In pursuing her Fashion Marketing master's degree at LIM, Nicole has benefited from the school's tuition grant program offered to PVH employees. A Senior Financial Analyst with Tommy Hilfiger鈥攐ne of the many fashion brands owned by PVH Corp.鈥擭icole speaks here about the convenience of completing her graduate degree online while also working full time.
Hometown: Stewartsville, NJ
Program: Fashion Marketing, MPS (online)
Why did you decide to take advantage of LIM鈥檚 tuition grant program for PVH employees and pursue a master鈥檚 degree?
I had always considered going back to school for my master鈥檚, but was unsure of what program I wanted. When this opportunity came along, I thought it would be a great way to expand my knowledge into a new area of the retail industry.
What are you liking most about the MPS program in Fashion Marketing? What are you learning?
Despite being online, the classes are still very interactive! And the delivery of the material makes it easy to comprehend. The core classes for my degree are providing knowledge on how to best present and track a brand鈥檚 success, in both a digital and in-person world.
My elective courses are also building upon those skills but through different areas of my choosing. For example, my favorite project so far was in my Licensing elective, where we chose a real-world brand and helped determine an appropriate licensing agreement for them to extend their reach, while also deciding how and who to market to.
Tell us about your current job at Tommy Hilfiger.
I work as a Senior Financial Analyst who oversees and forecasts budgets of our corporate marketing teams and of other various business functions. When it comes to our marketing teams specifically, I help them to forecast budgets such as campaign spend, influencers, and photoshoot costs. I'm actually utilizing much of what I've been learning in my master's program to better understand the roles of my business partners, such as how they want to use their budgets.
What is it like earning a degree online while also working full-time?
It can be stressful at times! But having the degree program be self-guided makes it easier to juggle with the demands of a full-time job. For instance, having the ability to see all the due dates at the beginning of each course allows me to plan out my session in advance to prevent missed assignments.
Any advice you鈥檇 like to share with other fashion industry professionals who may be contemplating earning a master鈥檚 degree through an online program?
If it's something you're interested in, look into it! The online format of LIM's program makes it possible to complete whether you live in NYC or not. The information I've learned so far has been highly valuable, and I think no matter what job function or role you may have in a company, the coursework and these degree programs will benefit you and what you will be able to bring back to the business.