Aubree Hanks-Witaszek ’17

How did you end up choosing your majors?

I really wanted to be an English teacher at the high school level so I chose psychology because you need that for the education track, and I chose english just because I love writing and reading. Eventually, I decided that I wanted to be an English professor at the college level instead, so I just stuck with those two things because they seemed to really lend themselves to the education career anyway. I feel like in college there’s a whole other level of wit that goes on,  you can be a lot more sassy. But then I decided that I didn’t really want to be a professor, and got interested in advertising, and English and psychology really lend themselves to that as well which was really fortunate.

How did you become interested in advertising?

My mom is a graphic designer, and I never wanted to be like her. I mean I love her, but I wanted to go my own way like a true Mount Holyoke student! We were in Australia on my study abroad in Queensland, and we saw this sign and it was the ugliest sign that I had ever seen! My mom was traveling with me and I was telling her how I could do so much better than that. She replied that she knew that I could because I had the graphic and writing and psychological skills to do it. I thought about it and I was like maybe this is actually what I want to do. I then got Lynk funding and got an internship at an ad agency and now I actually work there 20 hours a week!

Let’s talk some more about your study abroad in Australia!

I was at the University of Queensland and it was amazing! I don’t want to say that they’re less hardworking, but in my experiences I was able to socialize more, which should give you a reference point to how heavy my course load was. They do expect quite a bit from you, but it wasn’t the same intensity as Mount Holyoke. It was also nice to see something else, and it made me appreciate the tight-knit community at Mount Holyoke.

So you’re a SAW mentor. How do you feel like SAW has shaped you as a student, and how will it affect you in the future?

It has really affected my future! Because of SAW, I course mentored Speaking From Experience with Susan Daniels. It was a class all about speaking and how to gain confidence while speaking in front of a huge class. That really gave me the confidence to speak to any individual or to a group of 200 people, I know I can do it now because she taught us diaphragmatic breathing which slow your heart rate, what tone to use, how to engage an audience, so I think that really helped me with my speaking skills, which is also great for the work force. SAW also really helped me hone my grammar skills, because someone might ask me a question and I would have to go look it up, and you’re learning while they’re learning. I don’t know all the answers and it’s helped me become an adult. That’s adulting! No one’s going to know all the answers and sometimes you need to realize that it just takes a little bit of work.

Have you had any memorable internships?

The second to last one was an internship at Idea Agency in Massachusetts. It was an advertising agency and it was so cool. The president is an incredible woman who just knows her stuff about marketing and she realized that I didn’t know that much and she just took me on, which I was so grateful for. She just showed me all I need to know, and she treated me like an actual person, not just an intern. She had high expectations for me, which was great.

The internship that I had recently was at Marketing Doctor in Northampton, and that has been crazy. Recently I asked for a pay raise and title change because it wasn’t an internship anymore, it turned into a real job. It showed me where the standards lie on what work you’re providing, it showed me the boundaries on how you should be compensated, as well as your home and work boundaries. Internships are really important when you’re preparing for the “real world.”

I’m going to get a little sappy now because you’re graduating! What’s your favorite MoHo memory?

Honesty course mentoring for SAW because the students are amazing. You get huge insight into other people’s lives and you’re constantly with the same people working on their papers and you’re seeing them develop and you’re seeing how you had a hand in their development, and it’s amazing! You get so attached to the people because, I mean they go to Mount Holyoke, 99% of the population are just kick-ass people!

What do you think you’ll miss most about Mount Holyoke?

Definitely the people. Outside the bounds of Mount Holyoke, which are limitless of course, but outside the concrete bounds of Mount Holyoke there are way fewer passionate people, and there are way more people who aren’t willing to see past stereotypes.

What piece of advice would you give to a first-year student?

Don’t be something that you’re not. It may be really exciting to go to a party at UMass, but if you don’t feel like doing it, don’t do it! Someone might be pushing you saying that you have to do it, but no you don’t! If you are more comfortable being an introvert than that’s fine! People here at least will accept you, and if they don’t, don’t be friends with them! It’s okay, you’re not supposed to mesh with everybody. Be yourself, if something doesn’t feel right, do something different.

If you would like to write for Her Campus Mount Holyoke, or if you have any questions or comments for us, please email mt-holyoke@hercampus.com.

• advertising
• advice
• australia
• english
• psychology
• public speaking
• senior
• study abroad