Daniel Johnson and Joe Margolies of Princeton University earned second place and $2,000 in scholarship awards apiece.

The 12 finalists have earned an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for Media Scholars Week. While in the nation’s capital, they will visit several widely recognized media organizations. On Thursday, June 13th, the scholars will make their final presentations at the Newseum’s Knight Studio. The top two finishers will then be announced at the Networking Reception later that evening. Four students will win a portion of $10,000 in scholarship awards.

This year’s finalists developed a media plan strategy for Maria Adams, the owner of the Central Coast Seabirds, a professional baseball team in Central Coast City. Maria asked her media strategist to develop a plan to generate public support of a new waterfront stadium. Teams had a budget of $6 million for a five month campaign.

Finalists hail from Beloit College, Notre Dame University, Marist College, Princeton University, the University of South Carolina and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Full listing.

Through the Media Fellows Program, the Washington Media Scholars Foundation recognizes enthusiastic and qualified students by awarding several scholarships each academic year. In 2012-13 academic year, the foundation distributed over $30,000 to twenty students.

These grants support the academic development of undergraduates dedicated to pursuing a career related to the public policy advertising industry.

A few basic requirements:

• Rising college Juniors and Seniors invited to apply.
• Open to full-time, undergraduate, degree seeking students whose major or minor prepares them for a career in strategic public policy advertising research, management, planning, and buying. These include, but are not limited to, mass communications, journalism, marketing (business or mass communications), and political science.
• Each applicant must articulate his or her financial need for the scholarship by explaining how the additional financial aid will impact his or her academic career.
• Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 in their major concentration.

Established in 2013, the Scholar Advisory Board guides the agenda for Media Scholars Week and mentors participants in the Media Plan Case Competition.

Original members include individuals from each of the first three years of the Media Scholars Program:

Chris Beauregard
University of South Carolina
Media Scholar 2012

Paige Helling
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Winner of the National Excellence in Media Award, 2011

Dana Vielmetti
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Winner of the National Excellence in Media Award, 2011

Michael Worley
American University
Media Scholar 2010

Andrew Yolles
Indiana University
Media Scholar 2010

The event celebrates the achievements of 12 undergraduate finalists participating in the Media Plan Case Competition. The evening begins with an award ceremony announcing the winners of the National Excellence in Media Award and the distribution of $10,000 in scholarship awards.

Over 400 guests attended last year’s reception.

Tickets and sponsorship opportunities available for purchase online.

Q: Major/Minor?
A: Double majored in Journalism and Political Science

Q: Before participating, what was your career goal?
A: I wanted to work at a public affairs/political communications agency.

Q: After participating, did your career goal change? If so, what did it change to?
A: I was open to working more broadly in the field of advertising—through the networking reception I realized there were far more positions within the field of advertising that I hadn’t originally considered.  My goal became focusing on finding the right job with the right company that would help me learn about the dc media industry and would give real experience/responsibilities and had room for growth.

Q: What impact has participation had on your job search?
A: Participation in Media Scholars Week directly led to my current position at CQ-Roll Call.  I met a representative from the company during the networking reception (as well as people from other great companies) and by following up and discussing my experience with the case competition (since at that point I had little real world experience other than internships to draw from) I was able to land a job in DC.

Q: How has participation influenced your choice of grad school/major/jobs?
A: I ended up in a position that I hadn’t originally considered prior to participating in Media Scholars Week.  Upon graduating I assumed I wanted to work at an agency since that is what is so frequently discussed in the journalism program.  The publishing side of the business is really only discussed in the context of reporting, but during the week I realized there is also an advertising aspect to the publishing industry.  WMSF reaffirmed that I want to remain in the advertising industry, but I’m now much more open to a variety of career paths.

Q: What was your favorite part of Media Scholars Week?
A: Meeting with all the DC media professionals—to be able to interact with them, hear what their day to day is like and ask them questions about how they got their start was invaluable.  I thought the diverse mix of radio, TV, newspapers, agencies was all very helpful.  The networking reception was also fantastic, the ability to chat with industry professionals from across DC really helped kick start my career.

Q: What is your advice for people entering the job search?
A: Be persistent!  It can be frustrating at times when you’re not seeing your hard work pay off immediately but you need to treat finding a job like a full time job.  Meet with as many people for informational interviews as you can.  Remain committed to learning about various job opportunities and go into the job searching process with an open mind.  Also, the little details make a HUGE difference—always remember to write thank you notes and follow up.

Final thoughts: Media Scholars Week is truly what you make of it, and I highly recommend taking advantage of the opportunity to learn and network with the highly successful, accomplished individuals you’ll have a chance to meet throughout the week.  Always engage with the mentors and try to learn as much as you can.  Also, the weeks goes quickly, so make sure you take notes and keep track of business cards!

Click here to register for the Media Plan Case Competition.

For more Media Scholar Commentary (and photographs of Media Scholars Week), visit our Facebook page.

The CollegeMoneyMan blog offers free advice on college scholarships and financial aid. The blog and it’s weekly podcast are produced by JR Vazquez, the College Money Man.

Thanks JR for recognizing the Washington Media Scholars Foundation and our scholarship programs.

Second place went to Scott Reed of Harvard University and Diana Cui of Ithaca College. The recent graduates each won $2,000 in scholarships.

CONGRATULATIONS to Paige Helling and Dana Vielmetti, recent graduates of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who won the National Excellence in Media Award given by the Washington Media Scholars Foundation. Over 300 guests escaped the heat by sipping “GRP” Ginger Mint Lemonades in the Newseum’s Capitol Overlook Room.