By Jaclyn Galvin
From PRSSA to the Pérez Art Museum Miami, Alexa Ferra is well-versed in the PR realm. Ferra is a graduate from the University of Miami and currently serves as the Director of Marketing and Communications at the Perez Art Museum Miami. While at UM, she worked her way up the ranks in the PRSSA program, culminating as the President. She mentioned that she loved PRSSA because it was “a really great way to dive deeper than what you do in your coursework.” Her favorite parts of her PRSSA experience were talking to speakers and going on agency tours.
During her senior year, Ferra held two internships at the same time in order to diversify her portfolio. One of these was at an agency, which she encouraged everyone to try at one point. She said that it was a different experience because of the fast-paced environment. While she didn’t stay at the agency after graduation, she appreciated the experience. Just a few months after graduation, Ferra got her job at the Pérez Art Museum Miami, where she has been for the past ten years. She has held essentially every position within the communications department at the museum and has worked on numerous projects and events including a total rebranding. She had a lot of advice for us based on her experiences.
One skill that makes students marketable to employers is a passion for learning. Utilizing the free workshops online like LinkedIn Learning or gaining certificates helps to make you look more well-rounded. “Get your certifications, because it’s nice to see that individuals are constantly willing to learn and add more under their belt,” Ferra said. Another skill students should perfect is writing. While passion is important, your writing skills can reflect that passion in any tactical or social materials.
As the Director of Marketing and Communications, Ferra must be organized in order to manage all the requests coming into her from various parts of the museum. She noted that she recently implemented a communications request form to streamline any requests coming to her from the museum in order for her to better collect information. Something that helped Ferra be more organized early in her career is lists as well as her agenda book.
One of the biggest pieces of advice she gave us is to not overwork yourself and make sure that you are still making time for things that you care about. “I’m always doing something, it’s just who I am,” she says. “I’m a workaholic and I have a family too, but I needed to make restrictions for myself.” But, don’t constantly overwork yourself because then your overall performance will be hindered. Have outlets other than work to express yourself. For Ferra, this comes in the form of a wine blog, where she has gained a relatively large following (@alexaswinediary on Instagram).
As Ferra is a young Latina woman, she has had numerous experiences where people didn’t take her seriously, or she was underpaid. She said that sometimes she has to make her own confidence in those situations. That can come from something as simple as her wearing heels instead of flats! Some more advice she had for young people is to “apply, apply, apply! Don’t be discouraged to put yourself out there. Be persistent and keep track of who you’re contacting, someone will respond to you I promise you.”
Thank you Alexa for sharing the advice you had for us! Stay tuned for the announcement of our next Candid Conversation.