From an early age, Gabrielle Sanchez knew she wanted to be a Spartan. She grew up attending MSU football games with her father, a die-hard MSU fan, where she was able to witness the passion and togetherness of the Spartan community firsthand. It was there she knew that she wanted to be a part of that close knit community and the academic opportunities MSU has to offer.
Despite originally being denied acceptance from MSU due to a late application, Gabrielle’s persistence and passion to attend the university was unwavering. She attended St. Clair County Community College for a few semesters where she excelled academically, receiving high marks in every one of her classes. With successful semesters under her belt, Gabrielle worked on writing a letter to MSU admissions explaining why she belonged at MSU and was able to appeal to be a transfer student for the spring semester of 2020. It was here that Gabrielle joined ComArtSci as an Advertising Management major with minors in Public Relations and Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
While being a transfer student is already challenging, Gabrielle had to additionally adapt to being a transfer student in the middle of a pandemic.
“I think the most specific moment that had a profound impact on me was the COVID-19 pandemic. I transferred to MSU in the spring semester of 2020, so I only had a little over two months to adjust to MSU in person,” said Gabrielle. “When classes adjusted to an online format, I struggled as I had never been in an online format. While it was a new way of learning, I was grateful to have still received my education and do so well in my classes.”
In fact, Gabrielle did so well in her first few years at MSU that she received the Cleary Weiler Internship Award and the William J. Hopp Endowed Scholarship in Advertising.
“This scholarship helped pay for my entire last year at Michigan State and meeting the donor Mr. Tony Hopp himself was an incredible opportunity. I am eternally grateful for the scholarship as it helped me advance in my overall career goals. Earning the scholarship gave me the confidence I needed to feel prepared to enter the work force.”
On top of her dedicated time to her academic career, Gabrielle held numerous intern positions as a result of opportunities presented by ComArtSci. This includes working as an undergraduate learning assistant within the college, an advertising intern at MediaCom, a summer associate through Americorps Vista as well as an intern at Michigan Clean Cities. Other extracurricular activities Gabrielle was involved in include the National Society of Leadership and Success, Phi Kappa Phi and Golden Key.
With all of these valuable experiences under her belt, Gabrielle is set to graduate in December 2022 with honors where she will then venture off into the workforce in hopes of getting an entry level position in her field. From there, she has her eye on eventually attending graduate school to earn her MBA with dreams of working in a higher-level position such as CEO or CFO of a company.
However, her entrepreneurial vision doesn’t stop there. One day she hopes to open her own small retail boutique. For Gabrielle, small business owners have captured her attention and inspired her to take on new and exciting ventures in the business world.
For now, Gabrielle will celebrate the accomplishments of her academic journey and cherish the time she’s had at MSU.
“It feels great to be graduating at the top of my class, as I did not think it would ever be possible for myself to achieve that. I am excited to walk across the stage, make my family proud, and start on the next chapter in my life.”
By Casey Halas