Who better to sell the advertising university experience than advertising students?
As part of our celebration of 50 Years of Advertising Education, the Ad Student X TikTok Competition was launched to inspire the next generation of students.
Motivated by a funny TikTok video created by and starring Paul Nagy, Chief Creative Officer VML, Advertising majors were encouraged apply what they’d learned in their copywriting class and enter.
Their task was to create a TikTok video to inspire high school students to make an advertising major their first preference for university education. The students reflected on the fun of university, the value of their studies, their friendships, why they chose to study advertising, and then brought it all together in a creative 60 second video.
The judging panel included experts on the industry, TikTok and student recruitment. Lead by Gai Le Roy, CEO IAB Australia, it also included the insight and experience of Paul Nagy, Chief Creative Officer VML, Smaran Jworchan, TikTok and Xavier Amouroux, Executive Director Marketing and Student Recruitment QUT.
Gai said, “I can think of no better way to celebrate 50 years of advertising education in Australia than encouraging students to showcase their creativity by displaying what it is like to be an advertising student in 2024”.
The national winner was Marika Tsourekis, a second year Bachelor of Media and Communications student from Swinburne University.
The judges said Marika “used the Tiktok platforms and conventions well to garner attention”.
Marika was excited and honoured by the award. She said, “Participating in the Ad Student X TikTok Competition was an exciting opportunity that pushed me out of my comfort zone to create a TikTok as a useful means of communication. By challenging myself to partake in the competition, I have learnt how valuable it is to utilise TikTok as a platform to express my creative ideas.”
Swinburne Advertising Lecturer and Academic Lead for Victorian competition entrants, David Reid, says the competition ignited a spark in the next generation, showcasing how creativity can drive real-world impact.
“By crafting captivating TikTok videos targeting prospective students, current university students successfully promoted advertising undergraduate study at universities across Australia, unveiling the exciting career paths awaiting them in the dynamic world of advertising.”
Three other state winners were announced. Damien Vo, from the Queensland University of Technology was the Queensland winner. Natasha Chilvers from UTS was the NSW winner. Zoe Langtry from Edith Cowan was the WA winner.
You can view a mashup of the winning videos here:
Xavier Amouroux, Executive Director Marketing and Student Recruitment QUT, and member of the Judging Panel said, “I am truly impressed by the creativity and insight demonstrated by the students in the Ad Student X TikTok Competition, reflecting their strong grasp of the brief and innovative use of the TikTok medium”.
The prize was an internship with a leading agency in each state. Thanks to VML Brisbane, Innocean NSW, the Advertising Council’s Jump Start Grad programme in WA and Cummins&Partners Victoria.
The competition brought together academics leads in all four states – David Reid at Swinburne University of Technology, Andrew McCowan at UTS, Kelly Choong at Edith Cowan and Shasha Wang at QUT – to promote the competition to academics and students and reach consensus on its operation and outcomes.
They worked with competition organizer, Professor Gayle Kerr from QUT. Gayle said, “The best thing about this competition is that it allows students to make an impact on the industry before they even graduate.”
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