You’ve probably seen her running around campus from place to place and even on this website! This week’s Campus Celebrity is Ceida Elizarraraz. She is a 21 year old senior at UIC and is a graphic design major. Ceida works with amazing organizations, while balancing school, and being involved on campus, such as being the President of Her Campus UIC.
HC (HerCampus): How did you get involved with HerCampus? What piqued your interest in it?
CE (Ceida Elizarraraz): I first joined Her Campus the spring semester of my freshman year at UIC. I was convinced I was going to be Anna Wintour (Editor-in-Chief of Vogue) since I was yearbook editor in high school, so I wanted to see if I would like it!! AHH hilarious.
HC:What was your first position at Her Campus? Did you always want to be President?
CE: I met Katie, Editor-in-Chief at the time, in one of my classes and after attending my first meeting I was sold. At the time I was interning for a fashion photographer, and I actually thought I was going to grow up and be a lifestyle photographer; so Katie and HC gave me the opportunity to explore this interest! At some point I realized that although I loved photography, I didn’t want to be a photographer, so I started dabbling in other positions that kept me on my toes and taught me different things.
Oh, and I knew I wanted to run HC UIC the moment Katie mentioned she was editor of a magazine haha! Needless to say I made sure that that happened ;)
HC: Do you feel you have improved Her Campus UIC? If so, how?
CE: Haha I hope so! I understand that UIC isn’t the easiest place for students to interact with each other, but my goal from the beginning was to really create a team of people that could empower each other, and challenge each other to participate in this real-world work environment. I hope it’s taught my team everything from time management skills, deadlines, marketing + communication skills, and even little things like how to write a proper email! More than anything I hope that everyone on my team makes mistakes, and learns from them in ways you can’t necessarily be graded on in a classroom, you know?
HC: Do you have any goals for HerCampus before you graduate?
CE: I want HC to continue growing and inspiring not just our readers, but our writers too. Our team is made up of girls (and guys) from different organizations, different walks of life, different majors, and ultimately I want them to leave HC having learned something about work and about each other.
HC: What is your favorite memory being apart of HerCampus-UIC?
CE: NEW YORK CITY! Because Her Campus holds the Intercollegiate Conference in NYC every summer, I was able to visit twice over the last few years. At the conference you meet campus correspondents from other schools and you are also in meetings with panels of CEO’s, editors, news broadcasters, and entrepreneurs.
Ann Shoket, Editor-in-chief of Seventeen magazine was among them, and I remember looking around at my peers, and thinking that these are the women I may be competing against for my dream job. Everyone there is crème de la crème in their field, and acknowledging that you’re among such individuals really does something to you. Ultimately everyone leaves feeling like they can conquer anything. Definitely one of the best feelings.
HC: What else are you involved in on campus?
CE: I’m a proud member of Phi Sigma Sigma national sorority since freshman year! Woot.
HC: Do you have an outside job and/or internship? If so, what?
CE: I’ve had my fair share of internships since my first year and each internship has always led to the next. Currently I’m with The Goulden Touch, a non-for-profit founded by Chicago Bears’ Kicker Robbie Gould. I’ve been their PR / Marketing / Design intern for a little over a year! Through this internship, I was introduced to my current boss and I’ve been working as a marketing manager for a small consultant company since last spring.
HC: Have you ever worked with anyone famous? If so, who?
CE: I work for a couple different organizations, both of which happen to be founded by professional athletes including Robbie Gould, Kicker for the Chicago Bears; and Dave Bolland, former Chicago Blackhawk and Stanley Cup Champ. I’m blessed to work with really cool people, and not just because of what they do.
HC: Summarize a day in the life of Ceida. How do you manage your busy schedule?
CE: A typical day isn’t very typical, but there’s a lot of balancing work / school / internship / and life. I think one of the most important things I’ve learned is to let each part have it’s own moment. I used to get flustered when there were too many things going on at once, but I’ve learned to work on things at their own time throughout the day. In class I’ll (try to) focus on schoolwork, at work I’ll finish my tasks, and at home I’ll try to relax. Of course there’s days where everything will be a little crazy, but that’s part of what I love about keeping busy.
HC: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
CE: Hopefully I’ll be an accomplished 31 year-old! There are a lot of things that I need to do in my life in order to be satisfied. Hopefully I will have been to Europe, lived in NYC, and have traveled a ton.
HC: What is your dream job?
CE: This one is always a little tricky to answer. My dream job has always been to be a Creative Director at some Condé Nast publication. But more than anything I want to LOVE what I do and be happy at all times. Once I’m not happy doing something, that’s my cue to move on.
HC: Which celebrity do you see yourself being best friends with?
CE: Haha I don’t keep up with celebrities too much, but if Phoebe Buffay were a real person I could see us hanging out. She actually reminds me of one of my best friends!