{"id":44661,"date":"2025-09-01T18:19:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-01T23:19:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/?post_type=bu-article&#038;p=44661"},"modified":"2026-03-23T17:21:22","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T21:21:22","slug":"from-com-to-career-qa-with-sydney-koo-bs-media-science","status":"publish","type":"bu-article","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/articles\/from-com-to-career-qa-with-sydney-koo-bs-media-science\/","title":{"rendered":"From COM to Career: Q&#038;A With Sydney Koo, BS Media Science"},"content":{"rendered":"\t<div class=\"wp-block-editorial-leadin test-block-editorial-leadin is-style-default has-media has-media-focus-center-middle\">\n\t\t<div class=\"container-lockup\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-block-leadin-media\">\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<img width=\"1250\" height=\"625\" src=\"\/com\/files\/2025\/12\/COM_COMtalk_QandA_25-2_Koo.png\" class=\"\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/files\/2025\/12\/COM_COMtalk_QandA_25-2_Koo.png 1250w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/files\/2025\/12\/COM_COMtalk_QandA_25-2_Koo-636x318.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/files\/2025\/12\/COM_COMtalk_QandA_25-2_Koo-1024x512.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/files\/2025\/12\/COM_COMtalk_QandA_25-2_Koo-768x384.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1250px) 100vw, 1250px\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-outer\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"container-words-inner\">\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"wp-prepress-tag\">From COM to Career<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"head\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFrom COM to Career: Q&amp;A With Sydney Koo, BS Media Science\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar test-prepress-layout-metabar\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-categories\">\n\t\t\t<ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/category\/alumni\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAlumni\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/category\/media-science\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMedia Science\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-date\">September 1, 2025<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-credits\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<ul data-credit-type=\"By\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/authors\/com-staff\/\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCOM Staff\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-metabar-share js-bu-prepress-share-tools\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-twitter\"><span>Twitter<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-facebook\"><span>Facebook<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"icon-action\"><\/span>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\t<div style=\"display:none;\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-share-tools\">\n\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-share-tools-inner js-prepress-component-share-tools\">\n\t\t<h4>Share<\/h4>\n\t\t<p class=\"wp-prepress-component-share-tools-article-title\">From COM to Career: Q&#038;A With Sydney Koo, BS Media Science<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"wp-prepress-component-share-tools-article-link\">\n\t\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" value=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/articles\/from-com-to-career-qa-with-sydney-koo-bs-media-science\/\" readonly>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<label>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Copy URL:<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<button class=\"js-prepress-component-share-tools\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>Copy<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/button>\n\t\t\t<\/label>\n\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\t\n\n\n<p>After graduating from Boston University with her Bachelor\u2019s in media science, Sydney Koo turned a co-op position with a major pharmaceutical company into a temporary full-time position before moving to Epsilon\u2019s healthcare strategy team. There, she tackled more technical and data-heavy tasks before accepting a new role with Digitas Health as a marketing strategist for a \u201cmore creative agency vibe.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Koo spoke with COM as part of a series of interviews with recent graduates from Boston University\u2019s College of Communication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a test-block-editorial-q-and-a\"><div class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-title\"><h2 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-title-heading\">Q<span>&amp;<\/span>A<\/h2><h4 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-title-subheading\">With Sydney Koo<\/h4><\/div>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>What does a marketing strategist do at Digitas Health?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">I build omni-channel marketing campaigns from a strategy perspective across many different channels \u2014 social media, websites, display ads, print ads \u2014 all in the healthcare and pharmaceutical realms. Whether it\u2019s marketing a drug to patients, which we call DTC, or to physicians, known as HCP \u2014 healthcare practitioners \u2014 I work across various campaigns.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>What led you to choose Boston University and the College of Communication for your studies?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">The COM program was one of the top communication programs available, which was very attractive to me. I felt that BoU would be recognized by future employers, and that definitely turned out to be true. BU is a target school for many employers in my field. I always had a strong interest in marketing, and I value a balance between creative and strategic thinking. I enjoy brainstorming new ideas but also believe that what I create needs to be grounded in research and real data. At one point, I was debating between Questrom (School of Business) and COM. Questrom has a glamorous reputation and lots of investment in career programs, but the side of marketing that interested me aligned much better with COM. I liked that I could dive straight into marketing, creative work, and also take classes on research and study design without having to do finance and accounting, which I didn&#8217;t want to pursue.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Looking back, what was your most memorable or \u2018a-ha!\u2019 moment at COM?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">One standout was being involved in the Ad Club. It gave me real-life experience partnering with local businesses that were promising but not yet very established, so our work had a meaningful impact on their sales and branding. That gave me a strong sense of purpose. I also took a course called Visual Storytelling (JO 205) with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/profile\/greg-marinovich\/\">Professor (Greg) Marinovich<\/a>. It was so much fun but also challenged me to lean fully into creative expression\u2014finding meaning in simple objects like a can or a drink and telling a story visually. It was completely unnecessary for my degree but very valuable.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Did you take other courses outside your specific COM focus that helped you professionally?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">Yes! I took a class on learning InDesign and similar tools. It taught me how much skill and time it takes to master those creative tools, which gave me greater appreciation for the creative side of things.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Were there any specific skills or classes at COM that helped you in your career?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">Definitely. One was a professional presentation class. At first, it scared me because we had to present on random topics in front of the class, often without preparation. But it was a boot camp that helped me practice skills I now use regularly at work \u2014 like speaking confidently about data, articulating opinions on concepts quickly, and communicating clearly with clients.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Was there a professor who made a big impact on you?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/profile\/traci-hong\/\">Dr. Traci Hong<\/a> was very impactful. She brought personal attentiveness to the classroom, even during the pandemic when engagement was difficult. She used clever exercises \u2014 like tracking greetings in class \u2014 that kept us attentive. I always felt she knew me personally and was interested in me as a student and person. I&#8217;ve stayed in touch with her post-graduation, met for lunch multiple times, and collaborated on informational sessions for BU students.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Did you ever have a moment when you realized you had chosen the right college path?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">Well, an interesting story \u2014 when I was 10 years old, I went to Disney on Ice at Agganis Arena with my mom and had a psychic moment where I just said, \u201cI&#8217;m going to go to this school,\u201d without knowing my dad was an alum. Honestly, I didn\u2019t have one definitive moment later on, but during the interview process for jobs, I realized how much BU was respected, especially in my field. That recognition helped me get interviews, like the position at Epsilon.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-question\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">COM:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\"><strong>Is there anything else you&#8217;d like to add?<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-answer\"><span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-name\">Sydney Koo:<\/span> <span class=\"wp-block-editorial-q-and-a-content\">One fun note \u2014 the photography and videography concepts I learned in the Visual Storytelling class gave me a basic photography education. That helped me appreciate the art when selecting a wedding photographer recently. An unexpected but cool application!<\/span><\/p>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After graduating from Boston University with her Bachelor\u2019s in media science, Sydney Koo turned a co-op position with a major&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25373,"featured_media":44662,"template":"","meta":{"bu_prepress_billboard":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term":"","_bu_prepress_primary_term_manual":""},"categories":[962,36],"tags":[1804],"bu-publication":[1472],"discipline-type":[1439],"bu_edition":[],"media_type":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/44661"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/bu-article"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25373"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/44661\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45693,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-article\/44661\/revisions\/45693"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44661"},{"taxonomy":"bu-publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu-publication?post=44661"},{"taxonomy":"discipline-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/discipline-type?post=44661"},{"taxonomy":"bu_edition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/bu_edition?post=44661"},{"taxonomy":"media_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media_type?post=44661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}