<p>Hi this is kind of odd, but I was wondering if you could help.</p>
<p>My best friend and I have been trying to decide what we wanted to be when we grow up since we were kids. It obviously started from firefighters and teachers and NASA astronauts to pediatricians and neurosurgeons and optometrists. We've now wised up and we're juniors in high school. I've decided I want to major in business, but I'm not really sure which field, consulting perhaps. As for her, she's still undecided but she knows she wants to do something in 'advertising.'</p>
<p>The thing is, she doesn't really know what this encompasses or what kind of major it falls into or what kind of salary this gets and what kind of work they do. I'm not saying my interest in business is set in stone nor hers in advertising. I'm just trying to figure out exactly where I can find info about it. We've been googling lately, especially since we're interested in colleges, but nothing has really come up.</p>
<p>Is this an actual major, or a field in business? What do people in advertising actually do? What kinds of professions do they hold?</p>
<p>Advertising is a real major. I have been looking at advertising for my son. At some colleges it is in the business school, other times you will find it in the school of communications. Here is an example at Bradley U:</p>
<p>e Department of Communication is a learning community committed to the study of communication from both theoretical and applied perspectives. The Department integrates the academic study of communication with a commitment to professional education in five concentrations:</p>
<p>Advertising
Electronic Media
Journalism
Organizational Communication
Public Relations</p>
<p>At this school, it is not a major, but rather one of 5 concentrations that one may elect from the list of five options.</p>
<p>Thanks northeast mom! Is there anywhere I can find what types of professions people in advertising majors hold? Along with possible salary means and whatnot?</p>
<p>What types of careers would your son be looking into if he majors in advertising?</p>
<p>I am sorry, but I am just beginning to explore this myself. I have a friend who explained a little bit about the differences btn. marketing and advertising to me, but I am just learning about it. I don't want to say much, b/c I am sure it is more complicated than what I have recently learned, and I don't want to confuse people either. Hopefully, someone in marketing, and advertising, or other areas of communications could answer some questions.</p>
<p>Advertising will start with entry level pay of @$26-27,000. It's usually amg the lowest starting salaries. You'll need lots of creativity and will work to promote products or services. Basically pull together a campaign that appeals to consumers.
You can enter this field from the art side too - study graphic design or art then.</p>
<p>Marketing is broader and encompasses production/manufacturing, distribution, packaging and sales. Sales jobs pay well and are usually @$40,000 to start. Distribution is in the $30's, package design in the low $30's along with production.</p>
<p>Can you imagine paying off student loans after attending any one of the schools listed in the post above? Irishbird suggests the starting salary for advertising majors is 26-27,000!</p>
<p>There are some highly ranked public university advertising programs. The names that I keep seeing are Univ of Texas-Austin, Univ of Illinois, and Michigan State. There are many other public universities with advertising programs, so one does not need to go private.</p>
<p>ahhhh, thanks a lot everyone! yeah, she really won't be interested in the low pay at ALL... maybe she'll look into marketing or something...
anyways, thanks again, veey helpful!</p>
<p>I majored in marketing at Penn State. Their business program is very well respected but...
marketing was described very idealistically as developing products that people want, rather than making people want what you have, which is sales. Our senior projects were develping "useful" products and the advertising plan that went with them.
Then I graduated and looked for marketing jobs and realized I had to start in sales, which was a letdown to say the least.
I was not much of a salesman, so I went into retail (store management).
I suppose if I stayed with it I could have moved up in the company and by now be in actual "marketing department".<br>
I am now an office manager in a private business. But I know two other people who also majored in marketing at Penn State and they are not in the field any more either (pre-school teacher and IT/sales); we all joke how "useful" marketing is.</p>