based on accumulated skills and experiences.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college and any internships or jobs you had before your current role?
In college, I majored in English. I started at Pomona College in Claremont and loved it. It was a small college and everything I imagined a college experience would be, but it was expensive.
For financial reasons, I had to transfer to UC Irvine. The experience there was the opposite of Pomona. It was a huge commuter school, especially compared to Pomona.
I needed to do something to make the experience more personal. I wandered into the newspaper office and had never done anything like that before. I wasn't on the high school newspaper and hadn't had any interest in it. It was just something I thought I could do to make the college experience better.
I absolutely loved it. Unfortunately, Irvine did not have a journalism department or major. So, I started doing internships and got very lucky with my first one at the LA Times.
I had a great summer doing that, but it was a wild summer. I worked nine to five at the LA Times and then at a grocery store at night and weekends. But it was fantastic.
After that, I continued working toward my degree and applying for internships wherever I could find them. I went to Cal State Northridge, which had a pretty thriving journalism department. I asked if I could look at their internship files, and they said yes.
This was long before the internet. It was literally a file drawer that I went through and pulled every application I thought I could possibly want. So I applied for a bunch of them.
I did a second internship at the Daily Pilot in Newport Beach, Costa Mesa. Finally, I got my best internship with the San Jose Mercury News. It was a paid internship, basically making a staff salary.
When it ended, somebody was leaving, and they asked if I could stay. That's how I got my first job and really learned the business. This launched me into a career as a reporter, then an editor, then a critic.
More recently, I segued into marketing.