Zimmerman Advertising Program (ZAP)

Student Spotlight

ZAP in London Student Spotlight: Sarah Rodhouse

As a requirement of the new Zimmerman Advertising Program (ZAP) curriculum, all students must study abroad in order to graduate. Although the students can participate in any of the USF study abroad experiences to fulfill the requirement, each cohort is highly encouraged to travel as a cohort to London, where they would be able to take two classes required for the major taught by USF Marketing professor Carol Osborne and visit advertising and marketing agencies.

Sarah Rodhouse, a second-year ZAP student, completed her study abroad trip in the summer of 2016.

"My experience traveling to London was different than I expected," she said, adding that even though English was the common language, there were some vocabulary gaps and cultural differences to get used to. Although she was thousands of miles away, Sarah did feel connected to USF during her trip because of her peers in ZAP and her professor, Carol Osborne. USF President Judy Genshaft even joined them on a river cruise on their first day in London and visited them in class, where they were studying at the University of London!

The highlight of the trip, for both Sarah and her peers, were the company tours offered to ZAP students each week. "The company tours made my perspective of advertising totally different. I now know that this is what I want to do for my career." ZAP students visited companies such as Mindshare, J. Walter Thompson, AMVBBDO, Weiden + Kennedy and Mother. They learned about creative, accounts, strategy, digital, and other advertising topics that they hadn't learned in any of their classes yet.

Outside of the academics of the trip, Sarah also enjoyed exploring London and getting out of her comfort zone. After class was dismissed, the ZAP students would check out a new tour stop each day. They visited Abbey Road, Big Ben, Stonehenge, and Bath just to name a few. Reflecting on her trip, Sarah recommends to others to take an opportunity to experience another culture and to have an open mind.