by James Richardson

Created on: June 19, 2008   Last Updated: October 25, 2011

In the days and months leading up to college, if you are a student interested in pursuing marketing and advertising as a major consider these key points:

• Advertising agencies, in-house marketing departments, and the industry in general do not always operate on a typical 9-5 schedule. Are you ok with the non-traditional work hours?

• When a big project for a major account is due, long hours are often the norm. An advertising/marketing executive needs to be prepared for overtime at the office.

• Ad agencies in general tend to have an off-the-wall sort of culture. While some are still suit-and-tie traditional, many ad agencies have loose dress codes (at least by corporate standards), wacky paint schemes, and a general air of whimsy. The reason for this is to promote a sense of fun and creative "free thinking" within bounds of corporate culture.

So after getting a little background on what the advertising and marketing "real world" is all about, is your appetite whetted for a career in this industry? If so, then read on.

Creativity is a must in the advertising and marketing industry. Think about ads you've seen that have caught your attention. Whether it's the famous Geico gecko, the Aflac duck (I don't know why animals appeal to insurance ads so much!), or the dancing iPod silhouettes - all of these have required a strong creative direction in order for them to reach outside the clutter of ads, capture the viewers attention, and most importantly, be memorable. If you're a highly creative type that enjoys thinking outside the box and dreaming up completely off-the-wall concepts, then the advertising and marketing field may be a perfect match for you.

How does one break into this demanding, exciting, and dynamic field? A college degree, preferably of the four-year persuasion, is a good starting point. Many colleges offer programs under guises such as marketing, advertising, and/or public relations. To further complicate things, these programs are often packaged as an area of specialization under the general Communications degree(s).

The aforementioned three areas used to be separate entities for organizations, but most are now united under a concept called Integrated Marketing Communications, or IMC for short. The reason for unification: each one of these three concepts complements the other in a firms overall marketing scheme, hence the pull today toward integration.

So if you've chosen a college with a solid communications/advertising/marketing/public

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