By Sophia Bock
For Florida State University English alumna Keira Jackson, attending FSU was her dream as early as the seventh grade. A friendly sibling rivalry fueled that flame.
“I have a brother who's four years older than me, and he went to the University of Florida,” Jackson says, “and we've always been rivals, just that sibling rivalry—he went to UF, I'm going to go to FSU.”
Jackson graduated with her Bachelor of Arts degree in December 2022. English majors in higher education are frequently told that teaching is the most feasible path for a profession after graduation. Career counselors and hiring firms tell a different story, though, and Jackson’s concentration for English degree—editing, writing, and media—helps to broaden the choices, she says.
“When I first started at FSU, I wanted to be a writer, so I said, ‘OK, I'm going to major in journalism,’” she says. “FSU doesn't have a journalism school, though, so, the closest degree to that was going through the English-EWM route.”
Experiences that students choose after their time as an undergraduate at FSU further expand the possibilities for English majors. For example, Jackson chose to pursue a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing and Management Communication at FSU.
She will walk across the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center stage on Saturday evening, May 4, with her fellow College of Communication & Information graduates to receive that diploma.
From Orlando to Tallahassee and back to Orlando
Jackson grew up in the Central Florida area, where she worked during the Spring 2024 semester as a Global Strategic Partnerships Intern at Universal Destinations and Experiences in Orlando. The internship ended April 19, and the company hired her for a full-time position.
Attending FSU for her undergraduate and graduate studies—she also earned certificates in Multicultural Marketing Communications and in Project Management—was not too far of a move for Jackson, and she is now once again part of a community she built before leaving for Tallahassee.
In high school, Jackson worked as a balloon handler at Universal Studios. Employed seasonally, she grew to love and appreciate the job and the theme park community, especially those people who worked with her.
“Universal has always felt like a second family to me,” she says. “Everyone is just so kind and super helpful. And it's just this place of fun, you know?”
Returning to the park “was like a full circle, and it feels like a boomerang moment, being back but on the corporate side and doing something that I'm really passionate about,” she adds.
Jackson works in the office of Strategic Partnership and Communications for Universal, and she explains how her role involves several different aspects of the process, including a lot of management.
“The work is a lot of managing relationships, being a liaison in the front and in the middle,” she says. “Taking the notes we get back from the marketing team, and then presenting this to the project creator. I also strategize how to attract a partner and what a marketing campaign for the partner will look like. Then, I am there during the presentation to take notes and to make sure the plans are implemented.
“My job is never doing the same thing—every day it’s always different.”
Jackson has a lot of face-to-face interaction with clients and her supervisors, even to a global extent, as she is working with partners in Hollywood, Japan, and Singapore. She hopes to work in the future with projects more closely related to her master’s degree.
“I would like to go more into the integrated marketing and communication side, which is more dedicated on the campaign from start to finish,” Jackson says. “I would look at insights, talk to consumers, do studies, talk to people in the park, then make a great and successful campaign.”
Her transition from high school to college
While Jackson’s experience with Universal and her work in marketing is extensive, there is no specific influence in her upbringing as to why Jackson chose to pursue this career or even her bachelor’s degree in English. None of Jackson’s immediate family members work in this career field or followed a higher education path, although she appreciates that their support is unwavering.
“Every opportunity, every internship I've ever done influenced me to want to learn as much as I could in the moment—how I can leverage this skill that I have to get to the next opportunity,” she says.
When Jackson was at FSU as an undergraduate, she felt aligned with the English-EWM track, noting specifically the Writing and Editing in Print and Online course she took with Rhetoric and Composition Assistant Professor Jaclyn Fiscus-Cannaday as one of her favorites. The end-of-the-semester project allowed Jackson to flex her creative muscles. Her student group, with Jackson as the creative director, built a website centered on beauty and fashion.
“A lot of people don't understand that English courses, especially those on the EWM track, are not just discussion based,” Jackson says. “I think that's little bit of a misconception. You really get to spark a lot of creativity through different courses.”
Jackson recognizes that the three undergraduate concentrations in English—Literature, Media, and Culture; Creative Writing; and EWM—all offer distinct learning, but there is overlap among the courses, something students can benefit from to tailor their educational participation in the department.
Like most students in her graduating class of Fall 2022, Jackson had unprecedented experiences at FSU because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A seemingly short break from in-person classes during the spring of 2020 turned into a unique schooling environment for her and her peers as regulations changed and became stricter.
“I was used to being in person and having in-class discussions,” Jackson says. “The situation was a little weird. We’re just sitting there, on a camera, and the instructors want you to be more interactive. Some of us don't have our cameras on, we’re muted, some of us are asleep; that time was very difficult.”
The obstacles did not slow Jackson’s ambition, though, as she steered toward her current position with Universal.
“I made the decision to take more control,” she says. “I asked myself, ‘where do I want my career to go.’ I can't just be doing accidental things or things that don't connect, everything needs to be intentional.”
She began writing for Her Campus FSU to turn out weekly articles about fashion, entertainment, and one titled “Why You Should Pick FSU.” She enjoyed working on assignments for her writing-intensive courses. And Jackson moved her writing into a new sphere of media and communication.
She took on an internship role as social media coordinator, working with the English department and Media Specialist Jack Clifford during the Spring 2022 semester.
“I helped start a Black History Month awareness campaign on Instagram,” Jackson recalls. “Every week we would highlight a famous black writer, the books they had written, with a little background on them. I also helped restart the platform’s Meet the Intern series.”
Jackson also continued to hone her journalism skills with an article about a two-day symposium celebrating the life and work of Toni Morrison, organized by English faculty members Professor Maxine Montgomery and Associate Professor Alisha Gaines. Jackson interviewed Montgomery and the symposium speakers for her story.
Another intentional experience Jackson took on was a summer 2022 job as digital marketing coordinator for RB Oppenheim Associates, a Tallahassee-based marketing-communications, advertising, and public relations counseling firm.
While there is not one specific course or experience during her time as an undergraduate at FSU that mimics the work Jackson does with Universal, the skills she acquired and polished in those three-and-a-half years contribute to what she’s doing now. “I think it's definitely just a combination of everything that I learned,” she says.
Graduate school and an enhanced perspective
Jackson finished the coursework in August 2023 for both her graduate certificates—in Multicultural Marketing Communication, through FSU’s Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication, and in Project Management, through Distance @ FSU.
Her multicultural marketing communication certificate especially helped Jackson to expand her awareness and to understand the facts surrounding what the world looks like and will look like multiculturally in the future. Adapting with change is a key part of her position with Universal Studios and for her personal navigation in life.
I think being a black, young girl going to college, also going to a predominately white institution, I had different communities around for me to feel seen and heard. And that was great. At some universities, not everyone has that, and a person of color might not have those opportunities.
— Keira Jackson
“Always keeping diversity in mind, being connected authentically with different cultures and communities, should drive how I think brands can communicate with their consumers,” Jackson says. “You have to know who your consumer is and what they enjoy.”
Jackson’s chosen career and the world of marketing are entwined with the subjects of community and culture, which are immensely important aspects of her job.
“I think being a black, young girl going to college, also going to a predominately white institution, I had different communities around for me to feel seen and heard,” she says. “And that was great. At some universities, not everyone has that, and a person of color might not have those opportunities.”
At FSU, she adds, those communities and ideals are fully supported, “not just for show, it was the real deal. That has influenced my values. Diversity is very important.”
Though she is still new to the job market and the corporate world, Jackson has advice for undergraduate or graduate students who are nervous about their next steps outside of academia. From focusing on individual goals to keeping people in your corner for help with future employment, Jackson has learned a lot since she left high school in Orlando.
“Make a list for your dream job, the industry you want to work in and some of the responsibilities, because that is important information to know,” she says. “Also having people in the room to speak and attest to not only your caliber of work but also your personality, your values, who you are as a person is very important because that can determine if you get that opportunity to interview with these companies.”
Jackson acknowledges that imposter syndrome might be a stressor recently graduated students grapple with as they break into the job market. She understands that condition well.
“I think that's something that is not talked about enough, and it is so okay to fail,” she says.
The entire college-to-career experience is stressful, she adds.
“But work your butt off even if it is an internship—work like it's a full-time job,” Jackson advises. “Your supervisors will see your hard work. And sometimes you have to fake it until you make it.”
Jackson has “made it” with Universal, and her commitment to community, culture, and diversity is sure to bring a positive addition to her work environment, as she continues a career path she feels truly called to pursue.
Sophia Bock is an English major on the editing, writing, and media track, with a minor in anthropology. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts degree at the end of the Spring 2024 semester.
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