While most Quinnipiac students are hitting the snooze button, senior Lauryn Jacobi is arriving at her desk in the ESPN offices in Times Square in New York City. Jacobi’s current internship – her fifth one to date – has brought her backstage at the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles and on the sidelines of countless Division I college football games.

Jacobi attributes her success to ambition and determination. A public relations major, she maintains a full course load at Quinnipiac, while chasing the job of her dreams.

Jacobi realized that she could turn her lifelong passion for football into a profession. A native of Newton, Mass., and a fanatical Patriots supporter, football had always taken a high priority in Jacobi’s life.

But it seemed like she was at the wrong university. Without a Quinnipiac football team, Jacobi had to look elsewhere for football.

“I knew I needed to be proactive so I called around and found some contacts at the closest D-1 Football Program in the area: Yale,” she explained.

With no experience, Jacobi was hired by Yale Athletics. Four years later she is still active as the Yale Bulldogs’ visiting teams and officials liaison.

“That very first day working at the Yale Bowl three seasons ago, I got a taste for working in athletics and special events. I knew that was exactly what I wanted to do,” she said.

From that point on, Jacobi took every step necessary to reach her ultimate goal of working for ESPN or the NFL in sports event planning and marketing. Besides working with Yale football, she interned with the PGA Tour in 2005 and completed three internships with ESPN.

As an ESPN intern this past summer, Jacobi attended the ESPY Awards in Los Angeles. She met athletes and celebrities such as Patriots player Rodney Harrison, and actors Matthew McConaughey and Ashley Judd, all while on the job.

Currently, she is a special events and marketing intern in ESPN’s New York City office. The internship involves planning everything from college football tailgates to Super Bowl parties for ESPN. She will travel to Northeastern University for a football event in November, and is planning a reception at the College Football Hall of Fame for December.

“I rarely have a day that is under 15 hours,” Jacobi said. Her commute to New York City starts at 6 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Most days, Jacobi returns home at 9 p.m. only to be faced with schoolwork for her four courses the next day.

“I figure that as a senior, I need to put myself in the best position to get the job that I want. So the sacrifice of time now will be worth it when I hopefully receive a job offer in May,” she explained.

Though it’s a grueling schedule, the benefits far outweigh the costs for Jacobi. She explained that traveling and meeting a variety of people is the most rewarding part of the job. The satisfaction of sports event planning is another gratifying aspect of the field.

“There is no better feeling than putting months of planning into an event and watching it all come together in the end,” she said.

Jacobi now gives advice to her fellow students at Quinnipiac’s internship panels. Determination, dedication, professionalism, and networking are the four keys to success that she emphasizes each time.

She stresses that experience isn’t everything, but how you conduct yourself speaks volumes.

“It’s all about confidence,” said Jacobi.

Networking is an aspect of the professional world that is extremely valuable, according to Jacobi.

“You never know if the janitor of a building or the person you’re sitting next to on a plane knows someone who has the job of your dreams,” she said.

Jacobi will work as an ESPN special events intern for the duration of the semester and will work for Quinnipiac Athletics to promote the upcoming opening of the TD Banknorth Sports Center.