EDITOR’S NOTE: Ben Ng (BA/Public Relations and Advertising ’16) recently had the opportunity of a life time; being flown to New York City by the American Advertising Federation to celebrate his achievements. Ng shares his experience with us today!


Last month, I had the honor of being selected by the American Advertising Federation (AAF) as a member of the Most Promising Multicultural Students Class of 2016. As a result, I had the opportunity to be flown to New York City for a four-day program focused on the promotion of diversity and multiculturalism in the advertising industry.

It was a truly engaging and insightful program which included workshops, guest speakers and industry immersion events hosted by incredible agencies and companies such as Deutsch, Wieden + Kennedy, General Mills, IPG, McCann and Publicis. In addition, I had the chance to attend a recruitment expo and network with over 40 recruiters from different agencies.

man standing at a podium that says most promising multicultural students


However, beyond being beneficial to my professional development, it was also extremely encouraging to see such strong representation and support for diversity from an industry that often lacks it. Throughout the course of the week I was able to make friends with some amazing people from all over the country.

Overall, it was a really valuable experience to me, especially as I look toward graduation and hopefully beginning my career in advertising. I would highly encourage anyone who comes from a multicultural background to apply for this program as it has been a highlight of my experience in the PRA program.