#and now she's just texted me that *her* supervisor has been promoted to professor

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[omgk9world-blog]

My Public Relations Experience at VCU

I attend Virginia Commonwealth University and I am enrolled in the Mass Communications foundation with a concentration in Public Relations. The school is called the Robertson School of Media and Culture. It is great. In fact, the school just got reaccredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications. There are only about 100 of these select mass communication programs. The Mass Communications program offers practical application and hands-on work through required internships, campaigns that you must create and collaborate on with real clients, and additional services and programs offered such as campus media. According to their website, the school “inspires and empowers students to be transformative media innovators while continuing to be a thought leader in a changing communication environment.” Honestly, this may sound like a plug for the program – and maybe it shamelessly and indirectly is – but I am just so content that I attend such a school that has passionate professors and teaches strong content. Allow me to tell you my experience with some coursework and internships I have had:

https://robertson.vcu.edu/about/

Journalism – I had an amazing experience in journalism, mainly because of the professor. Professor Mary Ann Owens is a long-tenured professor and expert journalist in her own right. Her lectures were always strong, she was passionate about the subject, and I ended up leaving her course better at critical thinking and writing. You don’t always retain information after you finish a class so, to me, that is the mark of a good class. Her one thing she said was always to be a “shrewd” writer. That was a simple but powerful piece of advice that really works.

Internship – One of the courses literally required in the program is to have an internship. So, I attended an internship expo on VCU’s campus and I ended up landing a job with their own public relations division, the University Public Affairs office. In my time there, I wrote about 5-6 feature articles and they were nice enough to publish me on their website. My supervisor was always so professional and ready to help me out. Overall, the internship was an eye-opening experience because I got to witness firsthand how my career may be after graduation and what it entails. Again, I left a better writer and student of public relations than when I first came in. Here is an article I did for the website: /School_of_Business_graduates_foundation_helps_communities_realize

Graphic Design – This was one of my favorite things about the program. It evolves as the field evolves. Graphic design and production is now an integral thing in public relations. Text must be enhanced with words to get maximum effect. That’s just reality now. People would rather see or watch than read. I am enrolled in a graphics design course and it’s been a fun but challenging course. The addition of this course is really significant because many people are predicting that graphic design skills will be a top 2 skill sought after by employers. If this is the case, the difference between a job or no job for me will be this class. The school is invested in trends and developments and that makes for better curriculum.

I’m happy with the decision I have made in choosing my school and my degree. So far, it has turned out to be worth it, satisfying, and fun. Public relations is a fast-growing field and it’s very complex in nature, but I think VCU promotes the right learning with credible professors. To me, that means everything. If you took anything away from this, please let it be that if you are interested in mass communications as a career, the Robertson School is a no-brainer decision.