2010-2009

Heather Klein

NEW! Great news from Heather: I hope all is well at the Ivy Group! I am just finishing up my summer internship doing a Flash animation for a financial company and also getting ready for grad school in 2 weeks! I got in to VCU Brandcenter for Creative Technology :). Basically I will using Flash, Dreamweaver, iPhone apps... and other technological stuff to represent brands. They describe it like those that came up with the idea for Nike+....the microchip in your shoe that talks to your iPod to play music but also to a network online to record your mileage and other running information. Going to Richmond in a week to take some "Coding Bootcamp" AHH! But I think it will be ok! Thanks so much for all of your support and help throughout the year. It was wonderful getting to know you and I hope to see you soon!

Heather Klein interned at The Ivy Group from August 2009 thru May 2010. During her time, Heather spearheaded many design and advertising projects and developed close relationships with local clients, specifically the retailers of the Seminole Square Shopping Center. For these 50 retailers, she and a small team launched the first annual Fall and Spring festival events which helped establish a place for the shopping center in the Charlottesville community. Heather was in charge of all graphic materials such as banners, signs, flyers, handouts, a store directory, and other promotional supplements. She also promoted city-wide marketing events such as food drives and a veterans. photography tribute.

It was through these experiences that she developed her love for design and advertising as well as her love for working with people. Her favorite part was during her 2nd semester when she had the opportunity to work with other interns to plan and promote the Spring festival. By working in this small group she learned how to communicate effectively, how to best manage deadlines between projects, and how to be detail-oriented. Heather also enjoyed having a wonderful mentor Ms. Jan Garrison, who taught her to never give up on her dreams and to live every day by the Golden Rule.

Heather graduated from UVA in May 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art and a Concentration in Digital Art/New Media. In August 2010, Heather will attend VCU Brandcenter, recognized as the number one graduate school in the U.S. for advertising and marketing, where she will work towards a Masters in Communication and Concentration in Creative Technology. She hopes to apply the marketing, digital, and teamwork skills learned at The Ivy Group to her pursuit of a career in the advertising world.

2008 - 2009

Jane Scudder

I wanted to send you an email to say hello and to wish you and everyone at The Ivy Group Happy Holidays!

I'm about to hit my 5 month anniversary of working at Capital One, and I have been loving every minute of it! I am an Associate in Brand Advertising and work on the creative development and production of TV, radio, print, online, and OOH advertisements for Capital One Bank. Every day is new and interesting, and the people I work with, both at Capital One and our agency partners, are wonderful. They have all been so helpful in teaching me and really are invested in seeing me grow and develop both within the company and personally.

I feel so lucky to be in a position like this right out of college, especially with the terrible job market we are in. When I think about how I got here I see my job and internship experiences as the biggest influencing factors. During this holiday season I wanted to pass along warm wishes to you all, but I also wanted to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for providing me with my internship last year. When I first saw the internship description in the spring of my third year in the UIP listings, I knew The Ivy Group was really the only company I saw myself interning for (I promise I'm not just saying that! - that really was what I thought!) and I remember being ecstatic when I was placed with you. Once the internship began I was even more thrilled that I was with you all because I was given the chance to participate in actual pieces of your business and trusted enough to interact and represent the company. In the UIP seminars we had each week I can't tell you how many students struggled with positions centered on filing documents and searching through databases ten hours a week. I am so appreciative that I was able to work with you all and learn during my ten months at The Ivy Group, what I learned during that time directly translates to my work today.

Thank you again, and please pass this email on to everyone.

Happy Holidays & Warmest Wishes,

Jane

Courtney Kessler

Courtney Kessler interned at The Ivy Group from October 2008 thru May 2009. During her time, Courtney worked closely with a local client, Blue Ridge Builders Supply, learning how to brand and market the three unique stores in the Blue Ridge area. By working closely with Blue Ridge Builders Supply, Courtney was able to build relationships with the client and local media contacts. She learned the importance of maintaining an organized marketing strategy and how to implement it effectively. Courtney's favorite part of working with BRBS was learning how to use different graphic design programs to design flyers and brochures for the company.

Courtney graduated from the University of Virginia in May 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies, minoring in Film Studies. Upon graduating from UVa, Courtney moved to Washington DC to take an internship with Levick Strategic Communications, a high-risk communication and crisis management public relations firm. Courtney hopes to pursue a career in Public Relations upon completion of her internship, using the marketing skills she learned at The Ivy Group to make herself a well-rounded candidate in the industry.

2007 - 2008

Agnes Lee

Agnes, graduate of the University of Virginia and former resident of many communities in Northern Virginia, tells us that the best part about working at The Ivy Group is “working with wonderful people and learning so much from them”. When not flattering her bosses, Agnes provides vital website development services—a shift from her initial interest in print design. Her most recent assignment was working on the new site for the Vietnam Children’s Fund, gathering content and ensuring the site is well-indexed. “I’ve learned teamwork, professionalism, and critical thinking are important to website development, and my new knowledge in software and applications are essential to my future career goals.”

2006 - 2007

Minji Lim

Minji Lim was an intern for The Ivy Group from the fall of 2006 to the spring of 2007. She lived in northern Virginia until sixth grade. She then spent her junior high years on a US military base in Yokosuka, Japan. She moved to Seoul, Korea for high school. Minji was a studio art major who graduated from the University of Virginia in 2007. She is currently the territory sales manager for Philip Morris USA and lives in Germantown, Maryland. In the future she hopes to obtain an MBA while still working at Phillip Morris. She hopes to combine her interests in travel, helping people, business management, and creativity/innovation for her future career goals.

One of her favorite aspects of her internship was being able to meet so many interesting, well-rounded individuals. She quoted, how "everyone in the office is super cool!" All of the other employees were happy to entertain the multitude of questions that came their way from Minji.

Before working at The Ivy Group, she thought she wanted to work more on the design side of marketing, being that she was an art studio major. However, as an intern she learned that she preferred the business side of marketing instead. She completely altered her career path from a "fine arts hippie" to a future MBA candidate. The Ivy Group gave Minji the basics of business, marketing, and advertising to give her an edge when searching for future employment.

NEW! A letter from Minji: Dear friends and family (i.e. VERY cool people), I'm excited to be traveling to India as a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity's Global Village program this coming winter. I'll be working side-by-side with people who need a decent place to live, helping to build simple, affordable houses.

Nick Duke

Nick Duke interned at The Ivy Group during the summer of 2007. A native of Charlottesville, VA, he currently attends Elon University in North Carolina. Graduating in May 2008 with a BA in Corporate Communications, Nick plans to move to New York City or Denver, Colorado to work for the US Olympics.

While working at The Ivy Group, Nick was able to explore both marketing and communications; this helped him narrow down his future career goals. Nick enjoyed working on remapping and designing the new website for the Cavalier Inn. Afterwards, he proudly showed a future employer an example of the work he had done for The Ivy Group.

Sarah Morra

Sarah Morra interned for The Ivy Group in the summer of 2007. Sarah grew up in Basking Ridge, New Jersey and is currently a student at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. She is majoring in psychology and has a minor in marketing. After she graduates in May 2008, she plans to work for a marketing or consulting firm and then go to graduate school for psychology or an MBA.

Sarah’s best experience as an intern was working directly with clients. For Paul D. Camp Community College, she was in charge of reorganizing the structure of the college’s current website and designing a new navigation scheme. Sarah enjoyed meeting the client face-to-face and discussing the work she had done.

Working at The Ivy Group was the first time Sarah felt that her courses in college were directly related to helping her achieve her future career goals. This motivated her to continue her interest in the marketing field.