FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Saatchi & Saatchi X of Northwest Arkansas announced the “Final 8” in the Diversity Internship Challenge on March 15. The competition was open to all University of Arkansas students interested in pursuing a career in advertising or marketing and co-sponsored by the Office of Minority of Affairs in the Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas.

Andy Murray, chief executive officer of Saatchi & Saatchi X Worldwide, made the announcement at the company’s headquarters in Springdale. He said, “Diversity has been a challenge for the company in recruiting. We feel the best ideas come when you have a diversity of cultures and backgrounds. None of us are as strong as all of us. We are very excited about the quality of these students.”

The Final 8 are: Eva Agrawat, a marketing major from Bombay, India; Cecilia Grossberger, a master’s candidate in communication from Cochabama, Bolivia; Imraan Ismail, a marketing management major from Harare, Zimbabwe; Amy Ha, a marketing major from Nashville, Ark.; Amanda Jones, a marketing management major from Little Rock, Ark.; Justin Johnson, a logistics/marketing major from Little Rock; Lizliana Ramos, a journalism major from Chicago; and Celise Weems, an agribusiness major with minors in marketing and communications from Little Rock.

The Diversity Internship Challenge was launched in January. Nineteen UA students submitted resumes, wrote essays on how diversity can make Saatchi & Saatchi a better place to work, and were interviewed for the internships.

Cheryl Munson, creative director of Saatchi & Saatchi X, coordinated the competition and will continue to work with the finalists in their next assignment, helping them access company resources when needed. The eight finalists will work on two teams of four and complete an assignment aimed at increasing diversity awareness in the region and attracting and retaining diverse employees in the work force.

After completing the assignment, two winners will be selected to become “The Interns.” They will be awarded a 90-day paid 2006 summer internship with plenty of perks: a competitive weekly salary; monthly mentoring for a semester by a Saatchi & Saatchi X executive; guaranteed interview for a full-time position at Saatchi upon graduation from the University of Arkansas; a $500 stipend for tuition, books or housing for the 2006-2007 University of Arkansas school year for sophomores and juniors; and $100 Northwest Arkansas Mall gift card at the completion of the internship for graduating seniors.

“This is a great opportunity for these eight students. Even if they aren’t selected as the final two interns, they will gain bankable, brains-on experience, learning what it takes to be in the advertising and marketing business. The selected interns will work at one of the most prestigious and innovative shopper marketing advertising agencies in the world and will learn from the best and brightest in the business,” said Barbara Lofton, director of minority affairs in the Walton College.

Saatchi & Saatchi X is a division of Saatchi & Saatchi, which is owned by Publics Group S.A., the fourth-largest communications group in the world.