Nominations for the US 2024 Scholarship Program are open  – NOMINATE NOW

Applications for The US 2024 Fellowship Program are open  – APPLY NOW

FAQs

Your Questions Answered

Got a question about the The Scholarship Program? This might help…

The Marketing Academy US is sponsored by:

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Safety is our top priority and having already delivered multiple programs throughout the pandemic we are confident that whilst COVID-19 may mean changes to the program format, the impact of the Scholarship experience will not be affected.

Throughout the selection process and the program we commit to transparent & frequent communication if we believe COVID will impact the delivery of the program.

 All attendees at in person Boot Camps must be fully vaccinated. 

Yes. The bootcamp events are 100% mandatory. 

The Marketing Academy’s Scholarship Program is a development program of Mentoring, Coaching and Learning which runs from October 2024 to June 2025. The program is completely free of charge though highly selective and if you’re successful in securing a place you’ll also receive the following benefits;

  • Opportunity to meet with 8 senior industry leaders (Brand and Agency) for face-to-face mentoring sessions
  • An Executive Coach to work with throughout the entire program
  • 3 x Residential Boot Camps (8 days in total) each year filled with leadership development, inspirational speakers, CEO’s and master classes
  • Participation in a life changing Leadership Development Program
  • Peer to Peer networking
  • Exposure to high level marketing expertise across all industries
  • Lifetime access to the Academy as Alumni

You can download and read the entire outline of the Scholarship Program here

It’s free to attend the program but, as a not-for-profit company, Scholars must cover costs for their own travel, accommodation, food & meal expenses. You will be advised of the cost estimates for the venue package during the process – we try and keep costs as low as we can. The residential Boot Camps require a total of 5 nights’ accommodation which must be paid by the Scholars or their employers (we promise not to book expensive venues!). The first Boot Camp will include a weekend. Attendance to all Boot Camps and staying on site is mandatory even if you live in the same city/state.

To get the most out of the program all Scholars should expect to invest about 15 working days of time to attend 3 ‘boot camps’*, virtual campus events (workshops, lectures and keynote sessions), up to 8 mentoring sessions and regular coaching sessions. In addition there may be time outside of work where you prepare for mentoring or coaching sessions or to share your learning within your teams or externally.

The below shows a guide of how the 15 days of the Scholarship program are broken down:

 8 days of residential Boot Camps. Attendance at the residential boot camps in the New York area is mandatory for all 2024 scholars so please ensure you are available on the following dates:

  • Bootcamp 1 – Friday October 18th – Monday October 21st, 2024 (4 full days, New York)
  • Bootcamp 2 – Monday January 27th & Tuesday January 28th, 2025 (2 full days, California)
  • Virtual Day – Thursday March 27th, 2025 (1 day)
  • Bootcamp 3 – Monday June 9th & Tuesday June 10th, 2025 (2 full days, New York)

TMA Virtual campus events – an online curriculum of workshops, lectures and keynote sessions. The time for these will vary from Scholar to Scholar depending on how many they attend. Virtual Campus events will also be available on demand.

Up to 12 hours for your mentoring sessions. You will have up to 8 x 60-90 minute sessions and these are spread throughout the program.

At least 6 hours for your coaching sessions. These are organized by the Scholars and their coaches and are spread throughout the  program. Scholars usually have about 6 x 60 minute sessions.

We are a not for profit company and therefore we are unable to contribute to any expenses incurred by Scholars whilst travelling to mentoring meetings, coaching sessions, or events. This cost must be met by the Scholars or their employers. It should be noted that the Boot Camps will require 5 nights overnight accommodation which must also be paid by the Scholar or their employer. If you are travelling you may require additional nights before / after Boot Camps. We will always try and keep costs to a minimum and the costs of the accommodation / meals with beverages / coffee breaks will be available during the selection process. This is paid directly to the venue at each Boot Camp.

You can read testimonials from US / UK / Australian Scholars here.

Whilst employers must be in support of the Scholar’s application to the program, it is not compulsory for employers to give their Scholar fully paid leave. In our experience employers appreciate the level of development the Scholarship provides to their rising stars and tend to be extremely generous in giving our Scholars time to take part. However, it is expected for employers to allow Scholars to take some time as holiday or unpaid leave.

Please note that attendance to the boot camps is mandatory to be accepted onto the program. 

The Scholarship year begins in October 2024 and is kicked off with a four day Boot Camp which will be in New York State. The Scholarship runs until the end of June 2025.

Absolutely. We have Alumni all over the US. However you must be able to travel for all 3 bootcamps.

You can find a list of all the mentors, coaches, partners, judges and companies who are involved in delivering the Scholarship on our website – https://themarketingacademy.org/us/ – click the Who’s Involved tab.

Here are the key dates for the 2024 Scholarship Program:

SELECTION PROCESS:

  • June 14, 2024 – Scholarship nomination portal closes
  • June 28th, 2024 – Scholarship application deadline and application screening begins
  • August 5th to August 16th, 2024 – Pitch interviews (virtual interview)
  • September 12th to September 20th, 2024 – Panel interviews (virtual interview)
  • w/c September 30th, 2024 – Successful Applications will be notified if they have a Scholarship place

BOOT CAMP DATES:

  • Bootcamp 1 – Friday October 18th to Monday October 21st, 2024 (2 full days, New York)
  • Bootcamp 2 – Monday January 27th & Tuesday January 28th, 2025 (2 full days, California)
  • Virtual Day – Thursday March 27th, 2025 (1 full day)
  • Bootcamp 3 – Monday June 9th & Tuesday June 10th, 2025 (2 full days, New York)

Boot camp attendance is mandatory. If you are unable to attend any of the boot camp dates for any reason, you may lose your place on the program. 

Nominations

We will inform successful Scholars employers if they are accepted onto the Scholarship Program. We are not able to share updates with Nominators who are not the Scholars employer. You are also welcome to join The Marketing Academy Community groups on LinkedIn and Facebook which we regularly update with what’s going on via these channels.

By submitting your nomination you agreed to us telling the nominee who made their nomination. If you prefer your nomination to be anonymous then you can request this by emailing info.us@themarketingacademy.org
We actually recommend you give you ‘nominee’ some warning before you nominate them – you might consider sending them a copy of the Guide to the Scholarship Program which can be found here.

Yes. We have Scholarships available for individuals who do not have a ‘classic’ marketing background. Those who have demonstrated exceptional potential as natural marketers or who have shown outstanding entrepreneurial ability or exceptional achievement in the face of adversity will be considered

We support diversity, inclusion and equality in every context and firmly believe that everyone, irrespective of race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender or religion, should have the same opportunity to fast track their careers and learning via our programs.

We rely on you, as a nominator, to help us identify a breadth of talent across the entire industry.

No. You can nominate whoever you chose, be it a member of staff, colleague, subordinate, boss, peer, supplier, client, friend or family. You can nominate someone at an agency or business that you’ve worked with and have been very impressed by, or any great marketer who you feel is a rising star.

But the bottom line is: your nominee must fit the selection criteria which can be found here.

The Scholarship criteria requires the nominees to be fully employed or own their business.
The learning provided throughout the Scholarship centres around leadership development. We have discovered that the Scholars with a wide and consistent span of direct leadership & influence within one company, are able to implement the learning immediately and can practice the tools and techniques in real time. This also enables the Scholars to get the most out of the Mentor sessions, allowing them to discuss & debate real situations which mirror the practical experience of the Mentors. Depending on the span of the freelance role this consistency can be significantly reduced, along with the ability to make wide reaching impact across a business where the Scholar is directly accountable for the long term results.

We can only take 30 Scholars on any program. With over 250 people involved in their development and learning its essential that we ensure the widest possible ‘ripple effect’ of the learning so that the benefit of the Scholarship can be felt more widely within the industry. Past experience has taught us that Scholars in significant leadership roles, directly employed by one company for the duration of the program, can have a greater lasting impact on their business than those in temporary, interim or short term roles.

The learning curve of the Scholarship does not mix well with the learning curve of a new role. In fact we have found that it can be so detrimental to the Scholar (and their new employer) that we withhold the right to remove Scholars from the program if they change roles during it (much as we hate to do so). We minimise this risk by ensuring that Scholars are employed, supported by their current employer and are crystal clear on their career goals – and timings – before embarking on the program. If the Scholar is in ‘transition’ or seeking the next role while on the program then we find that most of the learning and interactions with Mentors, Coaches and the other Scholars are experienced through that lens, which ultimately results in a reductive experience. The nature of freelance work is that the likelihood of embarking on and / or seeking new roles is higher

If you know someone in transition / freelancing / contracting they may be eligible to enrol on our Virtual Campus program – please send them this link https://themarketingacademy.org/us/the-marketing-academy-virtual-campus/

Yes but you may disadvantage your nominee. The nomination portal closes on June 14th, 2024 and the closing date for applications is June 28th, 2024. So, the earlier you nominate the more time your nominee has, to design and submit their application.

No. To be eligible for an ‘Invitation to Apply’ for a Marketing Academy Scholarship you will need to be nominated by someone who considers you worthy of a place. We will not accept self nominations and the nomination portal is regularly cross checked and verified.

You can nominate as many people as you like.

After you’ve nominated a rising marketing star on our website, you will receive an email confirming receipt of your nomination. Your nominee will be sent all the details they need in order to apply for a place.

Selection Process

The Scholarship Program is free but highly selective, so we ask senior business leaders to nominate the best of their emerging leaders via www.themarketingacademy.us.

All ‘nominees’ then receive an ‘Invitation to Apply’ which includes essential information about the 3-stage selection process.

Nominations for the US 2024 Scholarship Program close on June 14th, 2024.

Application — Submission deadline June 28th, 2024

This 3-part application must include submission of a full Resume, Employers Endorsement’ and a 2 Minute digital ‘Showcase Me’.

Nominees will be informed of their progress no later than Friday August 2nd, 2024.

The Pitch — August 5th – August 16th, 2024

Successful applicants will be invited to make a 10 minute ‘pitch’ followed by a 15 minute Q&A.

The Pitch will be virtual.

Panel Interviews — September 12th to September 20th, 2024

Successful applicants will be invited to a virtual interview with a selection panel of Marketing and HR Professionals. 

Successful applicants will be notified if they have a Scholarship place by w/c September 30th, 2024

To find out more about the program and selection process check out our Scholarship Program Guide here.

To continue through the selection process it’s essential we receive evidence of employer’s support of the nominees’ application in written form. An ‘Employer’s Endorsement Form’ is supplied with the ‘Invitation to Apply’. Employers are asked to outline why they feel their employees should receive a place on the program and to confirm that they will enable their employee to invest a minimum of 15 days to the program if awarded.

The ‘Showcase Me’ element of the Scholarship application is your chance to show your creative side and communicate exactly why you should be awarded a place on the program. It needs to be submitted electronically and we must be able to read / watch / listen / experience it in 2 minutes. All we’ll say is the more original the better! You can see a video about the Showcase Me on our You Tube here.

When submitting your digital Showcase Me please attach as an mp4 (if audio) or if a video link then please upload this to Youtube and select ‘Unlisted’, this link will then only be viewable by us and the judges. Please do not submit your application via dropbox / googledrive.

We cannot also accept .pages files as we are not MAC compatible, so please send any document to us in Word or PDF format.

Whether your experience is in a consumer or B2B brand, public or charity sector, media or creative agency, media owner or platform, entrepreneur or working for companies large or small, all applicants will be assessed equally against a strict criteria.

What we are looking for:

  • Ideally between 8 and 18 years in a marketing or agency role*
  • Currently in a leadership role
  • Highly ambitious to further your career in marketing leadership; aspiring to C-Suite or board roles
  • Demonstrates commitment to career with evidence of results and achievements
  • Evidence of commitment to broadening horizons, such as an interest in charitable, social, cultural, creative, travel or sporting endeavours
  • High emotional intelligence & natural drive to succeed
  • Employed on a permanent (not freelance) basis in the US at a company for a minimum of 6 months
  • No known risk of termination of resignation for the duration of the program
  • Be a US citizen (or have permanent residency in the US)

*Please note: We have places available on the Scholarship Program for individuals who do not have a ‘classic’ marketing background. Those who have demonstrated exceptional potential as natural marketers or who have shown outstanding entrepreneurial ability or exceptional achievement in the face of adversity will be considered.

We support diversity, inclusion and equality in every context and firmly believe that everyone, irrespective of race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender or religion, should have the same opportunity to fast track their careers and learning via our programs.

Additional Information

The learning curve of the Scholarship does not mix well with the learning curve of a new role. In fact we have found that it can be so detrimental to the Scholar (and their new employer) that we reserve the right to terminate the Scholarship place if they change roles during it.

We minimise this risk by ensuring that Scholars are employed, supported by their current employer, are under no known risk of resignation, are crystal clear on their career goals – and timings – before embarking on the program. If the Scholar is in ‘transition’ or seeking the next role while on the program then we find that most of the learning and interactions with Mentors, Coaches and the other Scholars are experienced through that lens, which ultimately results in a reductive experience.

We share free or discounted learning opportunities with the nominees who aren’t selected for a Scholarship. We also advise nominees re-apply in later years, as we have had many Scholars who were successful on their second, third or even fourth try.

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