Public Relations

Got a way with words? Can you spin any situation to your advantage?

Then Public relations (otherwise known as PR) could be your calling. If you’ve ever talked your way out of getting a punishment exercise in school, YOZILA reader, then you’ll know what I’m talking about!

Public relations professionals are in the news pretty often, because it’s their job to ‘manage’ the news. As a PR expert your job is basically to make sure an organisation or individual communicates effectively with the public. That can mean writing speeches, producing press releases, hosting press conferences, analysing public opinion and much more. Administration skills could come in handy too.

PR could be your passport to high society-your chance to organise and attend events, liaise with all sorts of people and hone your schmoozing skills on the party scene!

Sometimes PR people become celebrities in their own right, like Mark Steinberg, Tiger Woods’ agent, who was all over the TV when the famous golfer was caught up in a scandal involving his personal life last year. Some folks, like the author of this article http://online.wsj.com, thought Steinberg could have did a much better job of managing the crisis. Maybe you’ve got the skills to show Steinberg how it’s done!

PR is about a lot more than dealing with scandals though. Every organisation worth its salt employs public relations officers, from big businesses to political parties and football clubs. Hiring a PR agency doesn’t necessarily mean you have something to hide! For example, a company might simply want to keep their customers and shareholders as up to date as possible. A band might want a way of letting their fans know about tour dates and signing sessions. DJ’s like Real Radio’s Robin and Cat have PR people to promote their show.

It could be anything. If you’re a big cheese and you’ve got something to say then PR is the way to do it.

With over 9,500 members The Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) is at the heart of the public relations profession, so their list of recommended courses is surely worth a gander http://www.cipr.co.uk/content/learning-development

Fear not, if you don’t fancy trawling through the CIPR’s list and just want to know where the nearest, most convenient courses are, there’s Stirling University http://www.external.stir.ac.uk

And don’t forget-there’s no such thing as bad PR!

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