Career Opportunities

In Public Relations you are the communications link between an organization and consumers, stockholders, employees, communities and the mass media. Public Relations is a core management function for every type of organization be it a football team, rock band, social service or non-profit agency or global corporation.

The career opportunities in public relations are seemingly endless -- ranging from public relations firms to nonprofit organizations to PR positions in international corporations. Several factors are driving the explosive growth in public relations:

• Organizations of all types have discovered that the relationships they establish and maintain with their key constituencies can have a profound effect on the accomplishment of their business objectives. Public relations plays a key role in this relationship-building function.
   
• The growth of the global economy has been accompanied by the creation of worldwide communication challenges and opportunities. It is public relations professionals who meet those challenges and capitalize on those opportunities.
   
• Today’s 24/7 news cycle and aggressive media environment have created a demand for professional communicators who can serve as the interface between organizations and media of all types. This, too, is the role of public relations.
   
• New Internet-based technologies have revolutionized the field of communications. Today virtually all of us have at our fingertips the capability to distribute information on a global scale. This has made yesterday’s public relations skills obsolete and created great demand for cutting-edge training.

PR graduates find jobs in small public relations firms, professional associations, non-profit agencies, sports venues, business, entertainment, government, tourism, education and health care.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

“Employment of public relations specialists is expected to increase much faster than the average for all occupations through 2010.” The median annual earnings in 2000 for a public relations manager were $54,540.

And, the Spring 2001 issue of Occupational Outlook Quarterly forecasted a 24% increase in public relations jobs from 1998 to 2008. Job growth projections are particularly strong in the health care and technology sectors, as well as in crisis communications.

Want to Learn More About the Public Relations Career Outlook?

Visit the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics Web site. Click for Public Relations Specialist (http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos086.htm) or Advertising, Marketing, Promotions, Public Relations and Sales Managers. (http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos020.htm)

Or visit the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) career overview page at -- http://www.prsa.org/_Resources/profession/careeroverview.asp?ident=prof2

Free Career Planning Services

All students benefit from our top-notch Career Services Center, recently cited by the Kaplan/Newsweek College Catalog as one of the U.S. colleges offering “the best career services,” including self-assessment and individual career advising. Click here to learn more.