You’ve found your calling – you’re creative, you’re enthusiastic, you’re a born communicator – advertising is indeed the career for you. But now that you’ve made this crucial life decision, where is the best place to go get the tools you need to turn your advertising dream into a commercial reality?

Well, if you live in the Southwest, the number of options on offer is pretty mind blowing. Where to start?

First, like any academic journey, you want to go for quality where you can get the best results. To start off, it’s a good idea to examine what is on offer in each Southwest state and get an overview.

To hone your search further you then need to look at what particular aspects of advertising you want to study. A key consideration is which courses you opt for like consumer behavior, copyright, new media or a broader marketing mix route. Decide that and your choice is easier.

In general terms what you’re looking for is a program that builds your potential for creative talents as the bedrock upon which to build commercially focused business goals and objectives.

Location, Location

Next, decide if you have a preference in terms of location. 

Each state has its own resources to help you more closely examine individual colleges and programs. Arizona for instance provides a really helpful overview of what’s an offer. Art Institutes in Phoenix and Tucson are highlighted as particularly strong in this area.

You may decide that online learning is more for you and once again there’s plenty of scope to go down this route. A number of colleges provide distance learning opportunities including Prescott College and the Art Institutes.

Connections 

Another key element to look for is strong engagement with industry in the development and even delivery of the degree program.

This is a fast moving industry and for academia to keep pace with these developments, they need to work closely with current industry professionals to bring new media and new opportunities to you the student. The Austin Creative Department is an award-winning advertising portfolio school that delivers programs taught by working industry professionals.

These are the people at the cutting edge of using new tools such as social media, the explosion of which over the past few years has been unprecedented, and anticipating the next areas of growth. With a degree like this, you are bound to find a job at an advertising agency, fairlyquick after school.

Thomas Jefferson once said that, “The most truthful part of a newspaper is the advertisements.” So if you want a chance to learn your truth, then I hope that the advice provided in this article will help you get started along the path to a successful career in advertising.