Vicky, 31 - Senior Account Manager

I manage creative campaigns for fashion, culture and lifestyle brands. My role includes building genuine relationships with clients, managing campaigns from the initial project brief to delivery, and developing original, creative ideas.

A-levels

English, Psychology, Photography, Maths

Degree

First 2 years - Advertising and Marketing Communications at University of the Arts London
Final year - Advertising and Marketing Communications at University of Hertfordshire

How I got to where I am now

I left college and was unsure of what I wanted to do and whether I wanted to go to university

I fell into a job at Addison Lee, initially in the call centre and then was promoted to Quality Assessor

After two years, I realised I wasn’t fulfilled and decided I wanted to go to university to study Advertising & Marketing Comms. I continued to work at Addison Lee while completing my degree

After graduating, I secured a role as a Research Executive at an insight agency and was promoted to Senior Research Executive after two years. I stayed in this role for a further two years.

Although insight and understating what makes consumers tick has always interested me, at this point in my career, I was keen to pursue a more creative role

I moved on to become an Account Manager at a creative out-of-home Agency and was promoted to Senior Account Manager after two years

My big tip...

Don’t feel like you have to know what you want to do. Most people don’t when they finish college. If you’re unsure, consider studying a subject that interests you, rather than putting pressure on yourself to know what you want to do, or being influenced by others. Alternatively, taking some time out to decide what you want to study can be really beneficial. The two years I took out before going to university really helped me in terms of understanding the working world better and realising what interested me (and what didn’t!). When deciding what degree to do, I was anxious that the choices I made would shape my whole future. Although my degree gave me a great head start and some invaluable tools to enter the working world, I have had the opportunity to work in very varied roles which have not been dictated by the degree I chose. Years later I have realised, doing something you love (or at least like a lot!) is what matters.