Why you should sign up for a Campus Ambassador Program Today!

Credits: Internshala

If you are active on LinkedIn or in Technical Communities around you, you must have come across at least one Campus Ambassador for an XYZ Organization. But, first, who is a Campus Ambassador and second, why would anyone want to be one? If these questions have you rummaging around, read on!

Who is a Campus Ambassador?

Campus Ambassadors are students that serve as a link between the organization they are associated with and their institution. In a nutshell, they are the voice of a company in their University and are in charge of raising awareness about the same. Campus Ambassadors are leaders who take charge of marketing and evangelizing upcoming events or specific products or programs!

Now, why would anyone want to be a Campus Ambassador?

The answer to this question is simple, to gain exposure to the corporate world. It’s an amazing opportunity to work on your soft skills including your leadership and marketing skills as well as team management and event organization skills, all of this while also expanding your network exponentially. It gives you an opportunity to add an extra pointer to your resume and make it stand out from the rest. Being a Campus Ambassador also helps you earn some extra bucks in the form of incentives based upon your performance as one. Moreover, one gets the opportunity to be a part of a community that can help you out with your technical doubts as well! In most Campus Ambassador Programs (especially the ones that I’m a part of), the mentors are extremely knowledgeable and don’t leave a stone unturned to help the students who are associated with their organization!

Why YOU should sign up to be one?

Take the following pointers into consideration if you want a better perspective:

• You get an insight into how the corporate world functions. It helps you understand the working of organizations.
• You get the opportunity to build your network and work on your soft skills, here note that most recruiters value soft skills just as much as a candidate’s hard/technical skills. Skills here include your leadership, communication, and team-building skills as well as marketing skills and work etiquette.
• While you explore the world of digital marketing and evangelism, in the process you also learn how to pitch yourself in a better manner. Now during your interviews, you don’t just talk about your technical skills, you sell your resume to your interviewer and if you are good at presenting yourself, consider yourself shortlisted!
• Campus Ambassador Programs open doors to new opportunities. If you are a part of a community with other Ambassadors, you get a chance to connect with like-minded individuals. Most of the other Ambassadors share knowledge and guidance amidst a lot of other resources including details of technical or non-technical internship opportunities and if you are active in your community, you stand a really good chance at bagging one!
• You get access to resources shared by the Organization you are associated with and may get invited to exclusive events and webinars that will definitely help you boost your career.
• Last but not the least, you get industry certified with a Letter of Recommendation or a Certificate stating your association with the Organization. You may also receive incentives based upon your performance! Ambassador exclusive swags are counted!

If these pointers do not tempt you into filling up applications for being a Campus Ambassador for different organizations, I really don’t know what will.

What would be your responsibilities if you choose to be a Campus Ambassador?

I’m glad that you are considering it. As a Campus Ambassador for any organization, your responsibility will solely be to endorse the company or the products offered/events organized. To give you a better insight, here’s a list of things that you might have to do:

• Raise awareness about the brand.
• Organize or help organize events on your campus and manage the promotions for the same.
• Come up with new and innovative ideas for marketing, you’ll be rewarded for sure if you come up with exceptional ones.
• Develop strategic connections with clubs or communities around you or upcoming events to promote your brand.

My experience as a Campus Ambassador.

I currently am a Campus Ambassador for several reputed organizations like Auth0, HackerEarth, Hack Club, Coding Blocks, and AngelHack. I also am a GitHub Campus Expert and an Alexa Student Influencer and I don’t think I could’ve gotten in without the exposure that I received at the aforementioned organizations. I’ve been associated with Bolt IoT and Coding Ninjas as well but there wasn’t much to take home from these organizations hence I dropped out.

I started applying for Campus Ambassador Programs during my semester break post my first semester. I was pretty bored and the incentives seemed attractive! With each application, I could feel the bar of confidence in me rising, step by step I was learning how to be a better version of myself.

Not a promotion, but being a part of the Coding Blocks Superheroes Community helped me excel at content writing and the constant support that I have received from my mentors has helped me be better at digital marketing and graphic designing. The students who are a part of the community have tremendously helped me upskill my technology stack by sharing a zillion resources over trending technologies. Being a part of HackerEarth has helped me become a better coder. I’m elated to share that I’ve gotten technical internship opportunities through networking in the communities that I am a part of, I’ve received guidance for hackathons and I’ve also received the opportunity to mentor several students!

Finally, a list of Organizations you should consider if you are interested in being a Campus Ambassador!

The following list is in no particular order. Apply for one, apply for all! Just make sure that you divide your time smartly. I am not asking you to ditch working on your hard/technical skills. A reminder that soft skills are as important as hard skills. Here you go!

• Coding Blocks (highly recommended if you are a fresher)
• Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador (amazing opportunities, and Microsoft)
• GeeksForGeeks
• OnePlus
• Intel
• HackerEarth
• Verzeo (you may get a free course)

After gaining some experience as an ambassador, try applying for these Community-Oriented Programs as well!

• GitHub Campus Expert
• Developer Circles by Facebook
• AWS Educate by Amazon
• Developer Student Clubs by Google
• Auth0
• Mozilla Representative/Student Ambassadors

I personally would not recommend the following and I’ll highlight the reasons for the same.

• Internshala — You don’t really have anything to take home, no technical guidance or support in any form from what I’ve heard from Internshala Ambassadors.
• Coding Ninjas — Personally had a not-so-good experience as an Ambassador, ended up resigning.
• Bolt IoT — They just want you to run WhatsApp “drip” campaigns and have you convince your friends to buy the IoT Kit. If you somehow manage to persuade one, only then you’ll be eligible for a Certificate of Completion. Incentives are a bit messed up.

Ending notes.

I really hope that this post helps you have a better perspective over the Campus Ambassador Programs around you. Devote your time efficiently, do not overdo stuff, make sure you don’t sign up for too many programs at once. It’s not a compulsion to necessarily be a Campus Ambassador, it’s a choice and it entirely is up to you if you wish to add this experience to your list of responsibilities. Choose wisely, a humble request. If it takes a toll on you professionally, talk to your mentor or manager and take a break, it’s absolutely fine. For any queries, feel free to reach out and I’d love to guide you! I am open to feedbacks and additions to this post!