All through school I had this misconception that advertising and marketing was simply about making cool posters or producing neato commercials. I had no idea that advertising and marketing involved more than that…it involved know the ins and outs of communications.
It wasn’t until I was all growed up and thrown into the real world of advertising and marketing communications did I realized that the field dealt with not only pictures but with numbers as well. By then it was too late, I had to play some major catch-up with the folks who had years of schooling and experience in advertising and marketing communications.
So that you are prepared, I suggest looking at some under graduate or even graduate programs in college. You’ll find these typically in the schools of communications at many universities. Setting this as your core curriculum, you will have the choice to focus on either advertising or marketing communications, or even both!
You may find that a media communications course is a requisite in many of the advertising and marketing communications programs. This course usually examines communications theory and practical applications in the real world of mass media.
Regardless of the school you attend, courses in advertising and marketing communications will prepare you for the industry by teaching core concepts that are important to be successful.