Marketing Himself

“The day I received my acceptance letter was one of the happiest days of my life,” says M.B.A. – Marketing student Tre’ Rogers. The acceptance letter he refers to is, of course, from New York Tech.

Rogers is from the Sunshine State—Jacksonville, Fla., to be exact—but it’s always been his dream to live in New York City. After earning his bachelor’s degree in public relations from the University of West Florida (UWF), Rogers decided to take his academics one step further and get his master’s degree. With his big city dreams, it was only natural that he would seek to do it on New York Tech’s campus in the Big Apple.

The hustle and bustle of the city has not distracted him from his studies, though. At the end of January 2023, Rogers was awarded the $1,000 Harold and Muriel Berkman Charitable Foundation Marketing Scholarship. Associate Professor of Management and Marketing Studies Colleen Kirk, D.P.S., had encouraged her students to apply for the opportunity, and Rogers did not hesitate.

Presented to undergraduate or graduate students who are U.S. citizens pursuing a degree in marketing at an Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accredited college, the scholarship funds may be used at the recipient’s discretion.

“I plan to use the scholarship money toward my career goals, such as paying for networking event admissions and purchasing corporate attire, as I plan to enter the workforce as soon as possible,” says Rogers, who expects to graduate in May 2023. “Being selected to receive this scholarship still feels very surreal and is a testament to the hard work and dedication I have put into my studies.”

Rogers says he was intrigued by advertisements and marketing strategies from a young age. Seeing a print ad or watching a commercial and dissecting the presentation for its message, target market, and effectiveness became something of a hobby. His involvement in UWF’s on-campus organizations—like the Campus Activity Board, the African American Student Association, and his fraternity Phi Beta Sigma, where he “always came up with successful unorthodox ideas to promote our events”—solidified his interest in the marketing profession.

After he receives his master’s degree, Rogers hopes to work in television marketing, specifically for shows and mini-series available via streaming services. With this interest in the digital field, he recently finished a project for his international marketing class, where he studied a research paper about the implementation strategies of businesses entering global markets. The paper suggested businesses should begin utilizing virtual reality technologies and tools as marketing strategies. The project concluded with Rogers and his classmates creating avatars in a mirror world (the real world in a digital format) and gathering in an online office space to simulate what it would be like to operate in a world that is completely online.

In 2022, Rogers attended the International Radio & Television Society (IRTS) Foundation’s Multicultural Career Workshop in New York City, where he met professionals in the field, gained industry insights, and explored potential career opportunities. He hopes to be a 2023 IRTS fellow in the summer, where he will have the opportunity to participate in a full-time internship and receive professional development.

“Always believe in yourself and your capabilities,” Rogers advises students who wish to pursue a career in marketing. “Your capabilities got you this far and will take you where you want to be; you just have to believe first.”