Welcome to the Digital Marketing Program

Welcome Information, Academic Year 23-24

Letter to New Students

Congratulations on being accepted to the Digital Marketing program at Bellevue College! We are very happy to have you join us, and we are here to help support your successful journey through the program.

Our faculty is always innovating and evolving our digital marketing curriculum to meet emerging trends and technologies to best prepares students for securing employment after graduation. It is a challenging degree program, and many students have been surprised by the amount of work required, the focus on high-level critical thinking, and hands-on projects that require leadership, flexibility, and working in fast-paced and ambiguous environments. For these reasons, we have established this welcome page to help establish expectations and help you navigate the path towards degree completion.

You will find introductions to our team of faculty and staff that make up the marketing department, a list of resources to better acquaint yourself with Bellevue College, an overview of the courses that make up the degree, and an outline of the Capstone project that is the culmination of the BAS degree program. While this page is not a comprehensive review of everything students need to know, we hope the introduction will provide some help in getting you started.

Just like in the real world, we expect that each student will take initiative to understand how the program works, own your responsibilities for completing work, and plan a course of study with the aide of our dedicated Program Manager. Please feel free to come have conversations with our team when we can be of help to you. The students who have been most successful in the program have been those who frequently engage with our staff and faculty, ask questions, seek answers, and fully understand the path to success.

Again, congratulations on your acceptance to the program. We are excited to have you be the focus of our attention over the next couple of years!

Kyle Barber
Marketing Department Program Chair

Meet the Faculty and Staff

Visit our Faculty & Staff page to familiarize yourself with your instructors and advisors, or contact our Peer Navigators with questions about classes, requirements, or campus resources. Peer Navigators are advanced Digital Marketing students who can chat about what it’s like to be in the Digital Marketing program.

Advising

The Digital Marketing program has dedicated advisors that can meet in-person or remotely to answer your advising questions related to admissions, transfer credit and process, class selection, education planning, Capstone preparation, graduation and more. We host weekly info sessions online and daily appointments are available to meet with an advisor. For MKTG general advising sessions, book here. For education planning sessions (course selection for current students), book here.

Enrollment Information

View this resource guide to learn about enrollment, how to register for classes, payments and deadlines, withdrawal information, the student appeal process, and how to get in touch with Student Central for all registration or payment needs.

Resources for Students

Bellevue College provides a variety of Resources to Support Students to ensure your holistic success.

The Marketing Department offers free marketing tutoring for students enrolled in MKTG classes. Marketing tutors are advanced students who have succeeded in upper and lower division MKTG classes and can provide academic support in all MKTG classes. Drop-in tutoring is available 7 days per week online or on-campus. To access tutoring, visit the Academic Success Center website.

Promotional Marketing Template

Since the program focuses on promotional marketing strategy and objectives, it is important to understand what a comprehensive strategy document looks like. View the Promotional Marketing Template [PDF] here.

Understanding the MKTG Coursework

Students are encouraged to become familiar with their degree requirements, including any course-level prerequisites and course sequences for the Capstone project. BAS students should apply for BAS admission during their last quarter of prerequisite classes. Once admitted, BAS students should finish lower division MTKG coursework (100-level and 200-level) before moving on to the upper division MKTG coursework (300-level and 400-level). Please email the program advisor to create an education plan based on your remaining courses.

Check Degree Progress

Students can check their degree progress at anytime in ctcLink using the “What If Report” tool. View this step-by-step video guide on how to run a “What If Report”. It is important for students to check your progress on a quarterly basis to ensure you are on the right track. For questions regarding the “What If Report” tool, please contact your program advisor.

Capstone (BAS only)

Capstone is a year long project in the BAS program that each student completes individually through a series of rigorous, guided classes, MTKG 461, MTKG 462, and MKTG 481, 482, and 483 (all required). For their Capstone, each student locates and establishes a client relationship with a real business client before enrolling in MKTG 461, Then, the student gathers research, data, and develops and implements a comprehensive marketing strategy for that client from start to finish. As mentioned above, Capstone spans multiple courses including the initial courses MTKG 461 (Marketing Research II), MTKG 462 (Data Visualization and Advanced Analytics), and the 3 Capstone courses – MKTG 481 (Capstone I), MKTG 482 (Capstone II), and MKTG 483 (Capstone III).

MKTG 461 – Marketing Research II is a flexible lab environment for working on the Capstone project. In this class, students articulate a research question to better helps understand the client’s issue and what marketing work might be needed. Students will conduct extensive secondary research with the company, their product / service, the competition, the industry in which they all compete, external factors impacting consumers, and other situational elements that affect how you might go about crafting campaigns. Students also will identify what is missing from the known research and conduct first-party research to fill in the gaps. The class will end with participants sharing the way forward with their project, thus having much of the heavy lifting of the Capstone project already complete.

MKTG 462 – Data Visualization and Advanced Analytics asks students to work on assembling a data set that will help assist with drawing insights for the Capstone client. Again, coming to the course with not only a Capstone client lined up but a solid idea of what the problem they face will really help you make the most of this three-month period.

Capstone Project Timeline

Secure Client and Identify their Problem
Enroll in MKTG 461 and MKTG 462 (concurrently or in separate quarters OK)
Complete MKTG 461 and MKTG 462 with C or better, then request entry code into MKTG 481 – Capstone I
Complete 481, then enroll in MKTG 482 the following quarter
Complete MKTG 482, then enroll in MKTG 483 the following quarter
Complete MKTG 483 and give Final Presentation

Courses listed above are offered Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters, but not Summer quarter. You may start your Capstone courses in Fall, Winter, or Spring. Students earning below a C grade for any course must repeat that course, including Capstone courses.

Gaining Entry to Capstone

You must have a Capstone client before you enter MKTG 461 – Research II. This course will provide you the opportunity to complete the research work needed to enter the Capstone classes. MKTG 462 will also require working with your Capstone client and it is strongly advised to take MKTG 462 before MKTG 481.

To enroll in MKTG 481 – Capstone I, you must request an entry code from the Capstone instructor. Advisors cannot issue codes. Email your Capstone instructor confirming you have completed (or are currently enrolled in) MKTG 461 and 462. In your request email, you should also provide in writing a compelling case for your year-long Capstone project that will lead to a comprehensive integrated marketing plan with three disciplines and multiple tactics under each. You do not need to present the full plan, but you do need to describe with enough detail your past research and future trajectory so that the instructor can assess your preparation and confirm the scope of your project is deep enough.

The Capstone instructor may deny entry into the Capstone classes if you are unable to present a framework of how you plan to address a multi-faceted challenging marketing problem. The client needs to be able to invest money and time to sustain this relationship and provide you with all the access and resources to allow you to implement tactics in three disciplines. Your instructor wants to assess scope before you enter Capstone to ensure you are ready. If at any time your project stops and run out of scope, then you would not be able to pass your Capstone classes and would have to retake.

If at any point the client stops communicating, refuses to continue the project, or stops providing you with access to internal systems/platforms (e.g. website backend, measurement tools), then you will have to drop the class and retake with another new client.

Choosing a Capstone Client, A Problem, and Areas of Study

Students should look for small businesses that need help with marketing but cannot afford to hire dedicated marketing staff. Having some personal connection with a business or nonprofit can also facilitate the sharing of data and might result in a client being more receptive to big-picture thinking.

When selecting a client, be sure that there is a specific challenge you can research and solve. Saying “they need to make money” or “they need a campaign” is not acceptable. This task is further complicated in that you will need to help solve the problem by employing three to four sub disciplines of marketing to address the issue. We want you to demonstrate mastery of multiple areas of promotional marketing in this project, which will help increase your chances of securing high-level employment post-graduation.

Each student will complete the marketing discipline checklist assignment. This form has you consider to what degree are you knowledgeable about certain subjects, how much experience you have had putting that knowledge in to practice, and which of those sub disciplines you enjoy. This exercise not only helps jog your memory of the many different topics you were exposed to across the program, but also helps you start building your elevator pitch on what kind of marketer you are and what roles are the best fit for you.

Capstone Prospectus

The prospectus assignment in MKTG 481 should detail the client’s problem, why this requires the help of the marketer, related objectives, a strategy, and the sub disciplines that will be used to guide tactics and measurement. The final prospectus should be about six to eight pages long, which translates to around 3000 – 4000 words.

You will be asked to submit an outline before the actual prospectus document so it is easy to trace all the different elements and see that they follow in a clear, linear fashion. The lengthy annotated bibliography created in MKTG 461 will come in handy here, as you add evidence you have collected as part of the literature review.

Capstone Initiatives

When the final prospectus has been completed in MKTG 481, students can begin writing the successive documents that highlight the three or four sub disciplines that support the client’s problem and your proposed integrated marketing plan. The initiative documents should be about five to eight pages, or 2500 – 4000 words in length. You will start by properly justifying the choice of this initiative / campaign. Then you recap the basics of the research, the approach, objectives and strategy, and then let the focus of each document be the tactics aligned with that sub discipline and the appropriate measurements for each choice. Because this is intended to be a real campaign execution on behalf of a client, the creation of the different initiatives will take varying amounts of time.

Because you are executing the initiatives in MKTG 482 and MKTG 483, we do expect to see optimization occur, where you identify what is going right or wrong based on data collected, and then shifting gears to best take advantage of your learning. Most students will probably not have access to a media budget, but there can certainly be optimization for all promotional marketing efforts. Think about what these might be as you are choosing sub disciplines to include in your project and writing up the findings and next steps for each document.

Capstone Publication

Wrapping up MKTG 483, students will assemble a formal document for submission. All sub discipline sections will be compiled with the prospectus and a number of supplementary materials, a submission page, a title page, an abstract, a table of contents, and a concluding statement.

Capstone Presentation

The final presentation will last between eight and 10 minutes, with up to an additional five minutes for questions from the assembled audience. External sources are expected to be shared as part of the presentation to back up your ideas and provide additional credibility. Your delivery is expected to be polished and professional.

What is DECA, Speech & Debate, and Why Should I Join?

Your success in the program should be measured not just by receiving a piece of paper stating you completed a degree. Rather, success ought to be tied to landing a job that leads to a successful and lucrative career. Activities like DECA and Speech help students achieve that through experiential learning.

Experiential learning features hands-on work, where you apply what you have learned in class to solve problems. This critical thinking exercise also has students reflect on the meaning of the experience which can lead to career planning and discovery of strengths and preferences for work styles and environments. DECA and Speech also help students work on speaking skills, which is essential for landing the more lucrative marketing positions that are available.

About DECA

DECA is a national organization dating back to 1946, and attracted over 10 million members over the past 75 years. Many employers have been part of DECA, or had their kids compete in DECA tournaments, so they understand the work involved to be good at it and why they would want to hire candidates who have such experience. They could be more likely to give you a job if DECA is mentioned on your resume; this has been the experience of past graduates of our bachelor program.

DECA and Speech are intercollegiate “sport” activities, where nothing athletic occurs. Our team competes against students from teams at UW, WSU, WWU, Gonzaga, Seattle U, and other colleges in the area.

Students go to tournaments at other schools or held virtually, making presentations that are either prepared ahead of time or try a case study for which they get limited time to prepare. For example, the international marketing event in DECA has students read a scenario about conducting business in other countries. A fictional problem exists, so the students think about their proposed solution for an hour then present their recommendation to a judge in a 10-minute role play discussion that simulates what it would be like to serve as a marketing consultant.

DECA has 25 events that are aligned with marketing, business, entrepreneurship, finance, and the hospitality industry.  All students can participate in any of these events, regardless of your major or area of study. 19 of the 25 are unprepared case studies, while another six are prepared speeches you work out ahead of time.  Check this link for some video examples of DECA case study event competitions.

Also, try this link for more information and resources on the 25 different Collegiate DECA events.

About Speech & Debate

Speech has 11 events that are not specifically aligned with business and marketing, and are really open to any topic. Most of these events are prepared ahead of time, so they differ from the majority of DECA events. There are three types of presentations in the Speech & Debate tournaments:

Prepared speeches that are 10 minutes long, where you try to inform, persuade, or entertain the judge.

Unprepared events, which are similar to the DECA case studies. One focuses on current events and politics, the other is more pop culture and connecting ideas to quotations.
Acting events, or interpretation of literature, where you perform drama, read poetry, or share a selection from a novel

The speech events require a bit more practice and time commitment, but you can be as serious and committed or relaxed about it as you like. Speech competitions are usually on Saturdays; this year they will be virtual, so you just log in, speak, and then go on about your day. Other years there is more of a time commitment to travel to various places to compete.  

Examples of Speech Events

Getting Involved

Both DECA and Speech are extracurricular activities, meaning they are open to any students at Bellevue College and do not require you to be enrolled in any specific classes. This is sometimes confusing as there are three DECA courses offered at Bellevue College. Those are optional electives for students who want to earn credit for their work; most team members don’t enroll in the class unless they need an elective. 

DECA and Speech allows you to be involved as much or little as you like.  Our team has been national champions the past seven years; we are somewhat competitive as the top community college DECA team in the country. But  DECA can also be a low stakes practice opportunity for you as well.

Many people join the team not just to compete against other schools but get involved in the social side of things and make new friends. We have fun events, study sessions to help people with their classes, and also do community service projects to give back.  Check our team’s Facebook page for events and information.

DECA and Speech also provide you with an opportunity to lead; that’s something hard to find in entry-level jobs but asked for frequently in job interviews. Now you can say you have that experience and give specific examples. Assuming leadership roles on the team naturally requires additional time and effort.

Competing with DECA and Speech allows you to become more confident and professional. DECA is the only activity at Bellevue College that are current national champions and being part of that team helps you market yourself to employers. You’ll network with judges that can offer you quality jobs, plus have meaningful experiences to include on your resume.

Our team is a community of like-minded students, who wish to network and advance their careers. If you want a serious leg up on the competition, there is no better way to do that than by becoming part of DECA and/or Speech & Debate. Feel free to set up a one-on-one meeting with kyle.barber@bellevuecollege.edu for more information.

Last Updated April 24, 2024