Disclaimer: I’m feeling a little preachy.
I didn’t even know what public relations was when I came to Kent State. I certainly didn’t know it was a major or that I would become consumed with learning more about it. Luckily, I fell into it, and I haven’t looked back.
Since I was a late bloomer in the PR field, undeclared my freshman year and studying abroad in Northern Ireland my sophomore year, I’ve been working hard to catch up these past four semesters. a.k.a. I’ve been loading up on the public relations classes. Part of my being consumed with the major is literal… I’ve had no choice. Four of the five classes I’ve taken each semester have been public relations.
It’s been a little overwhelming—the classes, the internships—but preparing for a life in the public relations world isn’t just about understanding PR. It’s something more.
It’s knowing the news:Media writing. News writing. Print beat. Media relations. Common theme? You have to know what’s going on in the news and you have to be able to think and write like the news. Your client is going to expect you to know their company inside an out, including the way key publics view them. Monitoring the news is often an intern’s task, but its importance makes it an equally significant responsibility of public relations professionals with years of experience.
The first day of Law of Advertising and Public Relations this semester, my professor, Tim Smith, gave the class a quiz that struck home the importance of staying on top of current events. See if you agree:
- Name the seven dwarfs.
- Name seven Supreme Court justices
- Name the three stooges
- Name the three branches of government
- Name the last American Idol
- Name the new Secretary of Defense
I thought I would include links to help you with your homework.
It’s knowing the Edelman top three: During my trip to Salt Lake City for the PRSSA 2006 National Conference, keynote speaker Richard Edelman talked about three important areas public relations students and professionals lack understanding and experience; business, technology, foreign language. Having a business background will help you in both corporate and agency work, because understanding how your company works from the inside out will affect your ability to budget, schedule and converse intelligently with management.
Technology is a growing field with great importance to public relations not just because clients will demand the incorporation of social media into campaign plans, but also because many clients may be in the technology field. Having even basic skills in computer applications will set you ahead of others looking for the same internships and jobs you seek.
There is also no doubt that everything is going global. The smallest public relations firm in Ohio can have clients in other countries, making foreign language skills a plus and the interest in learning about other cultures essential. Key publics are not always right outside your door, so understanding a client’s impact in other countries will be an additional skill to bring to management’s table.
It’s knowing you need experience: My boyfriend is a mechanical engineer, and he reminds me constantly how essential it was for him to apply the theories he learned in class in his several co-op experiences. Solving a physics problem while ignoring friction is like writing a press release without building relationships with reporters, sometimes over a number of years. Classroom experiences can give you a head start, but applying for paid and unpaid, three-week and three-month internships is what builds your confidence and credibility.
Sometimes, as professor Bill Sledzik explained, it’s just a matter of living and learning. Take advantage of the opportunities you have to gain experience while you can. We’re here for PR, just as long as we keep in mind that there is so much more.
