Thousands of public relations and marketing graduates are starting their careers and are ready to use the skills they learned in school. Having been in that position not too long ago, I have learned that there are many skills and situations that school that can prepare you for— and there are other lessons you can only learn on the job.

The moments that have caused a huge splash in our culture in this decade include the COVID-19 lockdown, the retiring of sports greats, the summer and winter Olympics and the rise of BeReal and TikTok. These instances have led to the practice of trend-jacking, when your brand, led by savvy marketing and PR teams, rapidly creates content connecting to current news and trends.