Hannah Tattersall always knew she wanted to work at NBCUniversal. “Ever since I could remember, my family and I would take pictures at Rockefeller Center, calling 30 Rock my future place of employment,” she says.

But despite having her dream job in sight, the job search journey for the communications and economics dual major was difficult.

“My job search was not an easy process; I had no idea where to even start looking,” says Tattersall. “Once I came back to campus for my senior year, most of my economics classmates had job offers for summer internships, while my communications classmates were saying it was too early to apply.”

Tattersall says she had multiple summer internships, but each one was different from the one before—and the problem was that she enjoyed them all.

“I was having trouble deciding what route to go down,” she says. “So, I downloaded the LinkedIn Jobs app and started searching to get an idea of job descriptions that sounded interesting to help narrow my focus. I started my serious job hunt after fall semester of senior year where I applied to at least one job per day. By the end of winter session, I had an Excel spreadsheet that was more than 100 rows long of applications I submitted, but not one interview came my way during that time.”

Still, Tattersall kept returning to the NBC career website to better understand their business units and what they were looking for in entry-level applicants.

Luckily, towards the end of Tattersall’s senior year, her cousin put her in contact with a college friend who just started a new job at NBC and was able to forward her resume to a recruiter. Finally, Tattersall received her first informational interview. She was ultimately hired in August 2016 as an analyst for the USA and SYFY insights and measurement team.

Since then, Tattersall has been promoted twice on her team and currently serves as a manager. Her daily duties cover a broad range of tasks. “I wear a variety of hats,” she says. “I use data to create compelling stories to drive revenue for NBC programs like This Is Us, SNL and America’s Got Talent. My team and I provide insights throughout the entire sales process—from supporting key opportunities for clients in the pre-sale phase, to demonstrating partnership impact and performance in the post-campaign phase.”

Tattersall says she also helps develop positioning to support strategic initiatives for NBC overall, especially in the ever-changing TV landscape. “Since streaming services are on the rise, viewership is constantly changing,” she says. “With this change also comes a greater need for more accurate ways to measure, both in viewer consumption trends and in the impact on our partnerships. I’m lucky to work with a team where we are always trying to learn and provide best in-class insights in this evolving industry. And here’s my shameless plug to download NBC’s new streaming service, Peacock!”

Working for NBC has its obvious perks, including rubbing elbows with network celebrities. “From getting sneak peeks at new programs, to taking my family to Universal Studios for free, to having chance encounters with NBC talent, working here has fun benefits,” she says.

Tattersall was even able to sit in the audience for tapings of two NBC shows: “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” and “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.” “Seeing some of my favorite celebrities in person and getting a behind-the-scenes look at two of our most popular shows were experiences I’ll definitely never forget,” she says.

But her job isn’t all fun and games, and COVID-19 has certainly thrown a wrench in day-to-day operations. “Working remotely has brought up the need for better and more frequent communication across the company,” Tattersall says. “My role deals with a variety of teams, so it’s always critical to make sure the teams are aligned.”

Tattersall draws on her experiences at UD that were influential in getting her to where she is now. The former honors student served as both a tutor in the Writing Fellows program and a Blue Hen Ambassador. She also joined Lerner’s Executive Mentoring Program where she was matched with an experienced executive from Delaware. “My mentor was a sounding board throughout the entire process, through resume reviews to interview practices,” she says. “Having an encouraging mentor was very influential in giving me the confidence to chase the jobs I wanted.”

If Tattersall could speak to her younger self at UD, she would urge her to calm down and take advantage of everything offered on campus. “Relax; the job search is a long process. Don’t try to measure your progress against anyone else,” she says. “Enjoy all the available opportunities while at UD. If you can attend networking events, career fairs or guest speaker series, always go. These opportunities provide you with an opening to learn more about employers and expand your network. And lastly, always take notes whenever you can. Notes allow you to learn and grow beyond the classroom. The most successful people I’ve encountered are the ones that keep detailed and organized notes.”

For current students who are floundering in their job search or unsure what they want to do, Tattersall advises researching companies. “Get a better idea of what they do, what the company culture is like and what opportunities they have available across the board,” she says. “Make sure to not limit yourself by only looking at opportunities that you think you like now. I was adamantly against applying to jobs within ad sales, yet it’s exactly where I am today and turned out to be the perfect fit.”

Tattersall also encourages all students to rely on the extensive alumni network that UD has to offer. “I am one of four Blue Hen graduates in my immediate family and all four of us have jobs in the fields we studied at UD,” she says. “So, don’t lose hope, especially in these unprecedented times. I have found that Blue Hens are some of the proudest alumni out there. We should always feel comfortable reaching out to each other on LinkedIn to share stories and offer career advice.”