Community of Communities
“Coming into school, I don’t know if I knew what I wanted to do. I began as an econ major and was in Management Fellows - the two went hand-in-hand at the time. I ended up being a Spanish major with an international business minor. I loved languages and international business was a good complement to my language major. I already had a number of business and finance-related courses.”
Jessica Curry graduated in May 2009, at the tail end of the Great Recession. “I had done an internship in Chicago at a large media company, but when I was looking for something to do full-time, I was looking for any business-related job. I took the first job that came to me, it happened to be in media, and I fell in love with the industry. It’s where I’ve been ever since.”
Today, Curry is VP of Sales and Client Services for Nexxen. Nexxen empowers advertisers, agencies, publishers and broadcasters around the world with the capability to utilize data and advanced TV in the ways that are most meaningful to them. Curry oversees their sales and client service team, inclusive of all of the Midwest.
When Curry visits DePauw, she likes to share a high-level view of this industry with students who may be seeking their first internship or wondering where their DePauw experience will take them. She notes that DePauw has more than its share of graduates in media and advertising roles. “There’s a strong professional community out there.”
Curry enjoys talking to DePauw students. “I’m so grateful to be part of the career development programming for these students. One piece of advice I have for them is, ‘Don’t be your own first no,’ meaning don’t get in your own way in an effort to avoid failure! Let someone else say no to your ideas or your pitch.”
“The students I speak to ask great questions. They’re thoughtful and it’s clear they’ve come prepared. I love coming back for that and just being on campus. DePauw is so beautiful and holds so many memories. I love walking around campus during a break.”
And while it’s changed some, Curry notes that so much feels familiar. “I was able to stop in at the Kappa house and the chapter president was so nice and talked to me for almost an hour. I can see the wonderful growth of DePauw and I can still walk around and feel at home.”
Curry appeared on the Conversations with Women Leaders podcast, produced by DePauw University.
