There are two types of degrees you might choose to pursue in order to help your career in advertising. They are the business degree, and the fine arts degree. Which type of degree you choose depends on what aspects of advertising interest you. Therefore, you must first ask yourself the question:

Are you a business person, or a creative person?

You can, of course, be both at once. However, when speaking of a career, of making a living, most of us are either one or the other. Fortunately, the field of advertising is a wide one, as well as a deep one, and has great need for both types of people — business people, and creative people.

If you would place yourself in the business category, you might consider pursuing a bachelor’s degree in business administration. From there, you could continue taking classes to attain a master’s degree in business administration — that would be the coveted MBA you are always hearing about.

Classes in advertising that fall under the umbrella of this degree would include classes in management, in marketing, in accounting. If you plan on a career as a salesperson, as someone who goes out and lands clients for the firm, then public speaking skills are a must, as is a mastery of written communication. Advertising firms are not just selling other people’s products — they are selling themselves, their services, to potential clients. That requires employees skilled in customer service and client relations, as well as hard-nosed sellers and number-crunchers.

For you more creative people, there is the fine arts degree — first on the level of the bachelor’s degree, then subsequently the master of fine arts or MFA. Classes in advertising that contribute to earning this degree are nearly as varied as creativity itself. There is hardly a creative skill or interest one could name that would not aid significantly in a career in advertising.

You could take classes in the visual arts — painting, drawing, photography, and graphic design. These skills are all coveted by advertising firms, who need good eyes and skilled hands to craft the online, print, and television advertisements that will continue to serve their clients in today’s ever more demanding and competitive environment. Classes in advertising like these will teach you not only to create eye-catching visuals, but also to communicate the message that the client wishes to pass on to the consumer.

Visual artists are not the only ones to find rewarding and well-paying careers in advertising. Classes in advertising can also help writers learn the finer points of copywriting and copy editing, of crafting the ideal text for a given campaign. In addition, remember — advertising firms deal not just in print, but also in radio and television, meaning that writers could find themselves writing for many mediums, sometimes all at once. Writers in advertising are responsible for dreaming up the next big slogan, and for composing eloquent and informative copy that will compliment the work of the visual artists, and help sell the product of the client to the consumer. Classes in both technical writing and creative writing can be of great help to one pursuing a career in advertising.

Moreover, we must not forget the careers in the technical fields — audio and video editors, camera men, recording engineers, sound technicians, drafters — which are necessary to produce the ad campaigns which the business folks have sold, and the creative folks have designed. Advertising is a wide field, and a deep one, and one full of opportunities. Classes in advertising are available at many universities and college, and at schools, which specialize in training you for a career in advertising.

If you want a career that is challenging, exciting, and rewarding, look into classes in advertising today!