The Pursuit of Passion

PROVO, Utah – Mar 26, 2020 – For Samuel Sorensen, a senior in BYU Marriott's marketing program, pursuing an education in marketing also allows him to pursue his passion.

When he first came to BYU, Sorensen planned to study statistics and minor in business management, but after taking Marketing 241, Sorensen discovered an interest in marketing. “The class had a section on marketing research and analytics, and I loved every second of that section,” he says.

After the class piqued Sorensen’s interest in marketing, he decided to pursue a degree from BYU Marriott. He applied to both the marketing and finance programs and was accepted into each, leaving him with a difficult decision to make. “I chose marketing because it aligns with my passions more than finance,” says Sorensen. “Characterizing individuals, predicting behavior, and creating a product was appealing to me.”

These days Sorensen finds himself working on various projects in BYU Marriott's Marketing Lab, where he and other student employees conduct market research for real, paying clients. “Working in the Marketing Lab allows me to ask consumers questions about what they want, what their desires in life are, what they perceive about a brand, and what matters most to them in a product," says Sorensen. "Then I analyze customers’ responses and help companies serve their consumers."

In addition to his work in the Marketing Lab, Sorensen also works as a research assistant for Jeff Dotson, an associate professor of marketing at BYU Marriott. “Professors in the marketing program are conducting research about marketing that hasn’t been done before and optimizing previous studies,” says Sorensen. “As a research assistant I get to improve and discover more information about marketing research.”

Beyond his on-campus marketing projects, Sorensen also completed an internship that gave him practical experience with marketing. Sorensen spent his 2019 summer as a consumer and investment management analyst at Goldman Sachs. During his internship, he had the opportunity to work on the release of the Apple Card, a credit card created by Apple. “Being a part of any product release would be fun, but being a part of the release of something new and innovative was particularly exciting,” Sorensen says of his experience working on the card’s release.

More than just summer fun, Sorensen's internship turned into a future career with Goldman Sachs. He accepted a position with the company as an analyst in the consumer and investment management division at Marcus by Goldman Sachs, a consumer bank. Sorensen will start the position after his graduation from BYU Marriott in April 2020.

Sorensen, who hails from Orem, credits much of his preparation for his future to BYU Marriott’s marketing program faculty. “Professors in the marketing department are focused on helping students get the best education that we can, but they are also incredibly invested in who we are as individuals,” says Sorensen. “The mentorship I've received has definitely helped me take the next step towards being a better student, delivering during my internship, and being confident that moving forward I've got a tool kit that I can put to good use.”

As his undergraduate experience at BYU Marriott draws to a close, Sorensen reflects that his time at the BYU Marriott School of Business has exceeded his expectations. “I didn’t think my undergrad experience would be this good,” says Sorensen. “My experience in the marketing program has been phenomenal.”