From intern to marketing pro

Story courtesy of Show Me Mizzou

When Ty Small graduated from the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business in December 2022, he had more than a degree to show for his time at the University of Missouri. He had a portfolio of projects — many of which are regularly viewed by thousands of Mizzou fans, community members and potential students.

For the final two years of his college career, Small served as an intern for the Mizzou marketing team. He said his experiences in the classroom and through his internship helped him quickly land a job as a recruiter in the financial division of Beacon Hill Staffing in St. Louis.

An integral part of the team

As an intern, Small contributed to some of Mizzou marketing’s biggest projects from the past year including commercials, digital ad campaigns and even a feature episode in Amazon Prime’s “The College Tour” — a project he said was one of his favorites.

Filming for the show took place during Small’s final Mizzou Homecoming weekend. His responsibilities as part of the behind-the-scenes crew included assisting with campaign planning, copywriting, data analysis and more.

“The process behind brainstorming Mizzou’s episode of ‘The College Tour’ — all the way to seeing it being filmed — totally sum up why I loved working for Mizzou Marketing,” Small said. “I really enjoyed putting our ideas into action. It was neat seeing the things that we brainstormed on paper being made into reality.”

When Small wasn’t working on larger projects, he was developing digital ads based on his own concepts for the university’s annual marketing campaigns geared toward prospective students.

“I worked with other interns to brainstorm content then we’d film our ideas around campus,” Small said. “We also designed ads for platforms like Google and Facebook and I got to dive into Google Analytics to review their performance.”

Using the marketing techniques he learned in his classes at the business school, Small was able to hone his skills in the real world and see the impact of his work — all before he graduated.

A team player

During his two-year tenure on the marketing team, Small was given similar responsibilities to full-time staff — offering an in-depth, hands-on learning experience. He approached the job with determination.

“Ty showed up every day with an incredible work ethic and great attitude,” said MU Marketing Director Jaime Morgans. “He also was able to provide our team with a really valuable point of view. Ty took his perspective as a student and applied it to our work — making it that much more engaging to our audiences. We were so lucky to be able to have Ty on our team, and I can’t wait to see what he accomplishes as a Mizzou graduate.”

Learning through experience is an essential part of any Tiger’s time at Mizzou, an opportunity that leads to achievement beyond the classroom and sets students up for success after graduation. Small said that the time management and organization skills he sharpened during his time at Mizzou marketing have been instrumental in his career so far.

“My full-time position is pretty fast paced and staying on top of what I have to do on a daily basis is crucial,” Small said. “The experience I received with deadlines and project schedules during my internship has helped so much.”

Students looking to build real-world skills for their resume beyond Mizzou’s hands-on curriculum are encouraged to explore student employment opportunities available on campus. Handshake, a career-building platform just for Tiger students and alumni, is a great place to start.

“I’m so glad I sought out an on-campus internship,” Small said. “Being able to see behind the scenes of the marketing process for a flagship university such as Mizzou was extremely valuable and just as enjoyable. I saw myself grow and encourage others to take advantage of similar opportunities.”