The apprenticeship model is where you arrange life and work around learning. Learning - like sitting in a classroom all day being lectured? Not exactly. Apprenticeship is experiential where you’ll be learning through doing, taking action, and collaborating with other apprentices.
Working + Learning + Coaching + Mentoring!
As a digital marketing apprentice with DCI, you’ll work a full-time marketing job in addition to receiving training and skill development. You’ll learn new skills not only on the job, but during cohort training sessions. What exactly are the benefits of being an apprentice and working hard for 12 months of rigorous training? Keep reading to find out.
Top 7 takeaways from the 12 month apprenticeship:
- Mentor network of distinguished marketing leaders who will instruct DCI sessions
- Portfolio highlighting real-world projects equal to 3 to 5 years work experience
- Collaborative learning environment with other up-and-coming marketers
- Increased earning power
- Mastery of the most in-demand marketing skills
- At least 7 of the top industry certifications you don’t already have
- Personal career coach to ensure maximum career development
What do all these things really mean? We’ve broken it all down with examples for you to better understand this experiential learning model that we call apprenticeship!
Working a Full-Time Job
DCI helps apprentices find the perfect full-time marketing job that matches their skillset. You’ll work 40 hours per week just like any other job. When starting your new job, DCI will meet with you and your new employer to outline your learning goals. We’ll develop a learning plan that will combine your employer’s needs and your personal goals.
Meet a few of the current apprentices below or check out all their profiles here!
- Kim Doughty - Digital Marketing Specialist at Soccerzone
- Wesley Haverlah - Digital Marketing Strategist at Cattura Video
- Sarah Stephens - eCommerce Content Specialist at Supplize
- Charlie Deese - Content Strategist at SocialPath Solutions
- Daniel Lira - SEO Associate at Apogee Results
Hands-On Training
The cohort, or group of apprentices, will meet 2-3 times per week at a coworking space, either Geekdom in San Antonio or WeWork in Austin, to collaborate on projects and develop new skills. At these training sessions on weekday evenings usually from 6:30-8:30 pm, DCI brings in an instructor to hold a workshop on a various topic or skill. The sessions are not like lectures, they are interactive and all about collaboration, which leads to faster skill development.
For example:
- Aaron Watters: VP of LeadHub teaches several sessions on Google Adwords and gives feedback on campaigns apprentices created in teams.
- Matt Pompa: Inbound Strategist at Fahrenheit Marketing is our go-to expert on mobile video marketing.
- Jared Stephens: Senior UI Designer at USAA is leads the apprentices through web development.
Some of the topics covered during the 12 months: social media strategy, landing page optimization, blogging, campaign creation, brand architecture, digital strategy, mobile video, copywriting, PPC, email marketing, and search engine optimization.
“Everybody who has mentored or taught us a lesson is giving us the knowledge they already have and challenging us to apply it. With every mentor's advice, I applied it in some form to my work.
-Christine Contreras, Senior SEO Manager at Gray Digital Group
Learning takes place outside of cohort sessions as well. Apprentices are assigned group and individual projects to tackle as a way to demonstrate the new skills they’ve learned. For example Sarah and AJ worked on an AdWords campaign for Acemart and instructor Aaron provided insights on the best types of keywords to target.
Instructors don’t just interact with apprentices at sessions, they also become mentors and support apprentices throughout their careers. With potentially a new instructor each week, by the end of 12 months you’ll have a huge mentor network of upwards of 30 top marketing professionals that you’ve personally interacted with.
Career Coaching
The Digital Creative coaching model is unique because it applies what you, the apprentice, are learning combined with your strengths, values, and preferences in work. The model helps you quickly adapt to your new environment, new relationships, boss, colleagues and helps you be successful from day one. With coaching, you’ll succeed and fail faster for long-term career development.
For example:
We asked apprentice Sam’s boss about how DCI coaching and training has improved his performance as an employee:
“As he’s gained this knowledge (from the apprenticeship training) he’s also received coaching from DCI on just becoming a better business person in general. He’s learned how to ask the right questions to his manager and the importance of asking for feedback constantly.” - Ryan Shutt, apprentice supervisor, read the full interview here.
Earning Industry Recognized Certifications
Leading industry certifications are an excellent way to demonstrate to future employers your commitment and mastery of a skill or topic. During the apprenticeship program, we heavily emphasize earning the certifications that are most relevant to your desired path. Apprentices work on some certifications together and have group study sessions, while other certifications are electives.
Combining certifications with work samples = a killer portfolio that will equal 3 to 5 years of work experience, something you’ll develop in only 12 months! With all the new skills apprentices learn in sessions, DCI emphasizes continuously building out your portfolio and ensuring all projects are measurable and tangible for a future employer to see.
“To be in a community where everyone speaks the same language of learning is rare and refreshing. It’s cool to be around people who actually care about growth.”
- Reese Garcia, PPC Account Manager at Klient Boost Media
Here are just a few of the specific certifications you will earn during your 12-month apprenticeship:
- Hubspot Marketing Software
- Salesforce Certified Pardot Specialist
- Professional Scrum Master I
- Tableau Qualified Associate
- Google AdWords
- Twitter Flight School
- Hubspot Email Marketing
- Hubspot Inbound Sales
After successfully completing the apprenticeship, you will become a Digital Creative Fellow and receive the ongoing support of the DCI community. Want to know even more about the apprenticeship experience? Scroll through our FAQ to get all the answers you’ll need! Does the apprenticeship sound like a good fit for you? Want to experience accelerated digital marketing skill development? Start your application today!
Members from the first 4 cohorts of apprentices!
