Tammie Hawkins has enjoyed a long and successful career in the event planning industry. She is currently the head of her own event planning business in Los Angeles, and creates events for a large variety of clients, many of which are executives or large companies in the entertainment industry. Prior to starting her own business in 2010, she worked for several large and reputable event planning companies in L.A. Becoming an event planner is a great choice for anyone who is very organized, loves to be creative, and is friendly and social. If you are interested in becoming an event planner, there are several steps you can take to get started in your career.
- Most event planning companies prefer that their employees have Bachelor’s degrees, so the first step to becoming an event planner is attending college or university. There are many degrees you can get that will be useful for event planning. The most relevant degree to event planning is hospitality management, but business, marketing, and public relations degrees are also helpful. If you choose to major in anything other than hospitality, be sure to take some elective classes that relate to hospitality to further your knowledge and prep you for your career.
In addition to obtaining a Bachelor’s degree, it is also helpful to get an event planning certification to show potential employers that you are knowledgeable and qualified to work in the industry. There are many event planning certifications, and the most common in the United States is the Certified Meeting Professional qualification from the Convention Industry Council. Other popular event planning certification groups include the International Special Events Society and the Society of Government Meeting Professionals. To obtain these credentials, you will have to take extra classes and may need to fulfill certain practical experience requirements as well.
After you have completed your education, the next step to becoming an event planner is to gain real world experience. This is most commonly done through an internship, where you will work at an event planning company to learn the ropes. If you cannot get involved in an internship, another way to get industry experience is to volunteer to help with the organization and set-up of individual events in your area. This is one of the most important things that event planners look for on a resume.
After you have completed your internship and have your foot in the door of the industry, the next thing to do is to continue networking! Try to make as many connections as you can – you never know when someone may be able to help you out or get you an opportunity in the future. Tammie Hawkins recommends attending industry events and conferences to meet new people and find new projects and clients.
