By: Basem Totah, Junior Communication Studies Major
Today, our alumni spotlight highlights class of 2015 alum, Nicholas Brinkerhoff. Brinkerhoff came into USF as a transfer student, majoring in Communication Studies. He became a member of Lambda Pi Eta and in his senior year, was nominated as the president of the honors society. Soon after graduating, Brinkerhoff received an internship working for Wagstaff Worldwide, a public relations firm. After exploring other job opportunities, he met up with an alum from USF who introduced him to Nectar Communications.
USF COMS Alum Nicholas Brinkerhoff
Brinkerhoff works as an Assistant Account Executive at Nectar Communications. His role allows him to be involved in company decisions and allow his voice to be heard about which approach would work best for their clients. Wanting to make an impact in the world, he had many opportunities to bring his voice into his work. Public relations is a very fast paced environment where information is constantly changing. While this is viewed as a challenge for Brinkerhoff, he uses the ever-changing environment to motivate him to work better within a short amount of time. Some of his proudest accomplishments include an article he wrote himself being posted on Forbes’ website, securing a broadcast role with KTVU as well as obtaining the opportunity to speak at many conferences to represent not only himself but Nectar Communications.
I asked Brinkerhoff what sparked his interest in public relations. He always viewed himself as being organized and working well with deadlines. Throughout his life, he wanted to steer his career in a direction to help people and give them the tools to tell their story to a wide range of people. Through public relations, he is able to accomplish this goal and work with big name clients and get great experience for eventually partnering with an in house public relations department.
Some advice Brinkerhoff had for students aspiring for a public relations job was to take advantage of all the resources USF offers which includes events, career services, as well as professor’s advice through office hours and hearing their personal stories about communication. Reaching out to alumni helped him receive job offers and really hone into what he wanted to use with his Communication Studies degree. Lastly, he stated to focus solely on yourself. Be your own person and you will grow into the individual you aspire to be. Everyone’s path is unique to them and makes their story that much more interesting.
In the future, Brinkerhoff sees himself working in tech public relations. He described the field as “new, up and coming” which he believes will advance not only his skills, but his career opportunities later down the road. In the meantime, he is working at an agency to get a wide variety of experience from multiple clients, in order to be prepared for future scenarios.
We are very excited to see Nicholas’ progress throughout his career and hope all the best for his future endeavors.
