Today, very few creative advertising graduates get hired straight from College or university. You’ll probably leave your course as a creative team and start getting your portfolio critiqued (crits) by Agency Creative Directors and senior creative teams. At this point you’re living in the hope of a placement (work experience) at one of your top10 agencies. Placements follow good ‘crits’ but they are hard to get.
So ‘crits’ lead to placements and placements lead to jobs. The competition is tough. A placement can last from 3 weeks to 3 months and it’s a chance to really prove yourself to an agency. Do well and you could get hired.
You’ll need to get out of the starting blocks fast and work harder than you’ve ever worked because you need to impress. And remember, they don’t necessarily lead to a job. You can then be told that the placement is over and at that point you can find yourself back where you started but with a bit of experience.
It can be like a roller coaster ride and requires tenacity, focus, a bit of luck and of course, talent.