Job Shadowing: Why RNL Helps the Next Generation

Admit it. You were young once. And when you were young, chances are you didn’t know what the future held. Enter job shadowing, a great way to explore careers and gain useful information about what it takes to succeed in different fields, according to Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. As a higher education marketing firm and award-winning design agency, RNL was an ideal choice as a job shadowing partner.

When Kirkwood helps connect classroom learning to real-world opportunities, the results speak for themselves:

• 98% of job shadow/internship students said their experience provided valuable information regarding their career interests.
• 67% said their experience positively influenced their decision to live and work in Iowa.

Job shadows give teens a sneak peek into what it’s like to work in a professional setting. They offer an opportunity to meet people, make connections, and potentially land internships or even future jobs.

Joining forces with RNL

Kirkwood’s Workplace Learning Connection first teamed with RNL’s content writing services and design strategy team six years ago to expose students to marketing for higher education and fundraising tactics.

As Kirkwood advertises the RNL virtual shadowing day: “Use your creative powers for good! The concept behind art and design is for people to react to your work. Get a positive reaction to a product and — boom! That’s marketing. Chat with graphic designers, content writers and web designers at Ruffalo Noel Levitz. Learn how they use their creative abilities to help you make one of the most important decisions of your lives—where to go to college.”

RNL’s expertise in higher education marketing helps colleges and universities effectively attract, engage, and enroll students. Our extensive experience in marketing strategy for fundraising benefits non-profits and universities. We believe sharing our collaborative and creative process encourages younger people to pursue rewarding careers at design and marketing agencies.

Each year, high school students from seven Iowa counties register to listen, ask questions, and seek guidance about future positions in marketing. In turn, RNL creative team members share our work and the reasons we chose our profession.

Helping the next generation

Jolie Baskett has been the glue for the RNL job shadow team for years—this year, Sarah Reimer and I also participated.

“Six years ago, I volunteered because I wanted to be the help that I needed when I was young,” she said. Since then, she has advanced from designer to senior designer to director of design.

“I love working with wonderful clients and brands and helping others. I want to help the next generation find their paths and be the best they can be,” she said. Personally, I am a former high school teacher and am passionate about writing and public speaking, so I raised my hand several years ago to share my enthusiasm for writing with these high school students. As I tell them, effective writing and clear communication are essential to every career.

Senior Designer Sarah Reimer enjoys working with RNL’s collaborative creative team. She wants high school students to know graphic design is a competitive industry, but there’s room for everyone.

“It’s important that we share our experiences and expertise with the next generation of creatives coming up, getting them excited to be creative as a career, learn about collaboration, and how to work on a team,” said Reimer. “Those are job skills they can apply anywhere.”

Listening and learning

During a 90-minute presentation, our RNL team shares our experiences and answers questions from students, ranging from broad queries like “What advice would you give an aspiring writer?” to much more specific questions like “How do you code for accessible web design?”

The proof is in the pudding. Here’s what three students had to say about our presentation:

• “I learned a lot about what specifically a creative marketing job would entail, and I also learned there are several different types of jobs within this field (coder, writer, designer).”
• “It helped me think of what classes I need to get into for different careers.”
• “I liked being able to ask questions about their day-to-day work and what exactly their responsibilities are.”

Refreshing perspectives

All three of us agree that seeing our experience through fresh eyes helps us appreciate our roles in a new perspective. Plus, when we help others, it’s a meaningful way to contribute to both the workforce and the community.

As we looked back through the years and considered ourselves as teenagers, we all had advice for our high school selves:

Baskett was an art kid her entire life and always had a drive to make the world a more beautiful place. To her teenage self, she’d say, “Believe in yourself.”

I knew I wanted to become a writer in fifth grade. I fell in love with feature writing and served as newspaper editor in high school. I’d tell my 17-year-old self: “You’re passionate about telling other’s stories. Do what you love.”

As for Reimer? Art wasn’t on her radar when she began college as a law enforcement major, before pivoting to graphic design. She would tell that college freshman: “You can make a career and support yourself being creative. Learn to be assertive, accept constructive criticism, and have fun letting that creative mind do its job!”