Competition Is Part of the Fun
Alexa Likens
Marketing
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
“IU was attractive to me because of the Kelley School of Business,” she says. “I also thought I might minor in music, and the Jacobs School of Music is one of the top-ranked music schools in the country. When I visited the campus, I absolutely fell in love with it.”
A self-described “competitive, motivated person,” she was named basketball player of the year in south Florida as a high school senior. Although she scored 19 points per game, she takes more pride in her tough defense and her 15 rebounds per game, often grabbed by out hustling bigger players.
Now Likens is applying her work ethic to a new game: sales. “I like that sales allows you to create a relationship with your customer and really get to know your product,” says Likens, a marketing major. She also enjoys the inherent competition: “In sales, if you believe in your product and work hard, the sales will follow.”
Likens' family followed her father's sales and marketing career to Chicago; Munich, Germany; back to Chicago; and then to Ft. Lauderdale. She liked the idea of returning to the Midwest for college, and she wanted to attend a large school with a lot of activities and Division I sports. IU met those criteria and caught her eye for other reasons.
“IU was attractive to me because of the Kelley School of Business,” she says. “I also thought I might minor in music, and the Jacobs School of Music is one of the top-ranked music schools in the country. When I visited the campus, I absolutely fell in love with it.”
Likens has enjoyed I-Core and all of her classes—especially when she gets to give presentations-but most of all, “I like how the professors take an interest in getting to know their students. The classes are challenging and you know you're getting a really good education, but at the same time you get to know your professors, which makes the experience worth so much more.”
Likens' involvement in Kelley's Global Sales Leadership Society—she is currently the group's CEO—enabled her to build confidence in her business skills, participate in sales competitions, and network with professionals from major companies. These experiences helped her land an internship in Las Vegas the summer before her senior year. She worked for a sales representative in 3M's Fire Protection division selling products that prevent the spread of fires in buildings, such as sealants and air duct wraps.
She went on sales calls, met with distributors, and visited construction sites-like CityCenter, an $8-billion-plus complex of hotels, condos, and a casino on the Las Vegas Strip—to make sure 3M's products were being installed correctly. “I learned what life would be like as a sales rep,” she says. “It reinforced that I want to go into sales.”
Likens is completing a minor in music at the Jacobs School. She's also finding ways to blend her interests in music and marketing. Through the Kelley School and the IU Office of Overseas Study, she interned with the Grand Union Orchestra in London for a semester during her junior year—an experience that earned her academic credit, enabled her to travel throughout Europe, and gave her a better understanding of how business works overseas. Eventually she would like to work in marketing for a music label or artist.
“Music uses a completely different part of your brain than business,” she says. “It creates a nice balance with my other course work.”
When she's not studying business or music, Likens plays flute in IU's All-Campus Band and spends time with her Kappa Alpha Theta sisters. She was president of the Briscoe Residence Center Fitness and Wellness Board her freshman year, and her coed intramural basketball team has advanced to the semifinals of the campus tournament the last two seasons. As an admissions tour guide, she informs prospective students and their families about IU.
“I like to stay busy,” she says. “As long as you manage your time effectively, you can still have time to hang out with your friends and get the whole college experience. You can't forget to have fun.”
In Brief
What I love about Bloomington:
“IU provides a balanced college experience. The academics are challenging, so you feel you are getting a lot out of your education. At the same time, Bloomington is a great college town and IU athletics are exciting and fun. The university has so much tradition and history that people who go to IU absolutely love it.”
You know you're a big IU basketball fan when . . . :
Likens did her overseas study and internship in the fall so she could be back in time for the Big Ten basketball season in the spring.
Advice for students:
“Hard work is important to get the most out of college. Also, there are benefits in taking the time to get to know your professors. They want to get to know you because they want you to do well.”
