Juan was a finance major in college. Mallory majored in supply chain management. Neither of them studied anything closely related to retail or fashion, but it turned out their dream job actually is at Ross Stores.

Ross is an off-price retail leader and an ideal destination for economics, business, and supply chain majors to work after graduation.

To find out how they made the journey from Finance to fashion, from Supply Chain to style, we sat down with them to talk about their role as Merchandise Planners at Ross Stores, and how the Company offers so much more than just a job.

What It Means To Be A Planner At A Retail Giant

Ross is a company that capitalizes on opportunistic buying. Basically, that means they find vendors with overruns or cancelled orders both during and at the end of the season. Ross’ team of strategic Buyers work directly with those vendors to negotiate the best deals, which are then passed on to Ross’ customers.

That model of business has brought Ross immense success in the retail industry, even at a time when other retailers struggle to compete against online shops. And that success hinges on the analytical and strategic work of people like Juan and Mallory.

“The Planner role is very analytical and heavy on Excel skills,” Mallory says. “We really focus on the part of the supply chain that looks at forecasting and developing strong plans. We’ll look at trends and match them with opportunities.”

While the Buyers are the ones scouting great product, the Planners are responsible for forecasting trends based on market and historical data, and—of course—planning out which product to flow to certain regions based on opportunities they find.  And this type of work, as you might’ve guessed, is actually perfect for people with analytical and business educations, like Juan and Mallory.

“So many of the finance skills I learned apply: vlookups, index matches, charts,” Juan explains. “It’s an analytical role so any type of math or business class I had does help with my work.”

But, as they both stressed, it’s not just the skills that make the role a match. It’s the Company’s culture, too.

How Ross’s Collaborative Culture—And Amazing Perks—Make The Role Even Better

It certainly helps for both Planners that the Company’s culture of work-life balance, supportive team environments, and amazing benefits are essentially designed to be perfect for new grads.

For example, the Company offers both a generous paid time off package in addition to holidays and even a week-long break for the Buying Offices. The entire buying and planning offices shut down during the last week of December, and during the summer, the offices close at 1 o’clock on Fridays.

“I cannot emphasize the corporate culture enough,” Juan says. “We leave at 1 o’clock on Summer Fridays and during the winter we have that break. It’s those little perks that really make me feel valued.”

In addition to their emphasis on work-life balance, the Company offers programs to build and invest in your financial future. The company’s stock purchase program lets Ross employees get a discount on the stock price (have you seen the stock performance recently?!). Plus, Ross offers a 401k program with a generous company match to help you plan for retirement.

That eye on the future of their employees makes sense, too, because Ross provides a clear, upward career path—and the training and development required to get there. Ross has a strong training program when you first start with the Company and built-out learning programs for each time you move into a new role.

“There is a lot of growth within the Company,” Mallory says. “I know plenty of people who started off as interns, then went full-time, and have now moved up into more senior roles. It’s really clear where the growth is and what the next steps are.”

And whether you’re working closely with mentors, making high-impact business decisions in a supportive environment, or just enjoying a casual team outing on a Summer Friday, when you’re doing it at Ross, you’re a part of a group that really does care.

Ready to start “planning” your future? Check out open opportunities at Ross Stores on WayUp!

The post Why This Growing Retail Giant Wants To Hire Data-Driven Business And Economics-Related Majors appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

Ralph Lauren isn’t just a clothing company. It’s a group of retail brands that design, produce, and market authentic apparel, home products, fragrance, and way, way more.

And working there isn’t just a job. It’s being part of a family that makes amazing things happen, both in the markets they serve and in the communities they work.

Here’s a look inside what makes working at Ralph Lauren so different—and a few things you might actually be surprised to learn.

1. It’s A Team Deeply Inspired By Ralph Lauren’s Dream

Ralph Lauren began his career selling ties out of a drawer in the Empire State Building. Through talent, perseverance, and an entrepreneurial spirit Ralph Lauren grew a team of like-minded creators and businesspeople and built one of the most recognizable, iconic brands in the world.

The company is built on collaborative relationships, on strong friendships, and on the collective effort of an incredibly diverse team. After all, you can’t make thousands of premium products without a team of thousands of uniquely talented people.

Teamwork is, in fact, one of the company’s biggest strengths and, as a team, Ralph Lauren  employees make a serious impact in the communities where they live and work. Philanthropy at Ralph Lauren is about more than corporate donations, it’s about the Ralph Lauren family getting together to work on causes that matter to them.

Throughout the year, RL teams around the world get out into their communities and create the change they want to see. Whether it’s supporting cancer care through Pink Pony, Ralph Lauren’s global initiative in the fight against cancer or building homes for the underserved through Habitat for Humanity, Ralph Lauren employees make a difference in their communities.

2. It’s Not All Fashion Jobs (Ralph Lauren Has A Corporate Internship Program)

Even though the Polo horseman is a fashion staple, Ralph Lauren is more than a fashion brand. Creating, marketing, and distributing the many products they offer takes a lot more than just designers.

While the team still looks for the same creative, entrepreneurial spark in all of their interns and new hires, they know that X factor comes in a ton of different forms. There are, after all, many ways to be marketer with an entrepreneurial spirit or a financial analyst with a knack for creative problem-solving.

Some of the departments hiring for the company’s 10-week, elite corporate internship program include Information Technology, Human Resources, Hospitality, Finance, and Innovation. All of these departments work with technology and utilize skills that allow them to succeed in an incredibly competitive industry—which means you’ll be working alongside the best.

Here’s why that might come in handy.

3. They’re Constantly Learning New Skills

Ralph Lauren operates in the fields of e-commerce, digital advertising, complex supply chains, and more. The company is constantly evolving to stay true to its vision and to meet the growing expectations of its customers. That means the people are constantly adapting, too.

Ralph Lauren’s culture of learning and teaching gives its employees a ton of opportunities to learn new things on the job, from their peers, and from their mentors and managers. Most of the learning comes on the job, while you’re working through new responsibilities. But that doesn’t mean you’ll be left in the deep end without a lifeline. Ralph Lauren encourages collaboration, peer-to-peer knowledge sharing, and mentorship to ensure that you can add value to the company AND grow as a professional.

Working for a company like Ralph Lauren means learning how to apply your skills to one of the world’s most adaptive e-commerce and consumer goods brands. That’s something that will help you in tons of different careers.

Think your unique talents can contribute to Ralph Lauren’s global mission? Want to grow and learn from the best? Check out jobs and internships from Ralph Lauren on WayUp right now!

For more information, please visit .

The post What It’s Like To Work For The World’s Most Iconic Lifestyle Brand appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

When people think about the fashion industry, they conjure up images of rifling through clothing racks all day or acting out a scene from the movie The Devil Wears Prada, but for Rag & Bone Senior Account Executive and WayUp Office Hours panelist Christina Holody, her days working in fashion look very different.

In her role, Holody works with buyers from places like Bloomingdale’s, Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus to help place Rag & Bone collections in their stores.

“The truth is, today I had a major breakthrough on Microsoft Excel,” she says with a laugh. “On the day to day, I’m looking at data and analyzing it. It’s taking the sales reports you get from partners and [figuring out] how to capitalize on next season [based on] what’s happening this season.”

Despite her success, Holody will tell you that she never saw herself going into the world of fashion when she was younger. After majoring in journalism in college and getting into the prestigious NBC Page Program (which only accepts 1.5% of applicants!), she left after two months of the year-long gig to become the assistant to the president of Diane von Furstenberg (DVF) after a friend told her about the opportunity.

Why take such a huge leap of faith in a notoriously tough industry? Holody lives and breathes by an important career mantra: “The biggest reason why people don’t get to where they want to go is because they don’t take a risk.”

Holody took a pretty hefty gamble, but she worked hard to make sure it paid off. After two years as an assistant, Holody was able to transition into an account executive role on DVF’s sales team, one that she greatly enjoyed. “I loved communicating with people. I loved being on the phone all day,” she recalls. “I loved getting in the nitty gritty; it’s all about numbers. I love numbers and analytics.”

Holody was eventually able to work her way up to Senior Account Executive at the storied fashion brand before leaving for Rag & Bone after four years at DVF.

To some, it might be mind-boggling to leave NBC to be an assistant. But Holody knows she made the right choice, and in addition to her strong belief in risk-taking, she has other stellar advice for young people in similar straits.

“I think [it’s] super important, especially when you’re in a creative industry, to have an open mind,” she says. “I grew up in Michigan; there’s no such thing as fashion there. You think you have to be a designer or you have to be super creative and be able to sketch; I have none of those skills!”

There are plenty of ways to be in the world of fashion without actually creating clothes; in fact, Holody points out, many of the roles in the industry with the biggest impact are those behind the scenes. “If you want think about what [you] can do in fashion and make a huge impact, in sales you have that ability,” she explains. “You get to say, ‘This is what [the design team] has given me, where am I going to put it?’ So when I say, ‘You’re going to see it in Saks [Fifth Avenue], you’re going to see it in [the Saks] in Michigan, in L.A., in Florida. [Shoppers are] all going to see what I decided is going to be in Saks from rag & bone. That’s cool!”

And for recent grads, she says there’s no better time to take the metaphorical plunge: “If you’re in a place where you can take a risk and you’re 21 years old and just graduated from college, just be open to it. Just try. Go in and meet somebody. Make every connection you can. Don’t turn away from anything.”

We couldn’t agree with her more.

Want more sage wisdom from influential young professionals? Check out the rest of our can’t-miss Summer 2016 Office Hours events in New York City and Washington D.C.

The post A Former NBC Page and DVF Assistant Gives Her Biggest Tip for Breaking Into Any Creative Industry appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

This past Wednesday, June 22, we hosted our first Office Hours event of 2016 with a focus on the fashion industry. We brought in four impressive panelists to give us the lowdown on everything college students and recent grads need to know to succeed in fashion careers.

There was a lot of great advice over the course of the 90-minute event (you can watch the full conversation on our Facebook page!), but here were our favorite tidbits of wisdom every college student and recent grad can take to the bank.

1. Network, Network, Network (But Be Kind to Everyone)

Like many industries, fashion is a small world. Whether you’re a buyer for a major brand, a designer, a fashion and beauty influencer or an account executive for a label, chances are you’re running into the same people over and over again.

“It’s a really, really small world,” says YouTube influencer and TODAY Show correspondent Deepica Mutyala. “You have to be ‘on’ at all times, because you could be at an event with somebody and not realize that they know somebody who knows somebody who knows somebody. Everybody knows somebody!”

Mutyala also preaches the importance of never being afraid to network, and she knows what she’s talking about: She saw The Honest Company co-founder and famous actress Jessica Alba at a hotel lobby bar and found the courage to go up and say hi. After having a nice conversation, Alba actually ended up personally inviting her to a private dinner several weeks later.

Her tip for making those cold pitches easier? Don’t think about how someone could help you. Instead, “think about what you can do to benefit that person.”

2. Find Creative Ways to Take Initiative

One of the hardest things about getting your start in the fashion industry is working for potentially working for a boss who’s busy all the time. One audience member asked our panelists how to find work to do in the office when your boss just isn’t giving you much.

First and foremost, don’t shy away from work that doesn’t seem the most exciting or brag-worthy. “You’ve got to work the long hours, you’ve got to get the coffee, you’ve got to make the copies,” explains Christina Holody, a senior account executive at Rag & Bone. “The stuff that isn’t fun is what will make you noticeable to your manager or to the person you want to promote you.”

Second, don’t be afraid to ask for work from others at your job if it looks like your boss doesn’t need your help or just isn’t around. “See who else is in the office who’s equal to your supervisor or slightly junior and ask them what’s something they need taken off of their plate,” Rachel Abeles explains. “When you’re interning, you’re not just proving yourself to your direct boss, but to the company. The biggest thing is showing that you’re resourceful.”

Fashion designer Becca McCharen also adds that it’s important for her to find interns who can be mature and figure things out on their own. If your boss tells you to deliver a sample, for example, you should be able to figure out the cross streets, where you’re going and whom to talk to without your boss having to spell out everything for you.

3. Don’t Feel Pressured to Start Your Own Business Right Off the Bat

People might look at fashion designer Becca McCharen and think that she has it all together: Her fashion line, Chromat, has been worn by the likes of Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Beyonce in recent years. She’s worked with huge companies to create wearable tech. Her designs are being talked about on some of the biggest fashion sites like Fashionista and ELLE.

However, McCharen wishes that before taking the plunge herself she’d been able to work under others in the industry to learn the ins and outs of constructing clothes and building a business.

“I think people who go straight from school to starting their own label have so much more to learn,” McCharen says. “It would be so good to see how other people run their companies. For me, I’ve been making it up the whole time and flying by the seat of my pants. I would’ve loved the opportunity to work for others in this specific industry.”

In fashion, you may feel pressured to do your own thing or showcase your own point of view. While working for yourself can be liberating in many ways, it can also be stressful and overwhelming to start without a foundation.

4. Your College Major Won’t Make or Break Your Fashion Career

Want to go into fashion but didn’t major in design, merchandising or textiles? Don’t sweat it. And if you majored in any of those fields but still feel unprepared, you’re totally fine.

All four of our panelists didn’t exactly know that they wanted to go into fashion from a young age, and they found that the classroom didn’t necessarily prepare them for the careers they have today.

“College for me was more about the experience and learning how to make a connection and learning how to stand out when you’re in a group of 200 freshmen in an intro class. I use those skills every day,” explains Holody. “Was [a] broadcast journalism [major] a direct correlation to what I do every single day now? No. Is communication a part of every single thing I do every day? 100%.”

If you’re worried that you won’t be ready for day-to-day life in the fashion industry because of your major, don’t sweat it.

“The biggest thing [I learned] is that college isn’t going to train you to do whatever job you end up in; it’s an experience to help you grow up,” explains Abeles. “The only things you need to be prepared to enter the workforce [are] to be driven and to be passionate and to be inquisitive. As long as you are willing to learn and put in the time, you will learn whatever you need to when you’re on the job.”

5. Be Persistent

Towards the end of our panel, one audience member asked how to stay positive when you’re doing everything right in the job search but just not landing any roles. The biggest piece of advice our four young professionals could give? Be persistent, and don’t be afraid to ask for feedback.

If you get a rejection letter, that doesn’t have to be the end of your interaction with a potential employer. “When you do get to speak in these follow-up situations if certain things don’t pan out, it’s not inappropriate to ask for feedback,” Abeles says.

By asking a potential employer what they thought of your resume, cover letter, portfolio or interview, you’ll be able to get valuable advice for fixing or tweaking things you might not have even been aware of.

By taking just a few of these helpful tidbits, we hope you’ll feel more confident applying for fashion jobs and heading into the industry in the future.

Want to get more career wisdom from influential young professionals? Check out our Office Hours events this summer, taking place in New York City and Washington D.C.

The post 4 Fashion Insiders Give Their 5 Tips for Starting Out in One of the World’s Toughest Industries appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

One of the best parts of our week is hearing about students and recent grads who have found their dream jobs. This week we’re spotlighting Caitlyn DeGuzman, a junior at FSU.

Caitlyn recently got hired as a Brand Ambassador at Flamingo and she couldn’t be more excited. Here’s what she had to say about her new role:

“I actually didn’t know what the app was before I signed up to be a Brand Ambassador, but now I absolutely love it. Working for such fun people and promoting an app that I actually enjoy using makes this job really easy. Plus, the co-founders, Lee and India, are awesome and so fun to work for. ”

In addition to being a great fit, Caitlyn’s new job is also helping her achieve her main college goal: having fun!

“I’ve learned that only I can make the best decisions for myself. I had a really hard time picking a major (I’m still not entirely sold on my choice). Parents will have their own ideas and so will everyone else. But if I had put my foot down and done what I wanted to do from the very beginning I could’ve saved myself from a lot of stress! Looking back, I’d also tell myself it’s important to have FUN! Sure, grades are important, but so is having fun and enjoying the path to your goals, whatever they may be :)”

Ready to find your own great job? Here are some great jobs and internships that you can apply to right now.

The post Boss of the Week: Caitlyn DeGuzman, Florida State University Class of 2017 appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

San Francisco: home of the Golden Gate bridge, Full House, and innovative companies like DropBox, AirBnB, Twitter, and Reddit. It has the highest quality of living of any US city — not to mention, unbelievable weather. It’s no wonder that thousands of college students flock to this city to try their hand at the variety of student jobs available in one of the most cosmopolitan and exciting places in the US.

Since someone’s got to get that California sunshine, we decided this week we would shout out all the awesome jobs for college students in San Francisco below.

Content Marketing & Demand Generation Assistant at Infor

As the third largest provider of enterprise applications and services, Infor creates industry-specific web applications for over 70,000 customers in 194 countries, including companies like Bank of America, Gap, L.L. Bean and Nissan. As a Content Marketing & Demand Generation Assistant, you will research content and pitch new ideas, monitor Google Adwords and other marketing campaigns, and review all marketing materials, including white papers, case studies, videos, and podcasts.

To apply, you must be at least a sophomore and you must have at least a 3.0 GPA. Students studying English, Marketing, and Journalism are preferred as candidates. The position pays a competitive compensation.

Graphic Design Intern at Greenlight VR

If you love turning data into eye-catching, easy-to-understand designs, or if you’ve got a thing for virtual reality, then you have to apply for this job.  Greenlight VR creates and disseminates business insights to the Virtual Reality industry. Their research has been trusted by Google, Intel, and many other companies.

Greenlight VR is looking for a Graphic Design Intern who can take industry data and research the company and transform it into engaging and visually appealing infographics. If you’re pursuing a graphic design-related degree and you have Photoshop and Illustrator skills, then you’re the candidate Greenlight VR is looking for!

Marketing & Partnerships Intern ($15/hr) for VetPronto

An on demand house call veterinary service, VetPronto provides convenient and high-quality care for your pets! The company has been featured in TechCrunch, Fast Company, and TIME. VetPronto is hiring a Marketing & Partnerships Intern who will help brainstorm creative ways to reach pet owners in the SF Bay Area. You will also help to maintain partnerships with pet groomers, pet stores, tech companies, and more.

To apply, you must be an organized self-starter with a ton of creative energy. The position pays $15/hr, but VetPronto is open to paying based on performance, which could increase your pay!

If you’re dying to get some surf and sand in this year, these student jobs are your chance. Work in one of the most innovative and fun places in the country: apply to these jobs for college students in San Francisco before they close!

The post Marketing & Design Jobs for College Students in San Francisco appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

Want to work with a fashion brand that dresses Beyonce?

You can. The badass fashion companies below have some pretty big-name celebrity clients, and they’re looking for college students who can help take their brand to the next level. If you want to get your foot in the door of this crazy, cool, competitive industry, now is your chance! Check out the top 3 fashion internships for college students on WayUp. Apply today!

Fashion PR Marketing Intern at CREATIV

Known for dressing some of Hollywood’s greats and celebrities like Taylor Swift, Beyonce, and Justin Bieber, CREATIV is a brand development company for the fashion and film industry. As Fashion PR Marketing Intern, you will send press kits and look books to other publications, solidify press opportunities like news coverage and media features, and conduct social media and digital marketing campaigns.

To qualify, you must have a strong handle on social media, including Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, and you must feel comfortable, cold-calling and pitching brand concepts and product to outside sources. The position is located in CREATV’s office in LA.

Fashion Photography Intern at Trapstar London

Founded in London almost 10 years ago, Trapstar London is a trendy, street-style fashion brand with celebrities like Rihanna, Cara Delevingne, and A$AP Rocky proudly sporting their collection. As a Fashion Photography Intern, you will help plan and coordinate photo shoots, create visual content for social media, and edit and maintain image galleries. You must have a strong photography portfolio and you must be an out-of-the-box thinker who will push the limits of digital fashion photography!

Fashion Event Coordinator at Eshne

Eshne is a petite Fashion brand created to alleviate the frustration of petite shopping and provide helpful fashion tips, information and advice. As Fashion Event Coordinator, you’ll be involved in all phases of the event process, from the idea to the planning to the event and the post-event wrap-up. You will seek out the best venues, form partnerships with potential sponsors, even establish relationships with bloggers and retailers who are attending events.

To qualify, you must be self-motivated and driven with excellent organizational and communication skills.

Don’t let your passion for fashion go to waste. Apply for these fashion internships for college students today!

The post 3 Fashion Internships for College Students appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

I recently had a chance to chat with Kristin Demidovich, CMO for tech-edu company, MentorMob. Kristin shared with me her experience in switching from a career in fashion retail to a start-up, and what she’s learned along the way.

What is MentorMob?

MentorMob is a learning and discovery website and app that uses crowdsourced knowledge to create comprehensive learning guides.

When you go online to learn something, you don’t really know where to start, what to learn next or who you can trust. So in a sea of free content, people are still paying for online lessons. We realized that if the best content was organized into guides for any topic, then millions of people around the world could learn from the best experience for free. We see the impact that encyclopedic sites have made; we want to do the same for hobby and lifestyle topics.

MentorMob allows individuals to learn from one another by communicating within the site, like traditional mentorship. MentorMob also allows for a one-to-many type of mentorship by providing a digital platform for a larger number of individuals to learn almost any skill. The community of individuals who have helped curate the best content into guides for various topics, like parenting and kiteboarding, are sharing their knowledge to an infinite number of people who can learn from them.

What is your role at MentorMob?

I have an awesome part in the team at MentorMob… I am the Chief Marketing Officer, but what that means is I get to do really cool things with really interesting people everyday – everything from learning new hobbies, to promoting professional athletes online, to going to events to network with creative individuals. With this role Virgin Hotels has actually added me and our MentorMob community as their Dare Devil persona for the Chicago Hotel opening. Pretty fun!

What did you study in school?

Fashion Retail Management at Columbia College Chicago

What was your first entry-level job out of school?

I was an Assistant Manager at Coach. I continued with Coach for the next 8 years of my career, working in many different Chicago locations and ending at Store Manager level.

Wait, What? What made you change careers?

I was ready for the next step in my career personally. I was not sure what I was looking for, but I knew it had to be something I was passionate about, believed in and could make a difference in the world with. It was 100% scary, but knew that I could try it and always go back if I needed. I just had to try.

What was the biggest surprise, and/or biggest learning moment, being part of a startup?

The biggest surprise is how much you can accomplish and learn if you put your mind to it and stay confident! This came from multiple learning moments of mine – of being told NO time and time again. In a startup, most will say “no” at first and you will get down on yourself, your idea and sometimes even the team. BUT you have to remain confident and through this confidence you will be able to learn how to turn those “no” into “maybe” and even “yes.” Always remember that having the confidence and courage to try a startup is more than 50% of the battle. The rest is staying confident throughout the road to success or failure. You have already succeeded by trying.

What is the most inspiring thing about your job? What makes you get up and want to go work for MentorMob every day?

Meeting new people that are insanely passionate about a hobby or lifestyle and set out daily to teach other people or themselves everyday. No day at MentorMob is the same. Somedays I am talking to top kiters in the Dominican Republic and other days I’m hearing an inspiring adoption story from a parenting blogger in Iowa. It is so inspiring to see how excited people are to mentor and interact with others in the community. Knowledge is powered by people!

Any advice for people out there considering career changes?

Try it! One of my favorite quotes comes from Richard Branson – ‘I’d rather look back on life and say ‘I can’t believe I did that’ than ‘I wish I’d done that’. If you try what you love, you will do it well, want to learn more daily and never give up. It will not seem like work. You can always go back, but you may never know “what else” unless you try!

Advice for people considering working for a startup?

Ask a lot of questions and have AWESOME mentors. You are doing something that no one has done before, so don’t think you have all the answers. Do not be afraid to ask questions and seek help. Being vulnerable is looked as being confident in wanting to be successful!

Learn more about Kristin and MentorMob at www.mentormob.com or @MentorMob.

The post Fashion Management to Tech CMO: Dare to Live Your Best Life appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

When I graduated from college, I had the really cool opportunity to be part of Intuit’s Rotational Development Program (RDP) as a UX designer. To this day, I think it was the best way I could’ve started my career and here I’ll break down why. You don’t need to be part of RDP to get a great experience, but it naturally gave me the following components that made it such a great way to start my career. I’ll speak from a designer’s perspective but I believe these are relevant to anyone starting his/her career.

Mentorship

Mentorship helped me grow FAST. When I entered the program, I was matched with a design director (my “mentor”), another designer (my “buddy”) and was encouraged to find mentors and grow my network. Since my mentor was an experienced design manager, she was wonderful for elucidating company announcements and strategy or coaching me on design and team issues. My buddy, on the other hand, was my age and I could ask her silly questions (“Where is the best lunch place?”) and get more frequent feedback on designs.

Design feedback is incredibly important. You can learn a lot on your own but when you have people looking over your work or guiding your decision making, it can help take you even farther.

So when it comes to mentorship, think about it in 2 ways:

1. Career/personal development: Find people you can go to when you’re thinking about what you want to be when you grow up and can help connect you to the right people . (I know, the dreaded networking – I promise it’s really not that bad.)
2. Work development: Find people who can critique your work and make you better at what you do.

Another tip: more often than not, have a conversation goal when talking to your mentor because ultimately, they’re looking to help. It can be anything from hearing his/her career path to tweaking a design to brainstorming more ideas to feedback on your next career step. Just make it known!

Constant Learning & Reflection

It can be overwhelming, but take some time to think about your strengths, weaknesses and experiences. What is your “T”? For those who don’t know, the “T” is the breadth of experiences/skills and your depth in one particular experience/skill. Early on, I had no idea what I wanted to do, so I kept iterating on my “T” and asking myself, “What kind of design work haven’t I done yet?” just to get more experience and discover what my depth could be (“What do I like doing most, and what am I good at?”). Now, I’ve realized that I get the most energy out of connecting user research to design, but I still need to work on design fit and finish to be effective.

A few questions to help guide your thinking and how you can use the “T” to figure out where to even start:

• When do you feel the most energized in school work right now?
• Do you know anyone who is doing that? Reach out and ask about the good and bad about their jobs.
• Use your “T” when you talk to people. Tell them what you’ve done and solicit advice on what kinds of experiences would help you become a really good [blank].

Management

Having a good manager makes a world of difference. If your manager is looking out for you and giving you good projects and work, you’ll grow so much more. It’s related to the above two components—your manager can provide invaluable mentorship, help you think through your strengths/weaknesses and, most importantly, help get you where you’re going.

I’ve been so lucky to have had a few good managers who checked in on how I was doing and helped me realize when there’s a problem. I love it when I can bring my latest design problem (“This is my current design iteration. What do you think?” or “There’s something bothering me about this design”) and have a great back-and-forth on how to make my work better.

Of course, it’s hard to find a good manager, so wherever you land, make sure you find people who want to support you. When looking at jobs and projects, look for managers who are dedicated to spending some 1:1 time with you, are great at listening, and match your communication style.

Try lots of things – and I mean, LOTS of things

We’re young and don’t know what’s out there. Now’s the time to take some risks, fight for what you want and enjoy the heck out of it. If design has been something you’ve been interested in but never got a chance to do any of it, then jump right in, learn, do some projects and try to get that job. If in a year, you decide to do something else, that’s great. Now’s the time to try different things but just remember… Do it with intent. Do it because you love it or because you absolutely need to do it (and pair that with an exit strategy). If not now, then when?

All in all, just have fun with it and don’t worry too much. The journey matters too in your career. :)

The post Getting the most out of your first design job appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

In New York, you need to know a lot of things:  how to swipe a MetroCard (I’ve yet to master the public art), what your privacy rights as a tenant are, and even more so, where to find the best happy hours for YPs— young professionals. You can look high and low, though if you’re like me and prefer a decent place to sit and a certain ambiance filled with likeminded fashion, media, and finance kids, sometimes you’re just going to have to suck it up and dish out $20 for a cranberry and vodka. The added bonus is that you’re young, hot, and carrying a bag that’s not even out yet. That black AmEx will come sooner or later, maybe when you’ve learned to fold your towels in three neat folds like Mum showed you or make your own dinner instead of ordering Seamless. Regardless, you’re living the ultimate: you’re bright-eyed, posh, and broke.

Four weeks have gone by since I’ve arrived in New York. When recalling back everything I’ve done, everyone I’ve met, and everything I’ve heard, I can compare the past month to being on a road trip with Zach Galifianakis. Only in New York can you wake up one bright Saturday morning, swallows chirping by your pre-war windows with Lorde and Lana del Rey serenading you via MacBook Pro and take note of BeautyConNY via Joe Zee’s Twitter. Yes, you got that right: I went to that BeautyConNY event and met the Joe Zee—newly departed ELLE Creative Director/ recently inducted Editor in Chief of Yahoo Fashion, TV host/star, and all-around FASHION KING of 21^st century American dress.

“Let’s take a selfie! No, let’s take TWO!” Mr. Zee said, grabbing me, bubbly and flattered, since he was my number one must-meet-or-die icon in this life. We took two selfies and I instantly uploaded them to my Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram feeds. IT. WAS. AWESOME. It would be rude of me not to mention that I was also able to snag a one-on-one chat with ELLE’s Beauty and Fitness Director Emily Dougherty and Associate Features Editor Seth Plattner, where on both counts, we laid out my professional path as an up and coming editorial Madonna in New York.

Zeroing in on my design internship with Pour La Victoire, the people and the events—not to mention beaucoup de shoes and handbags—have been equally moving on a tectonic level. As an intern, my assignments and interactions are never limited to the design department. The studio houses two other brands—I like to think of them as sister brands—and we work literally a foot apart from each other in the studio. That means that exposure to other designers is regular and I am able to expand my assisting role from one designer to another, and from one brand to another, all in a given week! The sales team—the people who pitch to buyers like Piperlime, Nordstrom, and Henri Bendel—are also constantly talking shop with the designers. Every person in the studio has a job to do, and it’s fascinating how each one unites with the department over to deliver a final product to the masses. See this gorgeous product wall that the Pour La Victoire sales team landed at Henri Bendel! An #Insta-worthy coup for the PLV team, right!?

In fashion, there are so many characters in a creative space. Where one creative may be living a rock and roll lifestyle with a vocabulary as colorful as Sharon Osbourne, another may be an Instagram queen with a gift for laying down Mindy Lahiri witticisms. You just never know what you’re going to get when you walk into an innovative environment, and that’s truly where the fun can be had. Designs may be scrapped, mistakes can be made (look here), people may get pissed off at one other, but at the end of the day, we all belong to the same team with the same goal: embrace women in our heels!

Over the next several weeks, I’m looking forward to learning about how Pour La Victoire manages itself as a successful high end brand, and even more so, expanding my role so that I can walk away with knowledge about designing footwear, selling to buyers, and evolving social media channels.

The post Fast Fashion In A Fast City: My Journey As A Design Intern appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

It’s no secret that the fashion industry is competitive—it’s pretty much like The Hunger Games, except that instead of people savagely killing you with swords, they kill your ego and then ask you to come back for more.

This is an industry for the thick skinned crocodiles out there; this isn’t an industry where you can have mixed feelings, or worse, no sense of your path to industry power.

Last month, I introduced myself and my story thus far as an intern in the fashion industry to readers.

Since then, I’ve been graciously invited to cultivate a column– sharing stories and insights– and will no doubt be narrating the whole thing in my head as Mindy Lahiri from The Mindy Project. My premier goal is to help clarify just one possible path the fashion-inspired can take on their way to professional respect and success.

I’ll start by saying that before my current design internship in Manhattan, I had only visited the city once; I had no connections, no family, and no friends on the east coast.

Landing the Job

After graduating a year ago, my search for an opportunity had come to a dramatic end: someone, my current boss, was willing to take a chance on a 24-year-old baby with no design background, but plenty of other ingredients, that, when culminated into a Skype interview, was enough to land me my first break in the city.

And I couldn’t have done any of it—the cover letters, the interviews, the moving to a foreign land– without my supportive family, who continue to aid my ambitions and lay that golden parachute beneath me.

The easiest part of moving is buying the airfare. Everything else—it’s like going on a first date and you’re not sure whether you’ll come out as Jane Bennett or Jane Eyre. I limited myself to 2.5 suitcases: two checked and one carry-on. It wasn’t that hard to say goodbye to my old things; I’ve always been an “out with the old, in with the new” kind of person.

Moving to Manhattan

As a fashion girl, I made sure I had the essentials among the holy trinity: clothing, accessories, and beauty. I’m no different than anyone else who underestimates the terminator power needed to haul two oversized suitcases, a weekend bag, and a handbag. It’s not graceful, I thought to myself, but this is it. This is what I’m supposed to be doing.

My destiny will come through fire and through hail. I can be dramatic. So I saw an opportunity and I took it.

As Whitney Port once said to Mama Wolf (Kelly Cutrone), “I don’t wanna be an average person.” So I left for New York without any backup plan. I knew I didn’t need one. Conviction can be your best friend when the road is uncertain.

Renting in Manhattan is basically like paying a mortgage in any other city, except maybe Los Angeles and D.C. And until I was settled, I wasn’t about to put down heavy coin for a place that I wasn’t one hundred percent sure of.

Though just like everything else in the city, my plans to stay with a girlfriend changed quickly and I was back to square one, boarding a flight to JFK alone. I told myself that it’d be alright: I’m basically like Emma Stone in The Help, running toward my future with an insanely cute hairdo and a work ethic that’s laced with Red Bull and gravitas.

Slight admission: I did have one friend in the city that I could call up, and that was a girlfriend I had grown up with and that had just moved in with her family near Manhattan. After a bunch of circles and yearning looks toward the taxis trailing each other down the arrivals lanes, my girlfriend picked me up and I stayed my first night in Jamaica, Queens (that’s a whole other borough to the north of Manhattan: about a 10 minute train ride into uptown).

Let me tell you: the residential houses look just like they do in the movies: the facades are faded, there are single patches of tulips decorating the severed sidewalks, and everyone basically looks like they belong in a Clint Eastwood movie.

The next morning was a hustle: I stayed in a youth hostel located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn—“cozy” is the term offered by the hostel’s website. East Williamsburg is a rough part of town. On showing me nearby train stations, my driver asked me if I was scared. It was at that moment that I realized that I was in a bit of a pickle. I remembered that one of my mother’s childhood friends has a son who lives and works in Manhattan. I quickly messaged her on Facebook and begged to get in touch with him. My new friend from the Financial District called me up and graciously let me crash on his sofa for what was theoretically supposed to be two days.

It’s been nine days, three new friendships, and a handful of inside jokes and new experiences. I’ve basically been adopted by three insane older brothers who dress in suits and ties. Chaos, but the good kind of chaos.

Starting My New Job

Now, a few words on my footwear design internship: I’ve completed my first week at a design house in the Garment District.

Your appearance does matter. Most will make an effort, I’ve observed, and interns are no exception, especially if you want your opinion to be asked.

Figuring out what time your boss usually arrives in the morning is a must: there will always be delayed trains and you must pick up the pace before you’re late—meaning boss lady has already arrived and you look ungrateful to be there. It happens, but it shouldn’t happen that often.

You’ll mistake your uptown trains for your downtown ones and you’ll throw your hand in the air, hoping a taxi will evaporate your negligent geography skills. Oh, and the weekends are for having fun.

Just make sure that you’ve got protective friends and Uber on speed dial.

The post Taking Risks: My Unpredictable Adventure To The Fashion Industry appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

It’s the day of the interview and you’re scrambling to find the perfect outfit; not too casual, not too dressy; a pile of skirts, blouses, and pants covering your bed and time running out.

Heels, or no heels? That is the question.

Fear not…. The perfect interview outfit is out there. All you need to keep in mind are a few simple rules:

1) Blouse + Skirt + Blazer = dressy, professional

2) Pants + Heels + Blouse = professional

3) Dress  + Blazer  + Flats/Heels = Stylish, Dressy

4) NEVER wear jeans

I can’t stress this enough. Even if the workplace is casual, you want to demonstrate that this interview is important, not merely just another errand, and quite frankly, jeans do not scream professional. Believe it or not, it is possible to be comfortable, stylish, and still look professional.

5) A nice pair of business-looking flats

These are appropriate if you aren’t a fan of heels (like myself), and although they can be expensive, it’s a good idea to invest in a nice, comfortable pair that will last a while. I would recommend looking at Nordstrom as they carry quite a few business-type flats and the associates are willing to help you find exactly what you are searching for.

6) In terms of accessories

A professional looking purse that is a neutral color (black, beige, etc.) is a good option; something that doesn’t draw the attention away from you, the interviewee.

My purse necessities include:

• Bottle of water (trust me, after answering multiple questions, your mouth will thank you)
• A folder with another copy of my resume (although employers usually have your resume with them before the interview, it’s always a good idea to have another one on hand, just in case)
• Lip balm (talking a lot = chapped lips)
• Wallet
• Phone (when going to an interview, or during finals when I was in school, I always had a fear that my phone would be “that one” that rings when the entire room is silent. Even though I could just put my phone on silent for the interview, I usually turn it off, just to be safe)

And lastly, don’t stress it! Interviews can be nerve-wracking, but keep calm, remember to breathe, and with these style tips you will be sure to impress.

Best of luck! And be sure to tell me about your favorite interview outfits in the comments below!

About the Author: 

Kirsten is a 22 year old graduate from Macquarie University in Australia where she originally went on exchange and later transferred to after falling in love with the country. After graduating she has been both a barista and a teller while saving money to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in film/television. She enjoys traveling, warm weather, playing tennis, and spending time with friends and family.

The post Heels, or no heels?: A guide to interview outfits appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

This is a guest post by Julia Lucia for Student Stories. 

5:45am –Wake up and roll out of bed.  I like to have time to fully wake up, get ready, and eat breakfast; I hate the feeling of being chaotically rushed in the morning. Then I go through my usual primping regimen: the most detailed part being my make-up routine, which has been perfected over the past 8 years. I consider myself to be somewhat of a connoisseur of mascara, an eyelash architect, if you will.

7:45am –My train leaves for Penn Station. I have 3 playlists for my commute that I go between, depending on my mood: 1. A mix of Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday for when I’m feeling romantic, which is more often than not. 2. Norah Jones, for when I’m feeling nostalgic. 3. A variety of pop music: Mumford & Sons, Lorde, The Lumineers, which basically covers all of my other moods.

9:00 am – Make a stop by one of Stone & Strand’s designers’ studios to pick up the jewelry for the day.

9:30 am – Grab my second cup of coffee at my favorite corner café in SoHo, Gasoline Alley, and go directly to the office to start the work day.

10:00 am – I start each day by spending 45 minutes on Stone & Strand’s Pinterest; pinning everything from new products on our website to fun and inspiring photos.

11:00 am – I begin each weekly photo shoot by setting up all of the jewelry that will be shot for the day. We start with on body photos and I’m proud to say I can officially add “hand model” to my resume. Complimentary weekly manicures have become a standard, a definite perk that I was not expecting; my go to color being Essie’s “Ballet Slippers.”

1:00 pm – We flex our creative muscle and take fun Instagram shots for the Stone & Strand account; playing with props, textures, themes, etc. We try to find inspiration in anything, from sassy colored lipstick tubes to old wooden doors on the streets of SoHo.

2:00 pm – Mid-day I’ll return to my desk to work on our current online marketing campaigns.  This could range from re-designing a product add for a Facebook campaign to completing a marketing analysis of a Retargeting campaign.

3:00 pm –Head with the team to a meeting with a potential new designer to check out his/her collection. It’s amazing how quickly one gets used to trying on $10,000 rings or $15,000 bracelets.  At any given moment I could have a hand full of Crow’s Nest Feather Rings on totaling over $50,000.

5:30pm – I leave the office to drop off the daily orders at USPS/FedEx/UPS and head uptown to attend a networking event. I’ll usually stop to grab a slice or two of pizza for dinner, after all it is NYC.

6:00 pm – While walking to the train, I make my daily “How was your day” phone call to my boyfriend, whom is 6 hours away in Pharmacy School.

7:00 pm – The networking event starts and I settle in sipping on a glass of complimentary wine and nibbling on some fruit and cheese. I have gotten to rub elbows with the Global Creative Director of Revlon Cosmetics, the co-founder of the marketing website Contently and one of the founders of EasyBib, just to name a few.

9:00 pm – After the event wraps up I head to Penn Station to catch my train home. I normally very happily get a cup of coffee from Dunkin Donuts; a medium French Vanilla with skim milk – in case you were wondering.  If I’m feeling wild, sometimes I switch to Hazelnut.

About the Author:

My name is Julia Lucia. I am a senior Italian Literature and Language Arts Major at Binghamton University, State University of New York; however, all of my experiential education has been in the fields of marketing and business development.  Currently I am the Marketing Intern at Stone & Strand, the world’s leading online fine jewelry destination, based in NYC. Upon graduation in May, I hope to pursue a career in social media and communications. My ultimate career goal is to combine both my traditional education in Italian Literature and Language and my experiential education in marketing.

The post A Day in the Life of a NYC Fashion Intern appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

“You have to sacrifice to be successful” is the career mantra for Celeste Northern, the current Retail Events Assistant at a megabrand luxury jeweler. To get to her position, she left her job at a media firm in Detroit, swapping financial security for a chance to make it in New York. We spoke to Celeste about making the leap from internship to full-time, moving to the Big Apple, and her advice for current internship seekers.

With a passion for event planning and fashion, Celeste realized that while her job at the media firm was stable, she needed to move into a different sector. Celeste researched a university and moved to Italy to obtain a Master’s Certificate in Fashion Management and Luxury Goods. Armed with a background in Spanish and Rosetta Stone, she began to pick up Italian. “I’m a close-knit person, so it was difficult during the holidays,” she recalls. “I knew it was temporary, but I also knew it was something that I would have to experience to be the person I wanted to be.”

After earning her certificate, Celeste returned to her job for a year before shipping out to New York City. “I walked into it knowing that it wasn’t going to be easy,” she says. “People move to New York to pursue their career aspirations – I looked at that as motivation; when you see people working hard, you work just as hard, if not harder.”

Celeste began to help with her friends’ companies, recognizing that she would have to work from the bottom up, and that advancement would require a few steps back. Celeste took smart, calculated career moves. When she heard about the Global Marketing and Communications internship with her current company, she did a little research about the educational opportunities built into the program and the work environment. Celeste landed the position and worked for five months under the Vice President of Marketing and Communications.

Celeste’s hard work paid off. “Then [my supervisor] pulled me into her office,” she says, “and asked, ‘What is it you want to do?’ I said I wanted to translate over to the Events Department, and she said, ‘As soon as I find a new assistant, I will transition you over to them.’ I was lucky; some people don’t care about your goals.” After being promoted to the Events department, Celeste found that her work in marketing had been excellent preparation: “Because I worked under the VP, I was exposed to different arenas of the company, so I knew how to get quicker results. It was awesome to transition from intern to salaried employee. It added value to my current position.”

“When you’re working towards a goal, naturally you want to see results. You want to know what the next step will be,” says Celeste of her career path. “But living [in New York] has definitely taught me to be much more patient. It was all about timing. I had to determine where specifically I wanted to be, and [my supervisor] was willing to help me get there.”

“My mom would ask, ‘Why are you an intern when you graduated from one of the best universities in the country?’ But my dad always told me, ‘Only gravediggers start at the top,’” recalls Celeste.

From her experience, Celeste has seen the professional value of internships rising—and with it, the ratio of paid to unpaid internships. “Unpaid internships are dying out now—and companies are now offering other incentives like offsetting travel costs or giving you a lunch stipend,” she says. “It’s definitely a bonus. There should be some type of compensation so you can focus on the internship, and not how you’re going to alleviate financial constraints. Juggling work takes away from the experience, but sometimes that’s a sacrifice people have to make.”

For fashion internship hopefuls, Celeste offers sound advice: “It’s really important to understand that any career move is going to be a journey. No results that are instant are going to be valuable to the future you. Get around your financial situation and be persistent, especially in the fashion industry. The people who prevail are the ones who stay on the path and focus on the goal.”

The post Interview with Celeste Northern: Former Intern Turned Retail Events Assistant at Luxury Brand appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.

Last year, Parsons graduate Natalia Allen set out to find a creative solution to the ugly side of fashion. Alarmed by the toxic materials, worker abuses, and waste of natural resources characteristic to garment production, she founded the eponymous fashion-tech startup Natalia, Inc., which produces a line of innovative and socially responsible clothing for modern women. All of Allen’s stunning minimalist designs are manufactured in the US with zero-waste technology.

Natalia Inc. seeks interns to fill roles ranging from social media and community management to fashion design and development. Motivated candidates with outstanding writing skills, social media savvy, and a detail-oriented mindset will set the curve. These are paid opportunities that place students at the nexus of high fashion, sustainable design, and technology. Not only that, but you’ll have a job with a designer whose talents have earned her distinctions such as Parsons Designer of the Year, World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, and one of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative.

Click here to see the full list of positions and apply to a company leading in chic sustainability.

The post Set Trends in Eco-Friendly Fashion with Natalia, Inc. appeared first on Job and Internship Advice, Companies to Work for and More | WayUp Blog.