We are IMC

IMC students "live" IMC, through their coursework, alumni connections, global experiences and working with industry professionals on client projects. If marketing and communications are your thing, then Medill's IMC program is for you. 

Hear from: Erik Johns, MSIMC09

When Erik Johns visits a new city he likes to ask himself two questions:  How do people there move, and how do they eat?

In Hong Kong the answer is quickly and efficiently.

It’s an observation he was able to translate into a marketing strategy when he and four other Medill students spent spring break 2009 in Hong Kong. While there, they met with business professionals, government leaders and members of the tourism industry to devise a way to market the city as a center for both tourism and economic development.

“In our program there really is a heavy focus on consumer packaged goods … and the idea of marketing something less tangible like a city seemed an interesting opportunity,” Johns says.

The five students who traveled to Hong Kong weren’t given strict guidance ahead of time about how they should proceed, but their success has earned them a spot as an exhibition at the upcoming Hong Kong in Chicago 2009 Festival.

“I think that speaks highly of the respect that the school has for its students,” Johns said. “They’re not just willing to participate in a project like that but excited to do it.”

A former newspaper reporter, Johns wanted to continue writing but wanted to switch to a career in a slightly more stable industry.

“(IMC) seemed like the perfect middle ground between being a finance major … and being a reporter,” Johns said. “It straddled both of those worlds.”

Johns said he has appreciated the experience of his professors and the strength of the IMC curriculum. In addition, he found that Medill was one of very few programs that offers strong quantitative training in statistics and database analysis.

“Most people coming from undergrad experiences in journalism or communications or advertising don’t really have much of a math or statistical background, but if you want to excel in that field you have to know those things,” Johns says.

Johns graduates in December and is preparing for his summer residency where he’ll be doing internal communications and employee relations work.

“It is the first non-reporting type job that I’ve had so it’s a little scary, but I’m looking forward to it,” Johns says. The nice thing about how they have the residency program set up is, it’s set up to be a learning experience.”

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