Here at Her Campus Siena, we’re lucky to have had some amazing girls on our team who have now graduated and are taking on the world by storm. After working with the Siena chapter since its Fall 2014 origins as a writer and the Senior Editor and taking on chapter advisor duties through the national Her Campus branch, Samantha Burke ’16 has recently started a new job at Her Campus Media in Boston. We couldn’t be prouder of our fellow Saint and all that she has accomplished, so we were thrilled that she had the time to talk to us about how she got where she is today!
Sam on meeting Her Campus President / Co-Founder Windsor Hanger Western at College Fashion Week 2015: “We had the same hat on, she followed me on Instagram, and knew who I was at the conference by my Instagram name. When I interviewed with her she seemed very pleasantly surprised to learn I was [the same person]. I had lunch with her before moving up here. I definitely don’t think it’s a bad thing to introduce yourself at events and make yourself known!”
Hometown: I grew up in Connecticut, but moved to the Atlanta area when I was 12. Now? Boston!
College Major / Minor: Biology Major with a Writing & Communications Minor
HC Siena: What do you miss most about college?
SB: Ready-made food, having my best friend just a minute away at all times, and a 15-minute commute max to anywhere I needed to be regularly. On a deeper note, and this is also something I didn’t fully appreciate while I was there, looking back on recent social media posts and videos from the college’s page, I miss the accessibility to do almost anything. There were hundreds of opportunities right on campus and in the immediate area to do something meaningful every day, to do something fun each week, and all for free (or next to nothing), and I didn’t take nearly enough of them up. From volunteering to mentoring to caving, Siena really offered so many things to keep you busy and engaged, and I did not appreciate them until they were no longer an option.
HC Siena: Explain how your relationship with Her Campus first began and what it taught you about your career goals.
SB: I was a junior when Her Campus came to Siena, and I was a little late to the game. I didn’t hear about it until after the application deadline had passed that summer, and I may have slightly harassed the CCs until they let me join. That year I was a writer, and then the next year I took over our social media pages and acted as Senior Editor and, before Susie [Garcia] was onboarded as co-CC, I was also a Chapter Advisor for eight other campus chapters. After graduating, I became a writer for the After College section and a Senior Chapter Advisor.
During college I was premed, but really wasn’t sure that I wanted to go back to school. At least, not immediately. I’d tossed around the idea of changing majors from the beginning, but was never sure what I would want to do. Joining HC made me realize how much I had missed writing, something I’d always loved but lost time for, and as I grew to do more things within it, it triggered a huge interest in digital media. I loved being at the forefront, writing and editing and posting on our pages, but I was also really interested in the background work, like analyzing traffic, trying to determine what time of day and what headline styles garnered the most interest, and even more. So I picked up my minor and I switched my plan from trying to go straight to medical school to trying to do something that had to do with what I was doing with Her Campus at Siena and the chapters I advised. Preferably at Her Campus Media!
Sam and other HCS members using chalk to share HCS social media handles all over campus
HC Siena: How did HCS grow and develop throughout your time in school?
SB: Her Campus at Siena blew up pretty quickly (in the good way!). I think the way it started off was very cautious, with a fear of backlash over certain types of articles (like ones that would have covered the protest over the Teakwood Builders billboard [in 2015]) and over the next year became something huge and well-known on campus that covered relevant events on campus and in the area, as well as topics relevant to both men and women on campus. We went from being semi-censored out of an abundance of caution to having nearly unlimited creativity with pitches and articles. We put out content about mental health and eating disorders, personal safety, and making it work with roommates. We put out style guides for Lark Fest and SienaFest, and we put out listicles pinpointing how to know you go to Siena and analyzing the most recent episodes of Grey’s Anatomy. We were and are hugely versatile and I think we did a great job catering to the majority of the student body, and that’s something that I’m very proud of.
HC Siena: What did you love most about writing and editing for Her Campus?
SB: I loved being a part of something that stood for so much and that truly worked together to achieve it. You could write about just about anything, you could collaborate with your team members, other clubs or other chapters. We went to events that members were hosting outside of Her Campus. We got the campus involved through giveaways and inclusive content. Her Campus is a way to make our voices heard, and it allows us to create portfolios and gain work experience in writing/editing/managing, publicity, and event planning. As for editing, I’ve always been the person that stumbles over a typo in a book or calls someone out in the middle of a heated, typed discussion over grammar. It’s just something I’ve always had a decent knack for. I loved getting sneak peaks at our content before it went live, but I was so busy my senior year that I would go through and edit the content for the week after it had been scheduled for publication, so I was looking at a handful of articles in rapid succession one night a week, really only looking for glaring errors.
I held this position at its inception, and I wish I had had the chance to develop it more. I wish I could have sat down with the authors each week to say, “Here is why I did what I did.” I think there are huge teaching opportunities practically built into it, and I regret that I wasn’t able to make more of an effort to take advantage of them, you know? Instead of just saying, “Okay it’s edited, we’re good to go,” I wish I could have sat down and said, “Here’s why. Do you have any questions? Do you disagree? Is there anything you want to take a second look at?” and turned it into a discussion.
HC Siena: Even though you graduated as a Bio major, what motivated you to pursue a more creative job? Did you receive any negative feedback about the decision?
SB: The only reason I was a biology major was because I was premed, and it was the most logical. I love anything that has to do with medicine, and the more macro-elements of the body. So I loved taking developmental biology, immunology, histology and animal physiology, but I hated general biology, cell biology, and organic chemistry. I wish I had realized that medical school wasn’t in my immediate future at the beginning, so I could have switched to English or Marketing or CREA with a focus in journalism, but medical school was my plan from the age of 9, and it took me a long time to stop fighting myself and to stop being disappointed in myself that it wasn’t necessarily what I wanted to do anymore. Luckily, I did not receive any negative feedback. The people I expected to either proved me wrong or kept it to themselves. And I’m going back in March to get recertified for EMS, so I haven’t abandoned the healthcare dreams I always had. I’m just doing them a little differently.
At Her Conference 2016 in New York City
HC Siena: Explain the process of applying for a fulltime job with Her Campus Media.
SB: So this was actually the third position I applied for at HCM. I first applied for an integrated marketing position, which I received a very kind, personalized response to but ultimately wasn’t a great fit for. I had submitted an editor’s application a couple of times and had been working at Walmart for a few months after graduating when this job listing went live. It was like nothing I had ever imagined myself applying for, but the description was very similar to things that I was doing while chapter advising, working for HC at Siena, and even working at Walmart. So I put in the application and then was offered an interview, and I think it was three different interview rounds that I went through. This was my first time ever doing anything like that, and I was insanely nervous. I was scared my phone would drop the call (my house has terrible reception) so I sat out front in my mother’s car with the Bluetooth speaker hooked up for the first two. My hands were shaking, my voice was shaking, I was scared to stumble over my words and sound incompetent. In spite of that all, I must have done a pretty good job!
The third set of interviews was through video chat, and that was way better. I think my experience as a chapter advisor sealed my deal, as well as the work product test I did, where I had an hour or so to complete a handful of tasks simulating what I would be doing in office. Whenever my voice stuttered, I just ignored it and pretended it hadn’t happened. Whenever I said “um” to buy myself time, I scolded myself and tried not to do it again, even though that didn’t work. I did my best to pause and consider the question and make sure I explained myself confidently, comprehensively, yet concisely. I spent hours browsing sample interview questions and considering what my answers would be, and almost none of what those questions were even similar to what we discussed throughout the interviews. I think it made me more confident, though, and made me feel more prepared.
So for anyone going through anything similar, I would say think outside the box when it comes to questions. One of my questions was if I would rather work on the big picture or the little things that make up the big picture, and my answer was that I didn’t think it mattered what I chose, because either way I would be working on both. If I was planning on the big picture, I would have to be coming up with the little ways to get us there, and if I was working on one of the little ways, I was still ultimately working on the big picture – there isn’t a significant separation between the two to me. Of all the questions, I remember this one specifically because my answer was very well received and I had a little moment of being quite proud of that.
HC Siena: What will your new job entail?
SB: A lot of it depends on the time of year, but the biggest things are that I help to launch seasonal content hubs and that I work on putting together our daily newsletter. I also work with launching and transitioning chapters, new writers, CAs, and interns to get them set up in their positions, I help process shop orders, I do site support, I coordinate our office culture committee, and right now I’m working on a new version of our 22 Under 22 site. There are also a ton of little things that I work on as they come up.
Sam: “Here’s a business card selfie for your consideration.”
HC Siena: What advice do you have for anyone interested in pursuing this type of work?
SB: Don’t stop. Just because the first or the second or third job possibility didn’t work out and it’s a super discouraging feeling doesn’t mean that the recruiter or job or company for you isn’t out there. And I think that goes for any field. Some places won’t get back to you. Some won’t pan out. Maybe it’s you, but maybe it was the timing. Even if you’re very good with what you do, especially with something like editing, it’s easier to miss our own mistakes. Have a friend or a teacher look over your resume, writing samples, and design portfolio. For those of you that attend Her Conference or similar events, or any event, network! Network, network, network. Make sure people know your name and your face and what you do and are about. Be kind and positive and confident and memorable.
If you meet someone who works for the company you want to, or in the industry you want to, ask for their card. See if they’re willing to look at your resume or if they have any words of advice. Follow up and tell them it was great to meet them and you appreciate that they took the time to speak with you. If you meet them again, remind them who you are if they don’t remember. Strike up casual conversation. I think stuff like this gets overlooked in the worry and desperation to make a good impression and find a job fast. Don’t force it, but literally just be yourself. Make them remember you for the right reasons but don’t harass them.