Tyler Witkin
Listen to the interview (approx. 44 min) or download it.
Graduated in 2006 with a major in Professional Music. Principal Instrument: Voice
Position: Marketing Strategic Planner at The Community, a 100+ person multi-cultural advertising agency based in Miami.
Overview: Tyler had trouble finding work after graduation, so she moved home to Miami. She asked to volunteer at the local United Way as a way to keep busy, but she hit it off with the person there and was offered a job marketing and promoting a new educational program! During her 3 years there Tyler rose to communications manager. To advance her career, she got a Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University in Chicago. She figured out that she liked marketing strategy, Her internship at DraftFCB while in grad because a job after she prevailed in an extremely competitive hiring process. She stayed two years, then followed her boss to another agency. Tyler then moved back to Miami to be closer to her family and fiance. She initially started a consulting agency focused on non-profits, but found it tough to make money, so she looked for other work. Finding out that a former coworker from DraftFCB worked with The Community, she got him to introduce her and was offered a job shortly thereafter.
You can see Tyler’s LinkedIn page here.
Choice Quotes: “I’ve always enjoyed writing. Had I not gone to Berklee I’d have majored in psychology. My job is a combination of psych, writing, and a sort of puzzle of how to creatively express all the pieces required. I found a role that let me use what I’m good at and enjoy doing.”
“A lot of marketing strategy is story telling.”
“Many careers involve giving a lot of presentations. It’s really similar to the music performances and labs which we all do at Berklee.”
See the full index of successful Berklee grads interviews.
Tyler snowboarding. Tyler loves to travel and learn new things. She has similar advice: “Be open to everything! Pursue interests. Collect experiences. You don’t know what you might stumble on and love.”
Tyler as a Berklee student, singing with the Bob Marley Ensemble. “If your’e a singer you’ll always carry it with you. Music is in my heart and soul, and it’s part of my identity.”
Tyler still loves music, and even uses it a bit in her job, such as when she co-writes advertising jingles.