Who better to sell the advertising university experience than advertising students?
As part of the celebration of 50 Years of Advertising Education in Australia, the Ad Student X TikTok Competition was launched to inspire the next generation of students.
Motivated by a funny TikTok video created by and starring Paul Nagy, chief creative officer VML, advertising majors were encouraged apply what they’d learned in their copywriting class and enter.
Their task was to create a TikTok video to inspire high school students to make an advertising major their first preference for university education.
The students reflected on the fun of university, the value of their studies, their friendships, why they chose to study advertising, and then brought it all together in a creative 60 second video.
The judging panel included Gai Le Roy, CEO IAB Australia, Paul Nagy at VML, Smaran Jworchan, TikTok and Xavier Amouroux, executive director marketing and student recruitment QUT.
“I can think of no better way to celebrate 50 years of advertising education in Australia than encouraging students to showcase their creativity by displaying what it is like to be an advertising student in 2024," said Gai Le Roy.
The national winner was Marika Tsourekis, a second year Bachelor of Media and Communications student from Swinburne University.
The judges said Marika “used the Tiktok platforms and conventions well to garner attention”.
"Participating in the Ad Student X TikTok Competition was an exciting opportunity that pushed me out of my comfort zone to create a TikTok as a useful means of communication," said Marika Tsourekis.
"By challenging myself to partake in the competition, I have learnt how valuable it is to utilise TikTok as a platform to express my creative ideas."
Swinburne advertising lecturer and academic lead for Victorian competition entrants, David Reid, said the competition ignited a spark in the next generation, showcasing how creativity can drive real-world impact.
"By crafting captivating TikTok videos targeting prospective students, current university students successfully promoted advertising undergraduate study at universities across Australia, unveiling the exciting career paths awaiting them in the dynamic world of advertising."
Three other state winners: Damien Vo, from the Queensland University of Technology was the Queensland winner. Natasha Chilvers from UTS was the NSW winner. Zoe Langtry from Edith Cowan the WA winner.
A mashup of the winning videos
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