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From Learner to Marketer: Gracia

From Learner to Marketer: Gracia

Who & why it matters

Last week we hosted Gracia Novoa, an Organic Media Manager at Fox Agency and Leeds MSc alumna in Consumer Analytics & Marketing Strategy, to share the realities of breaking into marketing in the UK and thriving once you’re in. For students and recent grads, her journey demystifies what hiring managers actually value, the tools that matter, and how AI is reshaping day‑to‑day marketing work.
The session was run by Experiential Academy, the UK's first platform where students and grads will train on real consulting‑style marketing experience with live UK business projects.
Gracia's Recording

Job hunt & early‑career mindset

Expect a more rigorous UK process and a different communication culture.
For many international grads, the UK hiring journey feels unfamiliar; more structured assessments, more barriers for international students, and careful, context‑aware communication with employers. That adaptation is part of the learning curve.

Start earlier than you think.
Gracia wishes she had begun career prep even sooner than dissertation time. Early preparation compounds. Understanding timelines, building a professional network, and practising communications all matter.
 
Own the transition from student to professional.
Once you get into a project or a role, you’ll feel a jump in responsibility.
Managing your time, setting your own deadlines, and delivering work that represents the business. Feeling nervous is normal; proactively check understanding with managers and colleagues, and be patient with the inevitable platform/process learning curve.
We help you start early with structured, real projects; so when interviews come, you’re talking through evidence, not hypotheticals.

Skills Beyond University

University gives a strong foundation in marketing principles, but platforms and tactics move faster than curricula. The two differentiators Gracia highlighted:

  • Adaptability & continuous learning: be ready to learn new channels, tools, and ways of working as they ship. 
  • Professional communication: Explain performance and trade‑offs in plain English to non‑technical stakeholders who make decisions. This is a learned, practised skill

 

Practical platforms to learn (Gracia’s “core three”)

If you only have time for a short list, make it these:

  1. Google Analytics 4 (GA4): Everything rolls up to the website. Learn to read, interpret, and present performance. You can study and certify for free.
  2. Paid Social Managers: Especially Meta and LinkedIn (add TikTok for B2C). Even if you start in organic, understanding paid planning and measurement increases your value.
  3. Looker Studio: Turn multi‑source data into clear dashboards that tell a story for stakeholders. Your outputs should be understandable in one glance.

AI & your early career

Marketing platforms are becoming AI‑native.

Search and social increasingly keep users inside the platform (AI answers, native shopping, conversational interfaces). The traditional “awareness → consideration” journey is collapsing right where the user is, and marketers must adapt strategy, content, and measurement to that reality.

 

Rethink how you prove value.

In a market where many feel opportunities have contracted sharply over the last two years, relying on a CV alone is naive; outcomes are increasingly shaped by demonstrable work and trusted, professional relationships. What wins attention is evidence: campaigns run, dashboards shipped, and results explained clearly.

Final Thoughts

Gracia’s path confirms what forward‑looking students and graduates already know: early preparation, adaptability, and crisp communication matter more than ever. Above all, evidence beats claims, and the fastest way to build that evidence is by doing real work.

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