COMMUNITY STORIES: YIGE QIN
Growing up, I was fortunate enough to have a really great art teacher, and that sparked my passion for the visual arts. I always had fond memories of going to her house, drawing, and eating yummy snacks. Around the end of middle school and the beginning of high school, I discovered digital art and really got into trying to better myself as an artist.
Throughout the pandemic, I had a lot of free time and used it to draw, and discovered that there were so many people out there who were monetizing their art and selling their products. This was my first introduction to the idea of the artist-entrepreneur, and I’ve been really interested in doing art as a business ever since.
At the time, I wanted to initially do design as a full-time career. I later pivoted to being a health science major and visual arts minor because I felt like the path I was taking with my graphic design degree was not how I wanted my own art practice to look. I also love learning about healthcare, and remain an interdisciplinary student.
Working at Student-Made BU has been one of those opportunities. It really has opened my eyes to a variety of different career options, and I’ve become much more curious and open-minded as a result.
I primarily manage the campus branch’s Instagram, organize pop-ups with the rest of the Manager team, and do individual content sessions with student Creators. During content sessions, we often make short videos for Reels or take product photos for their business.
The moment that I saw that there was a branch starting up last school year, I immediately knew that I wanted to be a part of it. When I saw that Student-Made was recruiting Managers, I knew that this was something that I had to be a part of.
It has had its fair share of ups and downs, but in terms of my job responsibilities pertaining to marketing, I have been doing more work with building an actual brand on social media and reaching out to our online audience about Student-Made.
I really enjoy the one-on-one content sessions with the Creators because it allows me to get to know them and their business better, which is always an inspiring experience. I love connecting with Creators over what they’re passionate about and helping them achieve their goals.
I love how we try to lift each other up as Creators. My goal is for more students at BU to become aware of Student-Made, its mission, and for them to be inspired to become entrepreneurs or pursue their creative dreams.
I am very open-minded to pivoting down the line to something more business-related or in marketing, but my current path is to become a clinician in the future.
It has sharpened many soft skills needed for almost every type of career.
Through intentionality, we can create change on our campuses and bring joy to our peers by sharing our businesses with them. I definitely feel like I was able to make a difference within the small business and entrepreneurship community at BU.
