Dennis Yu - High Rise Influence

Hands-On Paid Work & Real Client Experience

Our apprentices don’t just study theory – they learn by doing. After completing the foundational courses, apprentices can qualify to become part of the Digital Marketing Training System. Entry-level specialists start at $10 per hour, with tiered raises of $5 per hour as they earn certifications. This paid work isn’t busywork; apprentices produce deliverables for real clients, gaining the experience and case studies needed to build personal brands and portfolios.

Mentorship & Career Guidance

Mentorship is at the core of our program. Dennis Yu credits his own success to mentors and encourages apprentices to follow the same path. We teach a simple four-step approach: follow the mentor’s content, show you’ve done your homework, demonstrate gratitude, and offer small favors in return. Our faculty members and industry professionals guide apprentices through project reviews and career planning, helping them make the leap from apprentice to marketing professional.

Entrepreneurial Skills & Building Agencies

Many of our apprentices aim to start their own agencies. That’s why our curriculum covers practical advice on scaling, managing freelancers, and working with big clients. We emphasize balancing learning with networking and execution to avoid common startup pitfalls. Whether you want to launch your own agency or become a high-impact marketer in a larger organization, this program equips you with entrepreneurial skills.

Faculty & Administrator Options

We offer a range of options for universities and organizations interested in collaborating. These include one-hour live webinars on topics like Facebook Ads for $1 a day, project management, personal branding, content marketing, and measuring social media ROI. Qualifying apprentices can join the specialist program to earn while they learn, advancing based on performance. For colleges and student groups, Dennis Yu waives his standard speaking fee for on-campus workshops and keynotes, sharing his experiences from Yahoo! and his predictions for the future of digital marketing.

Partnerships & Schools

The High-Rise Influence University Program collaborates with a growing list of educational institutions. Partners have included the University of Louisville, UC San Diego, BYU, Hofstra University, Ridgewater College, Syracuse University, the University of Connecticut, the University of San Diego, LDS Business College, and Baruch College. These partnerships help integrate our curriculum into degree programs and create employment pipelines for apprentices.

Real-World Systems & Processes

We use checklists and processes similar to those found in aviation and surgery to ensure repeatable excellence. Frameworks like the Topic Wheel and 3×3 Goals help apprentices structure their personal brands and content strategies. Our specialist and virtual assistant collaboration model ensures that tasks such as video editing, ad management, and micro-targeting are handled efficiently.

Scale & Ongoing Growth

The program offers access to over 44 professional courses, with more added every month. This ensures apprentices can continue advancing their skills long after they complete the core curriculum. As the program grows, we measure social media ROI and define the impact of likes, comments, shares, and reviews to set the standard for social measurement.

Conclusion & Next Steps

The High-Rise Influence University Program doesn’t just teach marketing; it creates employable, experienced marketers with personal brands and real client results. Whether you’re an aspiring marketer, a university partner, or a business seeking certified talent, we invite you to explore the program and discover how it can accelerate your goals.

Interested in joining? Read our main overview of the High-Rise Influence University Program here: https://highriseinfluence.net/high-rise-influence-university-program/. Or contact us to learn more about partner packages and opportunities.

If you are a professor or administrator interested in bringing this program to your campus, visit our University Partnership Program page for details on guest lectures, case studies, and collaborative projects.

Building Practical Skills with High Rise Academy

Jack Wendt on October 3, 2025

Many young adults wonder what comes after high school. Retail or fast food jobs are easy to get, but don’t provide transferable skills. College is an option, but it doesn’t always connect directly to real work. High Rise Academy offers an alternative: apprentices work with real businesses, apply AI tools, and learn by producing measurable outcomes.

This article is based on a session led by Jack Wendt and Dylan Haugen, where they discussed how the program works in practice. You can watch the original video session here.

Who This Is For

The GCT framework—Goals, Content, Targeting—is a simple way to clarify who a program is designed for and how it delivers value. It helps align expectations by showing what you’ll learn, how you’ll learn it, and who the program is best suited for.

Goal: Learn practical digital marketing and business skills by working with real clients.
Content: Apprentices apply frameworks, such as the Content Factory, to show results and accountability.
Target: Young adults who want to build portfolios and experience instead of settling for jobs that don’t transfer into long-term skills.

It’s also for parents who run local service businesses and want their kids to gain meaningful work experience early—whether by contributing to the family business or working with other real clients. High Rise Academy provides proof of work—real numbers, real businesses, and clear documentation. Anyone who values learning through action rather than theory will find this program a fit.

What Apprentices Do

Apprentices are matched with real businesses and given practical tasks. They gather raw content from business owners, create social media posts, manage advertising campaigns, and document outcomes. Every week they submit reports following the MAA framework—showing metrics, providing analysis, and outlining actions for the next week.

The focus is on producing measurable improvements for businesses. Apprentices learn to set up campaigns, analyze performance, and present results in a professional format. They also get practice in communication, coordination, and accountability by working with both clients and mentors.

Learning Beyond Technical Skills

Jack described it this way:

“Most jobs extract value from you. Get a job that you can extract value from. Learning from the job, adding to your resume, improving your interpersonal skills and your soft skills—all those things are going to be huge and you’ll never lose that value.”

The program develops more than technical expertise. Apprentices practice project management, communication, and leadership on every campaign. Writing weekly reports, presenting results, and coordinating with teams mirrors what’s expected in professional roles.

Dennis Yu—who has worked with major organizations like Nike and the Golden State Warriors—personally leads weekly office hours, which are open to every member of the academy. Apprentices review campaigns, identify weak points, and adjust strategy on the spot. Understanding what happens in office hours and why documenting progress is critical helps ensure steady growth and accountability.

Building a Portfolio That Matters

Every campaign turns into a case study. Apprentices save screenshots, MAA reports, and before-and-after analytics. This evidence becomes the backbone of their portfolio.

Instead of saying “I know social media marketing,” apprentices can show:

A Facebook campaign that generated a specific number of leads.
A Google Ads report showing cost per lead reduced by half.
An SEO dashboard proving month-over-month traffic growth.

This level of documentation prevents fluff and builds credibility. It aligns with industry best practices such as E-E-A-T principles. Apprentices present their portfolios in review sessions with mentors, practicing how to explain results clearly and answer questions.

Visuals include:

Screenshots from campaigns.
Sample MAA reports.
Quote cards from apprentices and clients.
Analytics charts showing measurable improvements.

Employers and clients value proof. By the end of the program, every apprentice has a body of work they can point to as evidence of skill.

Get Started Here

If you want to stop guessing about your future and start working on real projects, apply to High Rise Academy. You’ll build campaigns, work with mentors, and graduate with a portfolio of documented results. This is not theory. It is work you can prove.

Start your application to High Rise Academy today. Build your first case study and show results that matter

Interested in the AI Apprentice Program? Learn more about High Rise Academy — hands-on AI marketing training with real clients and real results.

Learn more about the Content Factory framework — the 6-stage system behind everything we do at High Rise Influence.

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High Rise Influence University Program: Detailed Guide