In most every business, you learn by doing. The apprenticeship model is much more effective than the classroom for cultivating entrepreneurs.
Andrew Yang
Knowledge-based apprenticeships kickstart careers.
Peter Jones
From May 2020-July 2021, I participated in an apprenticeship program run by New Apprenticeship. Here’s what that journey looked like in a snapshot:
Now, my journey started immediately with full-time employment as a Content Specialist and Copywriter at Clear Design in San Antonio. Because my apprenticeship’s cohort began at the height of COVID-19 pandemic, we had to meet completely online which led to many memorable Zoom calls.
By the end of the apprenticeship, I completed 6 certifications, 49 competencies for the Department of Labor, 12 projects, and 1 elective… all while working a full-time job in digital marketing.
The apprenticeship was segmented into modules led by instructors who were experts in their fields. The twist? They weren’t marketing professors: they were real-life entrepreneurs working in digital marketing. Here were all of the modules and projects we worked on:
Digital Analytics
My project explored Google Analytics, Tag Manager, and more for CBI Group, a furniture dealer. I completed this project with the help of 2 other apprentices.
Scrum
As a cohort, we simulated a project management system while creating content for PureTec, a facemask manufacturer. I was the Product Owner.
Content Marketing
After creating a buyer persona and journey map for an ecommerce site called Juniper, we had to create videos using Premiere Pro to accomplish a business objective.
(This was my very first time using it. If you need a laugh, below is one of my videos.)
Social Media
For this project, I made a social media campaign for a new product on Juniper: a raw steel frame. Below are 2 of my social media posts I proposed. (The company decided to let me post the 1st one!)
SEO
Back to CBI Group, I performed a manual audit of their website and created a plan to improve their overall SEO.
Google Ads
I created a pitch/plan to use paid ads for PureTec, the PPE company. Below is a Loom video just going over the executive summary of my plan.
Excel
I told the story of Clear Design’s social media in 2020 through spreadsheets and graphs. Instead of looking through that whole document, below is a quick video where I talk you through it.
Data Science
We learned Tableau in this module to produce interactive data visualization. I loved it! Here’s a link to my dashboards I created for Evoque Group and below are screenshots of some of them.
UX/UI
For this project, I came up with a plan for a better user experience when viewing my portfolio website (this one!). As you may notice, my site has changed drastically since I completed this project.
Web Development
In this module, we learned coding, HTML, CSS, and a splash of Javascript. The final project for this module was the website you’re currently looking at!
Automation
For this project, I created email workflows and a campaign plan for Juniper using Klaviyo. I also got a Hubspot email marketing certifcation and a Klaviyo product certification.
Digital Strategy
Last, but certainly not least: my favorite module! For this project, I created a robust digital strategy using several digital mediums to increase CBI Group’s brand awareness. I also did my elective in Digital Strategy to create a pitch for a Juniper campaign.