Georgia Harmos's Marketing and Entrepreneurship studies have taken her from Otago to a career with a leading US fashion design brand.
At Kate Spade New York, Georgia and her team manage all customer-facing creative work, from ad campaigns and photoshoots to emails and events, and the company's Instagram account.
While Georgia initially wanted to work in music marketing she found she didn't have the skillset or interest to specialise in a dedicated music degree, so was pleased she could add an Entrepreneurship minor to her Marketing studies.
“It felt like a great way to learn about a lot of different areas of business and the industries I was interested in.”
Georgia says Entrepreneurship classes were among her favourites at Otago, and the “real-life case studies and assignments” were all relevant after she graduated.
“My studies gave me knowledge to be confident in interviews and understand the work I was applying for. I also gained work experience through my degree, and we learned about and developed real business models and marketing plans – so I felt prepared.”
Georgia moved to New York soon after graduating and has been there for almost seven years. Her first job was as a creative project manager at a small digital design agency, which was started by New Zealanders.
“Coming from New Zealand, with a degree from Otago, was a huge plus for my first job – I met my first boss at a New Zealanders in NYC networking event.
Everyone has such a positive association with the University of Otago, and I think even just being able to finish a degree, no matter how relevant it is to the field you end up in, is super important to employers.”
Georgia says Entrepreneurship offers a “super unique opportunity” to learn from other students, and from group assignments.
“It can be easy to sit back and expect someone else to pick up the slack but the skills I gained at Otago through group projects prepared me most for my current role.”
