INTERVIEW BY CARLY HOROWITZ

After careful examination of the best possible Business colleges that she could apply to, Emma Arabia began a thought process of self-reflection. “I realized I really liked fashion. It was just kind of natural,” Emma said.

Fashion never seemed to be more than a hobby for Emma. “But then when I think back, all of the toys and games and things I liked to do when I was younger were based around making your own clothes or drawing flats and things like that,” she recalled. “It has just been an underlying passion as cliché as that sounds.”

“I could actually go to school for this and I thought why wouldn’t I want to do something that I liked to do.”

‘WHY NOT DO MORE?’—After Emma made this decision, she jumped right in to test the water. Now with six internships under her belt, Emma has made sure to really figure out what she could do with fashion. “I knew I liked fashion but I didn’t know where I wanted to be,” she said. “I had no clue how extensive the different departments are that you could be a part of. I just took it upon myself in my sophomore year to start searching for internships.”

“‘Why not do more. Why not take the opportunity to invest in my future and get those connections and get those experiences?’” have existed through Emma’s constant internal dialogues in pondering her vast portfolio and what it actually means to her passions and her life.

Emma Arabia's Childhood Image

"When I think back, all of the toys or things I liked to do were based around making clothes or drawing flats. It has just been an underlying passion as cliché as that sounds."

Emma, humbly, explains the constant praise she receives for having a lot of experience in her work field of choice—but for her, she really simply enjoyed the quest of trying to figure out where she fits in best. Emma experienced internships that spanned through many different aspects of the fashion industry. Ranging from first to latest, Emma has interned at: Tanya Taylor as a Marketing Intern, Oscar de la Renta as a Domestic RTW Sales Intern, Rebecca Minkoff as a Wholesale Sales Intern, J. Mendel as a Marketing and Public Relations Intern, Ralph Lauren as a RTW Planning and Sales Intern, and Saint Laurent as a Public Relations Intern. All of these internships were based in the Greater New York City Area. 

Emma Arabia has completed six internships since the start of her sophomore year. To name a few, she has worked as a public relations intern at Saint Laurent, a RTW planning and sales intern at Ralph Lauren, and a wholesale sales intern at Rebecca Minkoff. She has recently earned a YMA Fashion Scholarship Fund award. Emma is a senior at Marist and is excited for her future in the fashion industry.

FINDING HER NICHE—Emma reflects upon where she could potentially fit in the fashion industry, “I am still trying to figure that out but I definitely know what I like and what I don't like and my strengths and weaknesses.” Emma attributes some of her guidance to her advisor and Fashion professor, Jennifer Finn. “From the very first time I met Emma, she displayed maturity beyond her years, with a passion for learning, and making the most of her college years—whether it was in her courses, participation in school clubs, or her internships—she handled it all with such grace.”

“She approached all of her assignments, projects, and responsibilities with such enthusiast, professionalism, and determination to succeed,” said Professor Finn. Even though Emma came from a small town in Massachusetts with 98 people in her high school graduating class, she craves for a larger scene. All of Emma’s internships took place in New York City and she thoroughly enjoyed this setting. As she describes the city life, “There is always something to do. There is always people to meet. There is always something going on and you can never be bored. Things are open. There are just endless possibilities.”

Emma partook in the Freshman Florence experience at Marist College. “I can definitely see myself working in a major city like New York City or LA. I wouldn’t be afraid to travel abroad again either.”

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