Pepperdine University Students Enjoy Experiential Learning Opportunity at the Milan 2026 Winter Olympics
Pepperdine University is sending a cohort of 18 undergraduate students abroad to Milan and Cortina, Italy, for a front-row seat at the 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. For this group of Olympic goers, however, the competitive action is not the main attraction. Instead, the Seaver College students will be focused on a much different strategic context: the marketing and advertising campaigns of the global companies sponsoring the international events.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Josh Lintner, a senior marketing major at Seaver College. “To be a student in a place that is filled with so much culture and energy is special. And on top of it, we have the opportunity to meet many different people connected to the event, which is just awesome.”
Lintner and his 17 Pepperdine classmates are all participating in the Milan 2026 Olympics program—a 16-week academic opportunity designed specifically for advertising and integrated marketing and communication majors. Throughout the spring semester, these students are paced through a curriculum tailored around one of the world’s most-viewed sporting events.
Students enjoy a backstage pass at the games
The program begins in Malibu with three weeks of classes in intercultural communication, communication ethics, and direct and digital marketing. This combination of courses is designed to equip the cohort with the academic foundation necessary to effectively travel abroad and engage with advertisement professionals.
While stateside, the students also interact with the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Organizing Committee, learning more about the individual departments contributing to the soon-to-be games. Specifically, the undergraduates were able to hear from the brand story and digital strategy team, the athlete fellows, the consumer products team, and the volunteer team during their visit.
After this America-based introductory period, the students, under the supervision of Sarah Stone Watt, a Seaver College professor of communication, and Ben Price (MBA ’86), an adjunct instructor of advertising and former executive vice president of advertising sales and client partnerships at NBCUniversal, make for Milan and Cortina—where their studies will be enriched by a series of firsthand experiences. On the ground at the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, the undergraduates will meet with NBCUniversal's advertising team, visit the International Broadcast Center, and learn from the marketing executives of major brands like Airbnb, Coca-Cola, Delta, and Visa.
“Most people view and experience the Olympics on a television or mobile device,” said Price. “In this program, our students will go well beyond the screen, as they learn the history and evolution of what has become, arguably the world’s largest global media event. They will be immersed in the many layers that make up the Olympic and Paralympic Games from a media, marketing and advertising perspective. When we return, we will use current performance analytics to evaluate the success of the broadcasters, sponsors and marketers, as well as the impact the Olympics and Paralympics made on the host cities.”
Following the games, the Seaver College students and professors will have access to the various data points each company uses to measure the success of their marketing strategies. With this data, the undergraduates will have a chance to analyze how effective each advertising campaign was and come to their own conclusions as to why things faltered or soared.
The Seaver College cohort witnessed how the games come to air
“The games have the potential to bring people together across all cultures, abilities, and events going on in the world,” said Stone Watt. “My hope is that they can help students envision their potential going forward.”
Pepperdine University has cultivated a long and storied history of success at the Olympic Games. Since 1956 the institution has produced a total of 60 Olympians (players or coaches), who have earned medals in 17 different competitions. Pepperdine also served as the host of the water polo competition during the Los Angeles 1984 Summer Olympic Games.
Now the University is leveraging the games into an experiential learning exercise. The Milan 2026 Winter Olympics program builds off a similar undergraduate opportunity offered during the Paris 2024 Summer Games. In Paris Seaver College students met with executives and gained backstage access to learn how the Olympics are advertised, marketed, and produced for television. The participants in the 2024 program used their time abroad not only to grow academically but also to build their professional network and even discover job opportunities postgraduation.
“We are so proud to offer a program like this,” says Kendra Killpatrick, Pepperdine’s assistant provost for strategic initiatives. “I don’t know of many schools that have such great ideas, such great alumni, such great athletics, and then have the confidence that their students will be such great ambassadors . . . Pepperdine has all those things.”
While the Seaver College cohort is abroad, Pepperdine is hosting a free reception in Milan for all alumni, students, family, and friends of the University enjoying the 2026 Winter Olympics in-person on February 20, 2026 at 3 PM (CET). Interested participants are invited to register ahead of time.