Around 57% of Gen Zers said they’d become internet influencers if given the opportunity, said brands analyst Ellyn Briggs. Loyola’s current crop of students belongs to Gen Z, and two students in particular have found social media to be lucrative.

Lorenzo Barbagelata-Miller is a Loyola sophomore studying public relations with a minor in music business studies. He has 296.7k followers on the video-sharing platform TikTok, where he has amassed more than 26.5 million likes. He answers my Zoom call right before heading out for a beach day in Florida, and from his easy laugh and sunny disposition, it makes sense that followers often feel comfortable approaching him for photos.

Barbagelata-Miller monetizes his content with the help of a management team that sends him potential deals and brand offers.

“I worked all through high school and college so far, and this is my job now,” Barbagelata-Miller said. “It’s definitely giving me more than I thought it would.”

His dream is to become a Ryan Seacrest-type interviewer, public relations professional, or late night tv host.

In his videos, Barbagelata-Miller lip-syncs rap songs, often dancing while dressed in suits. His brand deals mostly involve music promotion, and he says he has turned down offers from unrelated companies like AI or skincare brands to keep his content authentic.

“Everyone’s like, ‘Why don’t you go back to California and pursue this career and not have to worry about tuition?’” Barbagelata-Miller said, noting that he has thought about it.

Barbagelata-Miller says that the uncertainty of the future keeps him in college.

“Social media can all disappear,” Barbagelata-Miller said, explaining that he is mindful of the sacrifices his parents made to help him attend college. “My mom always says, ‘To whom much is given, much is expected.’ That degree is my number one priority.”

Loyola has also influenced the way Barbagelata-Miller approaches social media. Last spring he took a social media strategies course with Professor Aimee Alleman.

“That class taught me so much about algorithms and the ins and outs of every platform,” Barbagelata-Miller said.

During that semester he gained roughly 1,000 followers on Instagram and about 70,000 on TikTok.

Barbagelata-Miller isn’t the only Loyola student pursuing social media. Sophomore Fabiola Marrero studies advertising and business and has wanted to be a content creator since childhood. Unlike Barbagelata-Miller, however, her following has grown more recently.

Marrero currently has 2,664 followers on TikTok and 1,117 on Instagram. When she appears on my screen, she’s wearing a sleek athletic tank top with her hair pulled into a tight ponytail. She answers questions with a self-assured confidence that seems unshaken even during midterms season—something that makes sense for someone who regularly posts study and productivity content.

“I started taking social media really seriously last June,” Marrero said. “I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to do things that motivate me to keep pushing forward.’ I had recently gone through a breakup, so that honestly really helped me, because I was so focused on myself.”

Recently, Marrero had the opportunity to work with the cosmetics brand CoverGirl on a brand trip to a social media bootcamp in Miami.

She submitted an audition tape to CoverGirl’s Latin America casting call. Out of 500 applicants, she was one of three creators from Puerto Rico selected. Marrero has also collaborated with other brands, including Palo Ready and Gray Matter.

Much of Marrero’s content focuses on the gym and studying, often in Spanish and aimed at students with ADHD.

“I’m definitely a business girl,” Marrero said. “My family has businesses, so I thought I would probably end up doing that.”

Originally, Marrero planned to follow that path, but she switched to advertising after meeting with a career counselor.

She credits Professor Jeffrey Ory with welcoming her into the communications program and says Intro to Mass Communication with Professor Lisa Collins helped her better understand social media algorithms.

“There’s so much more to it though,” Marrero said. “Timing, audience, everything.”

Those are aspects of social media she has largely learned on her own.

“Whenever I chose to switch to Mass Comm, it was way before I started doing TikToks,” she added.

Marrero hopes to one day open her own PR and advertising agency while continuing to create content that helps others.

“Obviously I haven’t gotten to the point where I’m making enough to be like, ‘Okay, I’m going to leave school,’” Marrero said. “But either way, having my degree has always been my dream.”

Despite the possibility of turning social media into a full-time career, these two Loyola students remain committed to finishing their degrees, regardless of follower counts or ad revenue.