<p><a href="https://www.sps.nyu.edu/explore/degrees-and-programs/ms-in-integrated-marketing.html">MS in Integrated Marketing</a> alum Vicky Qian Wen first arrived in New York City after completing her undergraduate studies in International Business in China. She discovered early on that marketing lived between two worlds: creativity and logic.</p> <p>“It’s the perfect balance of art and science,” says Wen. “You have to understand people as much as you understand numbers.” That belief led her to the integrated marketing program at NYU SPS, where she specialized in marketing analytics, a track that helped her see how data could power creativity rather than replace it.</p>

<p><span class="p-body">For Wen, every NYU course felt connected to the city outside the classroom. Instructors brought insights from agencies, startups, and Fortune 500 brands. She valued their candor and real-world perspective and made it a point to reach out beyond lectures, often setting up coffee chats to learn how they built their careers.</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">Those conversations shaped her approach to networking: come prepared, be curious, and follow through. She found that most professors were not only willing but eager to help when students showed genuine interest.</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">The Global Field Intensive (GFI) to Paris and Cannes was where theory met reality for Wen. Over two weeks, she and her classmates visited world-leading companies, spoke with marketing executives, and attended the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, a gathering that celebrates innovation in global brand storytelling.</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">“It was eye-opening,” Wen said. “You see how strategy, culture, and creativity collide in real time.”</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">At major luxury houses in Paris, she saw how legacy brands like Chanel, Dior, and Louis Vuitton manage to evolve with younger audiences while preserving their identity. The GFI experience reshaped her understanding of luxury marketing. She realized that even the most iconic brands are guided not by image alone but by deep consumer insight.</span></p>

<p>What struck her most was how human-centered the world’s best campaigns are. Whether it was a fashion house in Paris or an agency presentation at Cannes, every story began with understanding people, their habits, emotions, and unmet needs.</p> <p>The GFI also offered personal clarity. Watching how decision-making in global luxury brands is often centralized, Wen realized she wanted to work in roles that offered more autonomy and hands-on strategy. “It helped me define the kind of marketer I want to be,” she said. “Someone who connects creativity with decision-making.”</p>

<p><span class="p-body">The experience abroad also underscored the importance of cultural diversity in creativity. Collaborating with classmates from around the world showed her how different perspectives could transform a single idea into something far greater. “When you listen first, you build ideas that resonate more deeply,” she reflected.</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">Now at Danone, where she works as a marketing management trainee, Wen applies those lessons daily, building strategies rooted in empathy, backed by insight, and driven by curiosity.</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">Wen encourages prospective students considering the Integrated Marketing program and the Paris/Cannes GFI to treat every opportunity, whether a class project, a company visit, or a conversation, as a potential turning point. “Don’t wait for the perfect moment,” she said. “Be proactive, reach out, and build connections that challenge how you think.”</span></p> <p><span class="p-body">As Wen progresses into the next stage of her career, she underscores the fact that clarity often isn’t found overnight. It’s built through curiosity, courage, and showing up for every opportunity that comes her way.</span></p>