Cece Rulon graduated in 2022 and currently works as a PR Coordinator for Yelp.

What was your major and minor in college?

• Double Major in Corporate Communication and Creative & Entertainment Industries

Where did you intern in college?

• I started interning during the second semester of my sophomore year as a Content Intern for Do615. During my junior year, I secured a Digital Marketing/Project Management internship at a digital solutions agency called Southern Made where I stayed for about a year. Finally, my entire senior year, I worked as a Marketing Intern for a digital creative agency called WMA. Additionally, during the Spring of 2022, I worked once a week for a non-profit called Corner to Corner as a Film Facilitator for their after-school program Script to Screen.

What were your co-curricular activities in college?

• During my time at Belmont, I actively engaged in a variety of extracurricular activities, including on-campus Greek life, participation in intramural sports, and a memorable semester abroad in London. Nevertheless, the demanding schedule of managing multiple internships, a part-time job, pursuing a double major, and nurturing my social life left me with limited capacity for further involvement in school clubs or co-curriculars. Reflecting on my experience, I now recognize the immense potential that the outstanding academic clubs at Belmont hold and would have loved to have been a more involved participant!

How did you get your current position?

• I love answering this question because it demonstrates how influential Belmont classes really can be when paired with consistent networking! During Dr. Jimmy Davis’s class “Business & Professional Communication,” we were assigned a project that asked us to reach out to a comms professional to ask for an informational interview on how they manage a team. I was nervous about it, thinking no one would respond or that the call would be uncomfortable. After cold-emailing and LinkedIn messaging what seemed like every comms professional in the world, the only one to actually respond to me was Amy Sezak, Yelp’s SVP of Corporate Communications, and now my boss’s boss! She was, and still is, an incredible person and professional, and clearly understood what it was like to be a student wanting to learn. Although the interview was solely meant to be informational, she informed me that the Yelp PR team may have an internship available in the coming months! The informational interview with Amy happened in 2021, and after following up with her a few times over the course of the next year, she informed me that a PR internship position would finally be available in June of 2022. After applying and interviewing with a few members of the team, I got the job! From there, what started as a 3-month contract turned into a 6-month contract, which then turned into a full-time PR Coordinator role in January of 2023! I am so thankful for Dr. Davis for pushing the class to go out of their comfort zone. I also learned the importance of staying in contact with your network and being persistent until it pays off!

What does a typical work day look like for you?

• Every day on the Yelp PR team is different, especially as a coordinator. The Yelp PR team has various functional groups, including corporate, consumer, restaurants, data, advertising, product, and Trust & Safety. But, as a coordinator, I have my hands on every functional group, supporting the team where needed. This typically comes in the form of compiling media lists for upcoming campaigns, pitching reporters, creating monthly newsletters that go out to the wider company, helping plan media events and informational summits, compiling lists of our “Best of” in different cities and states, brainstorming for new creative campaigns, and monitoring for coverage.

What do you like best about your job?

• I love so much about my job, so it’s hard to choose just one thing! One of my favorite parts about my job is my team. My colleagues are highly experienced, exceptionally intelligent, and incredibly supportive. I’ve had the privilege of learning from each and every one of them. With a compact PR team comprising just 13 members, I feel lucky to have the opportunity to foster close relationships with every colleague, regardless of their role. I also love the culture at Yelp, specifically the value the company has for its employees. I have a great work-life balance and am always encouraged to take time off for vacation or wellness. The flexibility of working remote full-time has allowed me to move to New York City, spend extended time at home for the holidays, and even work from a different country! Yelp also sends quarterly care packages and gives its employees a monthly wellness stipend, which is always so appreciated. Overall, Yelp is an awesome place to work, and I love that I am always learning and feeling supported by my team in every aspect!

What advice do you have for majors and minors in communications?

• My biggest piece of advice is to NETWORK – and do it while you still have student status! I know it’s uncomfortable, but do a LinkedIn search and reach out to professionals at companies you could envision working for, just asking for an informational interview about what they do and how they got there. People love to talk about their career successes and impose their wisdom on those wanting to learn from them. I recently had a freshman in college at a university in NY asking me to hop on a call to interview me for a PR paper she was writing, and I of course accepted. Once you’ve conducted a few of these informational interviews, it’s crucial to maintain contact with your connections. Share updates about your life and inquire about theirs. Even if you think they might not be interested, rest assured that they will notice your consistency and persistence. The connections you make while still a student at Belmont will likely be the way you get that future job interview. I had many internships during my time at Belmont, and after applying to hundreds of jobs my second semester of senior year, the only two interviews I got were through connections I had fostered. I know you probably hear it all the time (because I did), but this truly is the most important thing you could do while you are at Belmont to set yourself up for future career success. I would suggest starting to build those relationships now, even if it feels uncomfortable!