Since 1993, the NIU Department of Marketing and the Chicago Association of Direct Marketing Education Foundation (CADMEF) have partnered to develop and implement the Interactive Marketing Area of Study. The Chicago Association has witnessed tremendous growth in the Interactive Marketing industry in the past decade, and the availability of qualified human resources to serve this growth has not met demand. The NIU-CADMEF partnership was developed to foster Interactive Marketing education at NIU to prepare students for careers in the Interactive Marketing industry. CADMEF provides student scholarships, seed money for program needs (such as brochures, resume books), faculty internship support, student internship opportunities, and curriculum development grant funding. CADMEF has helped to find a corporate sponser for a named professorshipin Interactive Marketing. Dr. Debra L. Zahay currently holds the title "Acxiom Corporation Professor of Interactive Marketing".
To date, 75 students have completed this area of study and over 400 students have been exposed to Interactive Marketing through the Interactive Marketing class. Program alumni find their exposure to Interactive Marketing rewarding--personally and professionally...
"The Direct Marketing class gave me another option in the marketing field to pursue. I learned a lot about direct marketing, and I feel that the class gave me a competitive edge over other graduates seeking a career in Direct Marketing."
-Jeffrey Hoffman, Client Service Representative, Experian.
"The three classes opened up my eyes to a growing industry with enormous job potential. It was very helpful for my job search and I was able to land a job in the direct marketing industry."
-Brian Wilske, Jerome Group.
"I really can't tell you how much the Direct Marketing and Database Marketing classes helped me. I am way ahead of most other new entrants at my job. The knowledge that I gained from these classes helped me to better understand the basics of my job, as well as learn more advanced areas."
-Amy Cowsert, Client Service Representative, Experian.
"I owe the program a lot of thanks. It played a major role in my employment. I left my resume at CADM DM Days. Without the program, I would not have known DM Days, let alone have gone to it. It made the direct mail industry interesting to me. Thanks so much."
-Michael Roots, Sales Associate, First Data Solutions.
For more information: CADMEF website