UNC J-school students place 5th in national advertising competition

Students from the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media placed 5th in the final round of the American Advertising Federation's National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC), held June 10-13 in Las Vegas. 

 

This was the second year in a row that UNC's team advanced to the national finals. The team won first place in District 3 competition held April 3, in Raleigh, N.C., and earned a spot in the national finals after a round of semi-final judging May 5. Along with the seven other finalists, UNC pitched their 26-page advertising plan in front of representatives from Pizza Hut and their agency of record.

 

Associate professor Joe Bob Hester advises the UNC NSAC team. "To finish 5th in the country out of more than 140 teams competing is just outstanding," Hester said. "I am so proud of these students."

 

The team's project coordinator, Elyse Schaefer, noted that the NSAC experience led directly to her new job. She was told by a recruiter that "we look out for the NSAC participants for internships and jobs because we know they have a different level of experience." Schaefer, who started her job as a junior media associate with 360i in New York City on the Wednesday after the national finals, went on to say that "implementing all of the knowledge and interpersonal skills that NSAC has taught me for these past two years has made me stand apart in an extremely competitive field."

 

Team members include:

 

Taylor Baird

Sara Carter

Niland Daly

Sarah Delk

Alexandra Dempsey

Kathleen Doyle

Lauren Edwards

John Geraghty

Anne Lanier Gilbert

Alexandra Grimm

Yasamin Haghshenas

Katie McNulty

Emily Overcarsh

Breeze Riley

Angus Robertson

Elyse Schaefer

Janie Sircey

Dylan Simel

Emily Stallings

Samuel Sykes

Allison Wall

 

Each year, a corporate sponsor provides a case study outlining the history of its product and current advertising situation. The case study reflects a real world situation to challenge students' critical thinking abilities and creativity. Students must research the product and its competition, identify potential problems and develop an integrated communications campaign for the client. Each team then pitches its campaign to a panel of judges.