“绩点高达3.92，标化成绩GRE331，同时拥有联合利华和字节跳动两份重量级实习经历……” 听到这里，人们无疑会因这份亮眼的“成绩单”而惊叹。“优秀”绝不是唯一一个可以用来形容汤央的标签。学习市场营销专业的她，坚持将学习和实践相结合，不断成长，热情和勇敢地去追求自己的热爱。

2023届毕业生：汤央

专业：市场营销

毕业去向：杜克大学

生源地：浙江杭州

01

从美剧到温肯，市场营销最有“温度”

“我从小爱看美剧，一直很向往自由开放的美式校园，正好在‘三位一体’招生时发现了温肯这所宝藏学校。”汤央说自己和温肯的缘分就像命中注定，有一种跟自己内心的追求“一拍即合”的感觉。

这个拥有自由的灵魂的女孩，坚定地选择了温肯的市场营销专业。“我想学商科，理科比较薄弱，又比较‘话痨’，市场营销是商科里面最有‘温度’的学科。” 汤央说。她认为，市场营销立足于深入人心的洞察，从内容到链路，一张海报，一个广告都以“人”为课题，真正去激发的是用户的人类情感回应。小到一个社媒运营，大到品牌上线，在她的眼中，这是一个将‘art’（艺术）和‘science’（科学）紧密结合的前沿学科。

对于如何取得好成绩，汤央的秘诀是“学以致用，专注课堂，劳逸结合”。对市场营销专业来说，最重要的就是将知识运用到实践中。汤央说道：“市场营销的学习内核就是抛掉死记硬背，把书上的知识能运用到生活中。”此外，享受课堂让汤央学习具有强大的内驱力。课堂氛围轻松幽默，温肯教授总是给她的学习提供很多帮助。当然，“work hard, play hard”（努力工作，尽情娱乐） 是她的生活态度。平常她也会看看美剧，出去旅游，打卡美食店等等，将自己生活过得丰富多彩。对于她而言，学和玩永远都是相辅相成的。

02

从课堂到课外，在温肯敲开成长的大门

早早定下出国读研目标的汤央，在温肯这四年，不断成长。全英文环境的浸润和美式教学模式的锻炼让汤央越来越勇于表现自己，她说：“我感触很大的一点就是温肯让我变得更加自信，大一pre（演讲）的时候我还很胆怯，到大四已经可以从容面对了。” 跟不同国家和地区的教授交流也让汤央拓宽了视野，明白了更多“生活的可能性”，这也是促进她成长的助推器。

如果说课堂是学习的天地，那么学生组织就是施展汤央才华的舞台。作为学校学生大使前主席团的副主席-首席营销官，汤央表示：“在学生大使中，我和一群很酷的人做了很多很酷的事。”她和她的伙伴们一起策划过草坪音乐节，拍摄过温肯零点后的视频，还参加了北京“一带一路”商协会大会……这些宝贵的经历让汤央拥有了思辨能力和领导力的同时，也收获了珍贵的友情，“我在学生大使中找到了归属感。”汤央说。同时，她作为校小组唱成员，在校园十佳歌手比赛中取得了优异的成绩。在温肯，汤央尽情地绽放出了自己的光芒，在一次次锻炼机会中不断成长为更好的自己。

03

从字节跳动到联合利华，她走向更大的世界

其实，汤央已经拥有了丰富的实习经历：大一的字节跳动、大二的罗德公关、大三的联合利华品牌部、大四的抖音海外电商……“我觉得自己是幸运的，这四段实习让我接触到了不同行业的生态氛围，也了解到了不同的工作内容，帮助我慢慢打开了市场营销的新思路。”通过实习，市场营销从书本知识的枯燥变得立体且有趣，对汤央来说，实习不仅仅是实践，也是在不断试错，探索并最终确立自己喜欢的方向的一个过程。

在毕业季来临时，汤央已经准备好出发去人生的下一站。六所世界名校的offer纷至沓来：杜克大学管理学、伦敦大学学院创意产业、爱丁堡大学创新创业……这无疑给汤央提供了宽阔的选择道路，但她对自己未来已经有了清晰的规划：“我准备去美国杜克大学富卡商学院就读管理学，以后继续走市场营销的道路，致力做一个有趣且理性的品牌管理者。”

汤央说：“对我来说，人生是旷野而不是轨道，虽然找到自己喜欢的东西很难，但这不妨碍我们踏出舒适圈去拓展自己更多的可能性。希望WKU，WKUers和我越来越好！”做自己热爱的事情，做好自己热爱的事，不断探索自己，探索世界，一个人使劲踮起脚尖靠近太阳的时候，全世界都挡不住她的阳光。

Tang Yang: ByteDance, Unilever… WKU boosts my growth

Tang Yang, a student majoring in Marketing at WKU, impressed everyone with her achievements in her study: a 3.92 GPA, 331 GRE score, a peer tutor, and a member of the Advisory Committee for the College of Business and Public Management. But she has done much more than that. Apart from academic excellence, she also keeps putting knowledge acquired in class into real practice and seeking growth to pursue her dream with passion and courage.

An American Drama Enthusiast Studying Marketing at WKU

“I loved watching American dramas since my childhood, and I have always been longing to study at a free and open American-style campus. During the “3-in-1” Comprehensive Examination, I came to this amazing school,” recalled Tang Yang, who believed that admission to WKU was the fate to go with her inner pursuit.

Being a girl with a free soul, she was determined to choose marketing as her major. For her, marketing is about researching insights deeply rooted in people’s hearts. From content to channels, a poster, and an advertisement, everything is based on the research of the “person”. It is a subject that truly motivates users to make emotional responses. Whether for social media operations or brand launches, marketing remains a cutting-edge discipline that brings art and science closely connected.

In academic study, Tang always practices what she learns, stays focused in class, and makes time for play as well. The most important thing for marketing study is to apply knowledge to practice. She introduced, “The essence of learning marketing is anything but cramming. The application of knowledge in real life matters most.” She enjoys classroom study, which greatly motivates her to learn more knowledge. Professors at the WKU create a relaxed atmosphere in the classroom and always offer a lot of help in her studies. Of course, her motto in life is to work hard and play hard. In her opinion, learning and having fun have always been complimentary.

Classroom Study and Extracurricular Activities at WKU Serve as Driving Force Behind Her Growth

Tang has been making progress during four years of study at WKU, aiming to further her study overseas. With the help of an all-English environment and the mode of American teaching, she becomes bold in expressing herself. She said, “I am greatly encouraged at WKU and become more confident. In my first year at college, I was too shy to make a presentation, but now in my senior year, I was able to take it easy.” By communicating with professors from different nations and regions, she broadens her horizon and sees more possibilities in life. This is a booster for her progress.

Outside the classroom, she also shows her talent in student clubs. As the former vice chairman and chief marketing officer of the School Student Ambassador, Tang planned the Lawn Music Festival, filmed a video about the university at midnight, and participated in the conference of the Belt and Road Global Chambers of Commerce and Associations Conference together with her partners. From these valuable experiences, she not only improved her critical thinking and leadership skills but also made some friends. Additionally, she performed brilliantly in a Campus Singer Competition as a member of the group singing team. At WKU, she gives full play to her talents and makes greater improvements from the precious opportunities the university has offered.

Internships in ByteDance and Unilever Taking Her to a Bigger World

During the four years of study, Tang has taken many internships: ByteDance in her freshman year, Ruder Finn in the second year, Branding Department of Unilever in the third, and Tiktok Overseas E-commerce in the fourth. Speaking of these practices, she said, “I am lucky to learn about the ecosystem of different industries and the job duties of different roles. I can get many fresh ideas for marketing.” The knowledge in the textbook becomes vivid and interesting in the real business world. For Tang, the internship is not simply a form of professional practice. It is also a process of trial-and-error learning, in which she explores and eventually identifies her career path.

As the graduation season is approaching, Tang has been ready to move on to the next destination. She has a clear plan for her future, “I am going to study Management at Duke’s Fuqua School of Business, continue my journey on the marketing career path and try to become an interesting and rational brand manager.”

“For me, life is not a track but a field. It may be difficult to find something we love, but we can still step out of our comfort zone and embrace more possibilities in life. I hope that WKU and WKUers can become better and better,” said Tang Yang. When you can do whatever you love and do it well, when you keep exploring yourself and the bigger world, and when you try hard to get closer to the sun, you will show the whole world the dazzling brilliance in you.

文字 | 王艾雪

文字编辑 | 傅于真 王智耀

英文 | 项温蔚

初审 | 汤涟猗

终审 | 吕卓环 王舒

责编 | 媒体中心