By Jason Young

Having been an adjunct in Georgetown University’s phenomenal master’s program, Public Relations & Corporate Communications, students and others ask if studying PR is worth it.

At the undergraduate level, I think there are actually two separate questions. One is general: is any college degree is worth it? The other is specific: is a degree in public relations or communications worth it?

On average, people with college degrees earn more over the course of their lifetimes. They tend to:
+ Do less physically demanding work (so may be able to remain in the workforce longer)
+ Establish strong networks of similarly situated people, and
+ Have the chance to explore different fields.

They spend a lot on their education, forgo immediate earnings, and even go into debt. What will be the return on that investment? There’s an average answer (some studies show as high as a 16% average annual return), and then there is your personal answer. Only you can decide, I believe.

PR Specifically

Now about public relations. PR can be enormously rewarding, but it’s also misunderstood.

In another post, I wrote that PR is a management function – specifically, managing an organization’s relationships with its key publics. Key publics could mean a wide array of stakeholders:
+ The community a hospital is in
+ The patients who rely on a medical device
+ The suppliers that are part of our supply chain, or
+ The lawmakers and regulators who oversee highly regulated industries, like financial services, energy production or healthcare.

A great PR practitioner is always thinking about their audiences and what’s important to them. She knows what their concerns are and what their priorities are. She knows what news media they consume, what events and conferences they attend, and what social media properties they listen to.

Every major company — especially those focused on consumer goods or selling regulated products — has a PR executive within the broader executive team; often the PR exec has a direct line to the CEO. Those are signs that businesses think PR is worth it.

BEYOND CORPORATE PR ROLES

Another key point: PR has an important place beyond corporate America, too.

Government agencies hire “press officers” or “public information officers” to liaise with news media and others who want to understand the agency’s work.

Educational institutions are intensively interested in community relations and media affairs.

And not-for-profit groups often achieve their mission through public education initiatives led by their PR teams – for example, raising awareness about important public health matters, environmental issues, civil liberty concerns, and the like.

There’s a lot of opportunity in PR, and areas to specialize in. PR practitioners are often the jacks of all trades (writing, research, social media, crisis, speechwriting, media relations, video production…), but sometimes get dismissed as “just the comms guy.”

Those specifically engaged in social media and media relations can attest to long hours and after-hours work when a story breaks or a firestorm ensues. And there is a convergence between public relations and marketing, which USC Annenberg’s 2017 Global Communications Report opined on, to be aware of, as well.

If all of this sounds exciting to you, PR may well be the right field for you.