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M.S. in Commerce Alumni Spotlight: Meyrav Levy

As a former member of the Sport Business Society at Rice University and PR intern for a well-known sports agency, Meyrav Levy brought with her a unique set of experiences and knowledge to the M.S. in Commerce program.

M.S. in Commerce 2018, Marketing & Management Track
Undergrad: B.A. in Sport Management 2017, Rice University
After: Bluetext, Digital Project Manager (Washington, D.C.)

As a former member of the Sport Business Society at Rice University and PR intern for a well-known sports agency, Meyrav Levy brought with her a unique set of experiences and knowledge to the M.S. in Commerce program. Meyrav originally applied to the Program with the specific goal of pursuing a career in advertising. However, that goal changed when a McIntire alum spoke at one of her marketing and management classes about Bluetext, a digital marketing firm based out of Washington, D.C., and the role of a project manager. Bluetext has hired alumni of the M.S. in Commerce and actively recruits out of the program. From the knowledge and skills that she was gaining throughout the Program, Meyrav landed the job she felt passionate about pursuing.

Reflecting on her time at UVA’s McIntire School of Commerce, Meyrav explained how useful many of her experiences have been in the work she does now. “A lot of the courses I took, a lot of the things I learned, I actually do use, depending on what project I’m on. There are certain takeaways that really do meld well [with the job].” She frequently finds herself recalling or referring to specific topics from classes at McIntire like Social Media and Digital Analytics, often with coworkers who are also alumni of the M.S. in Commerce, when working on marketing campaigns and the like—occasionally even referring to old class notes directly.

Although she has had to learn a lot of the project management specific skills on the job, the M.S. in Commerce prepared her well. “Most companies really do just look for smart, competent people who are hustlers and go-getters, and that’s just about everyone who chooses the M.S. in Commerce program. The courses are so intense, and the timeline is so compact that I think everyone works really hard, really fast.”

Meyrav’s job has, of course, presented her with plenty of challenges that required some adjustment and flexibility. At times, there are one-week development “sprints” on projects where work needs to be completed and client-ready. One of the most important things she’s learned both from her time at McIntire and in her current role is how to adapt her communication styles to the different teams she works with, as well as manage competing priorities effectively.

The role does come with its own perks though. Some of her favorite things about her job include getting to work closely with some of her friends, working on more tech-focused web development projects for different clients, as well as office-wide “creative show-and-tells” during which her office gets together for drinks and snacks, and designers share some of the things they’ve been working on that week with their colleagues.

Meyrav offered a few words of wisdom to potential M.S. in Commerce students: “You don’t have to do everything perfectly. Good enough is good enough. At McIntire, there’s a lot of work that has to be done, and a lot of us might put too much pressure on ourselves to do everything perfectly. It’s just not worth putting yourself under that kind of stress.” She whimsically admitted that she’s still working on this piece of advice for herself.

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