Posted on May 7, 2026 by Andrea Aileen Baylian

CSUN Students Finish Strong in National Student Advertising Competition

David Nazarian College of Business and Economics

Nazarian College students joined a multidisciplinary CSUN team that competed in the American Advertising Federation’s District 15 National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) on April 11 — marking the university’s return to the competition for the first time in more than three decades.

Under the guidance of Marketing Professor Maia (Mariam) Beruchashvili, the 20-student CSUN team developed a comprehensive marketing campaign for this year’s client, the National Football League.

Nazarian College students Brianna A. Carrillo and Andres Casas, along with Amanda Shippy, a marketing minor, and Rachel E. Holmes, presented the campaign to judges that included professionals from the NFL, ESPN and the LA Galaxy.

The CSUN team placed fourth overall, finishing ahead of institutions with more established programs, including San Diego State and Chapman University, and earned a Judge’s Choice Award.

Competing against universities across Southern California and Nevada — including UCLA, UC San Diego and San Diego State — the CSUN team demonstrated strong collaboration, creativity and strategic thinking throughout the competition, said Professor Beruchashvili.

“Every student volunteered, logging hundreds of hours of work in addition to their full course loads,” she added. “Working across the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics and the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication, the team designed original research, collected primary data, analyzed multiple competition-provided data sources, and developed a full suite of creative campaign components — all on a compressed timeline and with no institutional infrastructure behind them.”

“The impact of this experience has been immediate and lasting,” said marketing chair Deborah Heisley. “The team is already planning its return for NSAC 2027, and the competition has become a powerful draw for students from majors well beyond the Nazarian College — a testament to what this club has built in just a year and a half.”

Following the district competition, top teams advance to the national finals, where they present their campaigns to a new panel of industry leaders and compete for national recognition. While CSUN did not advance this year, the team’s strong performance positions the program for future success as it continues to grow.

The competition is hosted by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the nation’s oldest trade organization of its kind, founded in 1906. The CSUN team competed under the banner of AAF CSUN, a student club founded just one and a half years ago.

Participation in NSAC reflects Nazarian College’s commitment to providing students with hands-on, experiential learning opportunities that prepare them for careers in marketing and advertising.