When Students Control Their Career Exploration: A Marketing Class Case Study

The Context

A marketing professor at a large public university in the Southwest wanted to help her students move beyond generic job descriptions.

She needed something that would:

• Fit into her existing course without adding prep time

• Give students agency over their own exploration

• Produce meaningful reflection, not just busy work

• Help students understand career fit, not just job titles

She embedded the digital Advize Classroom Career Assignment into her course.

The assignment structure:

• Students chose and watched Advize videos on their own time for 20-30 minutes

• They reflected on three questions:

  1. Why did you choose these videos?

  2. What surprised you about these roles?

  3. Is this a career path you'd want to pursue - and why or why not?

• No lecture required. No additional grading burden. Just structured reflection.

Twenty-one students completed the assignment. What came back wasn't just enthusiasm. It was something better: informed decision-making.

What We Found: 5 Key Trends

1. Students Searched With Strategy, Not By Algorithm

The Data: 85-90% of students explicitly stated why they chose specific Advizers, filtering by:

• Job titles and industries (sports marketing, PR, digital media, entrepreneurship)

• Aspirational roles (CEO, founder, director)

• Identity and relatability (same university, women in leadership, career switchers)

• Immediate practical needs (internship advice, entry-level insights)

Student Voices:

• "I chose Gabriela because she runs her own marketing agency, went to [university], and works in multicultural marketing - all things that match what I'm interested in."

• "I chose to watch Jessica because she's a woman CEO in a competitive field. I'm not interested in finance right now, but I am interested in working as a CEO for a company."

• "I was curious to hear how he got there and what comes with being CEO - that's one of my main goals in life."

What This Tells Us: When students have good filters and agency to choose, they engage like researchers, not passive content consumers.

2. Career Fields Became Multi-Dimensional (Not One-Size-Fits-All)

The Data: ~70% of students intentionally compared multiple roles within the same field to understand internal diversity and tradeoffs.

What They Compared within Marketing:

• Creative marketing vs. data-driven marketing

• Agency vs. corporate environments

• Sports vs. entertainment industries

• Entrepreneurship vs. climbing the corporate ladder

• External (media-facing) vs. internal (behind-the-scenes) work

Student Voices:

• "I wanted to see both a numbers-focused role like Evan's and a creative role like Amira's to understand how much variety there actually is in marketing."

• "I love seeing the different ways different people take marketing. I watched both corporate marketing and agency work to compare."

• "These videos helped solidify that a marketing career would allow me to work collaboratively, think creatively, and continue developing new skills - which is exactly what I'm looking for."

What This Tells Us: Students weren't asking "Do I like marketing?" They were asking, "Which version of marketing matches who I am?" That's sophisticated career thinking.

3. Job Realities Replaced Assumptions

The Data: ~80% of students described being genuinely surprised by day-to-day realities they hadn't considered.

What Surprised Them Most:

• Time management was mentioned more than any technical skill

• Projects designed for 2-3 weeks regularly get compressed into 2-3 days

• How much collaboration, meetings, and cross-functional teamwork actually happen

• The amount of structure required even in "creative" industries

• Global teams mean navigating different work cultures and time zones

• Relationship-building and stakeholder management drive success

Student Voices:

• "I learned that projects meant for 2-3 weeks get pushed into 2-3 days. Time management, prioritization, and relationship-building are critical."

• "I didn't realize how important it is in entertainment to bring structure to a creative environment. Many artists don't have strong business backgrounds, so someone has to add operational efficiency."

• "What surprised me was all the meetings with partners on a day-to-day basis, along with data analysis to find room for improvement. You need to be a good problem-solver."

• "No two days are ever really the same. This job requires the ability to adapt quickly and keep up with competitors."

What This Tells Us: Students built accurate mental models of work, reducing the risk of major-to-career mismatch later.

4. Nonlinear Paths Normalized Uncertainty

The Data: ~60% of responses explicitly referenced Advizers with nontraditional backgrounds or career switches.

What Resonated:

• English majors succeeding in marketing

• Geography majors discovering marketing through internships

• Immigrants building careers after learning English as adults

• People getting laid off and turning it into opportunity

• Career switches across industries

• Finishing undergrad in 3 years, MBA in year 4

Student Voices:

• "That's refreshing to hear as someone going through professional admissions and worried about my decision being end-all be-all."

• "What was really crazy to me was that she came to the United States knowing no English and still built a career. Her success felt a lot more meaningful."

• "I liked that Gabriela didn't take a super straightforward career path. She gained experience in different industries before starting her own agency, which made her journey feel more realistic and relatable. It showed you don't need to have everything figured out right after college."

• "He worked his way up, starting as a part-time employee, eventually finding his way into a full-time position, then decided to start his own company. Although it was risky, all his hard work paid off."

What This Tells Us: Representation isn't just nice to have - it directly reduces student anxiety about making the "wrong" early decision.

5. The "Informed No" Was Just As Valuable As the "Yes"

The Data: ~25-30% of students expressed hesitation or said "maybe/no" to pursuing a career path - but with specific, informed reasoning.

Why They Said No (Or Maybe):

• Introversion vs. extroversion fit

• Industry preference (CPG vs. sports vs. entertainment)

• Work environment (remote, office, client-facing)

• Stress tolerance and workload

• Desire to gain experience before entrepreneurship

• Company size preference

Student Voices:

• "I'm more introverted, so agency work might not be the best fit for me, but I still want to explore it more."

• "I'm not 100% sure I want to pursue data analytics for consumer-packaged goods. I wouldn't get bored because it's so dynamic, but CPG as a whole doesn't interest me - I'd rather work in sports or entertainment."

• "I admire that she built her own agency and built it from the ground up. That shows a lot of independence and leadership. But I'm not sure I'd want to start my own marketing agency right away. I'd rather work for a sports team first to gain experience, learn from others, and build my skills before taking on that level of responsibility."

• "I know it can be challenging to prioritize clients and manage expectations, so I would need to be prepared for that part of the job."

• "This path is probably not what I'm looking for. I'd want to work on more than just websites and would want to work with one specific company. The pressure of shortened timelines would make me crazy."

What This Tells Us: Career confidence isn't students saying "yes" to everything. It's understanding fit well enough to make informed choices. These aren't confused students - they're clear students.

The Skills Students Identified

The Data: ~75% of students named concrete, transferable skills they now consider essential.

Most Frequently Mentioned Skills:

1. Time management and prioritization

2. Communication and relationship-building

3. Adaptability and flexibility

4. Curiosity and willingness to learn

5. Organization

6. Data literacy (Excel, analytics)

7. Creativity

8. Problem-solving

9. Stakeholder management

10. Self-motivation

Student Voices:

• "I learned about what skills are needed and valued in marketing. This is helpful so I can work on expanding these skills: time management, creativity, and organization."

• "A skill that stood out was 'always taking that extra step' - something I don't think many people talk about."

• "Being curious and always wanting to grow and learn is critical."

• "You probably just need to be someone who is self-motivated and willing to learn. That surprised me because I thought Google would require more."

What This Tells Us: Students moved from abstract interest → actionable skill awareness. They know what to work on now.

Confidence-Building Moments

Several responses revealed direct anxiety reduction:

• "It comforted my anxieties thinking about my future and being well enough equipped."

• "I learned that the biggest challenge is imposter syndrome. This is such a real feeling, and it honestly comforted me."

• "He said the feeling of being micromanaged doesn't last forever in your career, and you'll begin to grow good relations with your boss. That was reassuring."

• "She showed me that there are many ways to be successful in this field."

How This Aligns With NACE Career Readiness Competencies

The assignment directly developed the Career & Self-Development competency. Here's the evidence:

NACE Sample Behavior	Student Evidence	% of Students
Show awareness of own strengths and areas for development	"I'm more introverted, so agency work might not be the best fit"   "Communication is one of my strong suits, so hearing about teamwork made me more confident"	25-30%
Identify areas for continual growth	"I can work on expanding these skills: time management, creativity, organization"   "I need to be prepared for managing client expectations"	75%
Develop plans and goals for one's future career	"I'd rather work for a sports team first to gain experience before starting my own agency"   "I want to open a business, but I'm also passionate about social media marketing"	60%
Display curiosity; seek out opportunities to learn	Proactively selected multiple videos, compared paths, explored beyond minimum requirements	85-90%
Seek and embrace development opportunities	"That was a great reminder as I'm actively searching for summer work"   "I'm already working with Arizona Athletics Marketing"	~40%
Build professional relationships	"The most important roles are relationships and client management"   "Speak with employers in-person - your chances of landing the job are much higher"	80%

The Bottom Line

This wasn't a class of 21 students who all found their dream job.

This was a class of 21 students who got measurably better at:

✅ Self-directed career exploration (85-90% chose strategically)

✅ Evaluating career fit, not just prestige (70% compared paths within fields)

✅ Understanding work realities (80% gained accurate mental models)

✅ Normalizing nonlinear paths (60% felt reassured by diverse backgrounds)

✅ Identifying concrete skills to develop (75% named transferable skills)

✅ Making informed decisions (25-30% said "no" with clear reasoning)

✅ Reducing career anxiety (multiple students reported reduced stress)

And the professor? She didn't have to:

• Coordinate guest speakers

• Add lectures

• Grade lengthy essays

• Spend class time on one-way presentations

She embedded a structured assignment and received clean results. Students did the exploration work. Everyone won.

What Makes This Different

Traditional Career Exploration:

• Students hear about one career at a time

• Often from recruiters or limited alumni panels

• Inspiration without comparison

• Passive listening

• Limited representation

• Result: Surface-level awareness

Advize Digital Assignment:

• Students control their own exploration

• Access to 12,000+ professional interviews

• Active comparison across roles, industries, paths

• Structured reflection on fit

• Diverse representation (backgrounds, industries, paths)

• Result: Documented growth in career self-awareness and planning

What This Means for Us

This data confirms something we've believed from the beginning: students don't need to be told what career to pursue. They need the tools to figure it out for themselves.

When given structure, choice, and access to real professionals sharing honest insights, students become incredibly thoughtful about their own fit. They compare. They question. They say "no" to things that don't align. They identify skills to build.

They feel less anxious about the path ahead.

That's career confidence.

We're working with more faculty this semester to implement the digital Classroom Career Assignment Tool and will keep sharing what we learn - what works, what doesn't, and how students are using Advize to explore with intention.

If you're a professor, career center director, or administrator interested in trying this with your students, schedule with me here. We'd love to talk through how it might fit into your courses or programs.

And as always - if you know someone who'd benefit from seeing this kind of student outcome data, feel free to forward this along.

By Emily McSherry

Founder & CEO