This week’s Campus Profile is all about the stunning and ambitious Annette Lee! Previously working in close call with the Kardashian for Jenner Communications, Annette is a proud Pepperdine senior who is a go getter with a beautiful personality to match. Let’s read what she had to say!
Full Name: Annette Lee
Zodiac Sign: Leo
Major: Public Relations (Multimedia Design Minor)
Year: Senior
Sorority: Delta Delta Delta
How has coming to Pepperdine changed you as a person?
Pepperdine has put that ‘pep’ into my life by allowing me to become a more confident and determined individual while simultaneously uncovering my spontaneous and adventurous personality. The friends, staff, and professors here have pushed me out of my comfort zone in social and educational settings as they have challenged me to become a leader figure to those around. A lot of people on campus know me through my photography, which I never thought about getting into throughout college, but now I can’t imagine my Pepperdine experience or future without this skill. It’s because of the people at Pepperdine that have recognized this talent I didn’t know I had that is helping me build my career path and grow my favorite hobby.
And just like many other students, I like to keep myself busy and get involved in as many activities as I can both on and off campus; for me, this has definitely worked towards my advantage, especially in building relationships. Coming from the east coast, I didn’t know anyone in California but wanted to make lasting relationships out here through school, internships and jobs, which Pepperdine has successfully guided me in doing as I have engaged in various on-campus organizations and off-campus activities. As a high school senior and college freshmen, I never realized how important it was to have such a supporting community like the one Pepperdine has provided me, but as a college senior I can truly say that Pepperdine has given me life-changing experiences while acting as my second home.
If you could go back to Freshman year, how would you have done it all over again?
I wouldn’t change a thing! Sometimes I’d tell myself to change my major or join this club or apply to that internship but then I don’t know if I would’ve experienced some of the great memories I have now or would’ve met certain people that have greatly impacted my life over the course of these past few years. I learned to ‘let go and let God’ drive my life as I took the backseat at the beginning of college and learned from all of the experiences I’ve had while teaching myself how to better steer towards my goals and passions.
You previously worked for Jenner Communications, which is an amazing feat! What advice could you give other students who want to get into the same industry?
“Set a goal and do it,” that’s my motto. I have a go-getter personality and will do whatever it takes to reach my goals in life and I always tell people to just try whatever it is you want to achieve and go after it until you get it.
I thought Entertainment PR was my future but realized with the experiences I’ve had that this wasn’t where I wanted to go. In just under a year, I’ve interned with a Fashion/Beauty PR firm, a high-profile celebrity’s family, and a Strategic Communication PR team dealing with Entertainment, Sports and Lifestyle companies in addition to working with Getty Images photographers and up-and-coming talents. After all of this, I realized I wanted to change my career path from the entertainment world I came out for in L.A. I instead have uncovered a love for content creation and social media. I’ve been teaching myself different applications (such as Adobe Premiere and Adobe After Effects) that I didn’t learn at my countless internships or in the classroom, which will now add to my skill sets and put me closer to where I plan on going after graduation.
My advice to others: I believe that everything happens for a reason so keep your head up and strive for your dreams; you’ll get there eventually, or you may create new goals along the way. If you’re interested in getting into the entertainment industry whether it’s in PR, film, etc., you need to persevere through all the acceptances and rejections you may get and keep challenging yourself to becoming the best version of you there is and everything else will fall into place. If there are things you don’t know and/or don’t learn in school but are interested in studying, teach yourself or ask someone that knows more about your desired field and learn from them.
How has your sorority impacted your Pepperdine experience?
Getting involved on campus is a big part of any college journey and for me, joining Tri Delta has allowed me to meet people I wouldn’t have met on my own while giving me a new understanding of the word ‘community’. Pepperdine’s greek life isn’t what I expected when I first became a Wave. Everyone including those that do and don’t wear greek letters have all been a part of my home away from home and all have warmly invited me into their lives. Since joining Tri Delta, I have been able to stand as a leader in various on-campus organizations just as the women of Tri Delta have put me into various leadership positions within our chapter. My sorority sisters have helped emphasize my career goals and passions through uplifting my strengths and molding my weaknesses, which, as a senior now I look back to where I was freshmen year and can’t say thank you enough to Tri Delta for the unconditional love and support. Studying abroad is a highlight of being a Pepperdine student and as a Tri Delta abroad, I ran into Tri Delta sisters from other universities as well as perspective Pepperdine students, who are now current panhellenic sisters, throughout my travels in Switzerland. That communal atmosphere I sought for at Pepperdine has been affirmed through my sorority and these sisters continuously make an impact in my life each day. (Plus, now I have 100+ homes stay at all over the country!)
Hopes and dreams for after graduation?
I want to work in media whether it’s doing social media, studio production for television, creating videos and graphics for companies, anything that will get me to use my creative skills and challenge me to find and create trends that populate in our social media filled world. Definite post graduation plans include heading back to the east coast to New York City!
If you could give a shout out to anyone at Pepperdine, who is it and what would you like to tell them?
My sister Janice is a sophomore here at Pepperdine and she’s currently studying abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina so hey sis! I hope your abroad experience is living up to your expectations and you’re having the time of your life. While abroad, just say yes and experience all that you can! Sending you so much love from the states and I can’t wait to see you again at Christmas. xoxo
Tell me something about yourself that no one knows about you.
Not many people know this but I grew up competing in a few pageants and was Miss Teen Korea International 2011! I actually really loved every part of competing. I loved and still love dressing up in formal wear like long gowns, full make-up and done-up hair and getting to meet so many incredible women worldwide. Shoutout to my pageant coach Robert who helped me live out my Miss America dreams and helping me strut it on stage wearing some amazing outfits.