Public Relations as a Profession An Analysis of Curricular Content in the United States

Abstract

This study attempts to evaluate the efficacy of undergraduate public relations programmes in the United States. The study surveyed 155 public relations educators and practitioners to determine their impressions on factors such as whether students are being imparted the knowledge and experience to become public relations practitioners, the knowledge and skills respondents thought students ought to possess to become successful professionals, the skills new graduates should possess, and the characteristics of the public relations profession. Results revealed agreement among educators and practitioners about the subjects that should be taught in undergraduate public relations programmes, including the knowledge and skills recommended by the Commission for Public Relations Education. Respondents did not agree on the best career plan for future public relations professionals. However, a majority felt that majoring in public relations with a minor in business was the best thing for students who want to work in this field. Respondents felt that not all of the subjects they deemed important were currently being taught in all public relations programmes. Both practitioners and educators agreed that graduates were well trained in the use of new technologies for public relations. However, the percentage of practitioners who felt that graduates were prepared to enter the public relations profession was considerably lower than educators.Contrary to the popular misconception among most segments of the general public and among many practitioners around the world as well, the scope of public relations is not, and ought not to be, limited to positive publicity or 'image' building. When practised strategically, public relations can contribute greatly to organizational effectiveness. Strategic public relations practice goes beyond providing positive publicity. Scholars have offered various definitions of the term public relations, a synthesis of which tells us that public relations should be the strategic management of communication by organizations to build lasting and mutually beneficial relationships with their stakeholders. In other words, effective public relations should not only be driven by the interests of the organization (or the source of the message), but also by the needs, values and interests of organizational stakeholders.The question of whether public relations is a profession or a craft has been debated widely for almost two decades. Jackson (1988) contended that public relations has established itself as a profession, while many others (Agee et al

Internal communication education in universities of applied sciences in the Netherlands

“…In reviewing the literature on the development of public relations as a profession, Sriramesh and Hornaman (2006) concluded that "many authors have advocated the need for specialized training, college education and continuing education as essential to elevate the field to the status of a profession" (p. 157). This conclusion applies to the development of IC as a new profession in the field of communication.…”

La enseñanza interdisciplinaria de las relaciones públicas en las universidades de España y México: un estudio exploratorio

“…PP. en el nivel superior (Matilla, Hernández y Losada, 2010; Observatori de la Càtedra Dircom.Cat, 2010; Xifra, 2007), educación y profesión (Flores, Roca y Tena, 2010;Marques, 2009;Sriramesh y Hornaman, 2006), maestría (Fuentes, 2010) y doctorado (Castillo y Xifra, 2006).…”

“…• Solo en una universidad española se aborda la multiculturalidad (Sriramesh y Hornaman, 2006) y la comunicación para el desarrollo. En ninguna la migración, los estudios étnicos y feministas (Xifra, 2007) y el community manager.…”

“…Las Relaciones Públicas cuentan con un cuerpo teórico que puede alcanzar una total madurez (Grunig & Hunt, 2003), aunque se continuó el debate por su indefinición como ciencia (Arceo, 2004;Magallón, 2004) y profesión (L'Etang, 2009), así como el desconocimiento de su función en el ámbito organizacional (Sriramesh & Hornaman, 2006;Arceo, 2004). Esta incertidumbre condiciona su legitimación en la enseñanza superior, en donde las Relaciones Públicas están siendo reemplazadas por otras denominaciones como pueden ser "Comunicación Corporativa", "Comunicación Institucional", "Comunicación Organizacional" y el perfil, de reciente surgimiento, Community Manager.…”