Starting the year leading UTRGV to nationals, mass communication senior Carlos Luna was named as one of 50 Most Promising Multicultural Students for 2023 for the American Advertising Federationโs.
The Most Promising program gives advertising, media, communications and tech companies the opportunity to tap into high-achieving talent of 50 diverse college students from across the country, according to a Jan. 10 AAF news release.
Students from more than 140 college chapters applied to the program. This yearโs class had an average GPA of 3.7 and represented 28 schools and 18 states across the country, including California, Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, Oregon, New York and Texas.
Luna said he found out about the program by taking advantage of every opportunity that came his way.
โSo, when the multicultural thing … came up, I just wanted to throw my hat in the ring, see if I could be part of it and I was accepted,โ Luna said. โIt was very humbling and [I] had a little bit of impostor syndrome. But, I mean, here we are now. And Iโm happy to be representing UTRGV.โ
For the application process, eligible students provided recommendation letters, a portfolio, a resume and a summary of community involvement. Each nominee also wrote an essay about why diversity is important, how their skills will enable them to become advertising professionals and why they chose their major.
Luna said he was inspired by Kimberly A. Selber, an associate professor in the department of Communication, who helped him throughout the application process.
โSheโs been very, very, very helpful to me,โ Luna said. โI credit most of what Iโve done for just being inspired by her classes, and how she [is] so passionate about advertising.โ
The 50 students will participate in a four-day industry immersion program between Feb. 13 and 16 in New York. The program will include professional development and personal branding workshops, the Building Bridges for Our Future Awards Ceremony and Luncheon, and Recruiterโs Expo, according to the news release.
Luna said that growing up, he realized there was a lack of multicultural representation in movies.
โIt always seemed taboo or unnatural when you would see a Hispanic person,โ Luna said. โI remember just thinking, like, โOh, thatโs weird.โ But it shouldnโt be weird, you know? So, representation is so important to me, at least for the reason that I donโt want kids to grow up seeing people like I did, not seeing their culture represented in any kind of media.โ
Luna said he was happy to be representing UTRGV when he saw he was on the list among big universities, such as the University of Texas at Austin and Penn State University.
โSeeing University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, itโs kind of humbling, it looks really cool,โ he said. โIt made me laugh, but not in a, like, an embarrassing way but just like, โWow, dang, weโre doing it. Weโre going to be representing.โโ
Steve Pacheco, CEO of the AAF, stated in the news release that he is proud of the selected students.
โNow, more than ever, the need to connect young talent to the advertising industry is a top priority for everyone,โ Pacheco stated. โThe fact that the AAF can develop such a diverse group representing the best from across North America is consistent with our mission to develop the Next Generation of Advertising leaders.โ
Luna advises upcoming multicultural students looking to make it on this list to believe in themselves.
โThere is no right or wrong time,โ he said โโฆ You have to want it more than anyone else does. If you want it, go for it. If you are not ready for it, wait it out, you know, [the] time will come. And I know thereโs something else I wanted to say for the multicultural students. โฆ It doesnโt matter where you are from. If you are passionate about it, go for it, just take advantage of what the world has to offer.โ
