PrEducation
From Prpoint
One year PG Diploma course on Public Relations - Curriculum designing - First stage - Brain storming
This a collaborative attempt by all the students, professionals, academicians to design a syllabus ( 8 papers) on PR and Corporate Communication. This is a great opportunity for all of us to design a syllabus.
As the first stage, we would like to have 'brain storming session' with all our members. All the members can put their views. Please do not feel shy in giving your views. What you think as 'irrelevant' may be of great 'relevance' to the professionals. Every single opinion from Junior most to senior most is required.
In the second stage, an expert panel will be formed out of the volunteers from the group to consolidate the views.
Procedures for giving your views:
1. Create an 'account' for you in this wiki by clicking 'create account' at the top right corner
2. Add your views or suggestions by clicking "Edit" button against Brainstorming session - Add your views below
3. Write your views. Preview your Edited page and then Save
4. If you encounter any difficulty, please send your views and comments to me prpoint@yahoo.com
5. Send this link to your professional contacts (including PR students) and request them to be part of this project.
Enjoy Wiking!!
Brain Storming Session - Sample
Business communication Basics of communication, verbal, non verbal communication, inter personal skills, how to make pleasant, unpleasant and persuasive communication, Preparation of Report, Memos, Presentation skills
Brain Storming Session - Add your topics/views below
Please add your views below. Click "Preview" button. After satisfaction, click "Save". (Please give your name and email id, so that we can also contact you for further). We will include your name as one of the contributors in the final product. (like open source software)
1. Business communication - Basics of communication, verbal, non verbal communication, inter personal skills, how to make pleasant, unpleasant and persuasive communication, Preparation of Report, Memos, Presentation skills (K. Srinivasan,Chennai prpoint@yahoo.com )
2.Theory of PR - What is PR? Why is PR important? What are the tools of PR? Different kinds of PR, How PR came into practice, the PR scene in the US and Europe vis-a-vis India. (hobbithob, hobbit.hob@gmail.com)
3. Media Relations - Tools (press interviews, press releases, press conferences, Media FAM trips), media scene in India, how is media categorised, pitching to the media, how to issue a press release, how to organise a press conference (hobbithob, hobbit.hob@gmail.com)
4. Investor relations - Conf calls, investor meets (hobbithob, hobbit.hob@gmail.com)
5. Client Servicing - Requirements in dealing with clients succesfully, (hobbithob, hobbit.hob@gmail.com)
6 How to make the brand / image news worthy so that it attracts television and print coverage ( rajvee, rajvee@rajvee.com )
7 Success stories of PR personalities in the field ( rajvee, rajvee@rajvee.com )
8 Internal PR - PR with internal stakeholders like officers and employees, suppliers, contractors etc. is equally, if not more, important as PR for external stakeholders. Tecchniques for internal PR and case studies on this should be part of the syllabus. (MS Bali, bali@indiapost.gov.in)
My views: Ratan Mani Lal, Lucknow (Chapter chairman, PRSI, Lucknow & Programme Head, Jaipuria School of Mass Communication, Lucknow) 1. PR education, especially for an industry-oriented course, should give a brief history of PR, defintions of tools and then, more and more of case studies. What I have seen in some university programmes is much more of theory and less of case sstudies. 2. The actual hands-on work an entry-level PR trainee has to do, must be included in the course curriculum. FOr example, preparing a media list or media tracking etc. There could be little of theory much greater practical sense in giving these inputs to students. 3. I think writing skills, especially of the journalistic kind, could be important for PR trainees, since most journalists do not spend much time on releases prepared or sent by PR people. A basic training of journalistic writing must be included. 4. Perhaps I will send some structured points in a later posting. Thanks. Ratan Mani Lal (ratanml@jiml.ac.in)
PR Writing – This Module/subject will teach students how to write press releases, feature articles, speeches, Newsletters, design intranet, Memo’s, Letters etc.
One of the books which was a great help, it does not give in-depth knowledge about the topics, but a very nice overview each aspect of public relations writing:
Smith, Ronald D. (2003) Becoming a Public Relations Writer, London, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers
My suggestions for this module’s assessment could in a portfolio form where students would have to design a PR campaign where they have to write, all the writing aspects which the module has taught.
I don’t think that an exam is the right way of assessment for this module. When each student is writing his press release, feature article, speech etc… for the PR campaign he is designing, students will understand that how much PR writing is an important aspect of Public Relations.
If you require more books or detailed module structure. I can provide that later.
Besides having exams, some subjects should have presentations which will be 10-20% of the total assessment. Presentations could be given on many aspects of what is being taught, the class could be divided in equal groups and every week, one group should give a 20 min. presentation on the topic which was taught by the professor in the previous lecture.
Note: Presentation should not totally be theory based, the professor has done that, but the presentation should link that theory with real examples from the PR Industry. This way the students can link theory and practical practice together.
Social Media,
Students should learn the new generation topics which have a buzz in the PR Industry.
Social media being one of them, Blogging, Wiki's, Podcasting. Students should know the power and most importantly the negative side of social media.
More Subjects
1. Crisis Management 2. Persuasive Communication 3. Mass Communication 4. Theories of PR 5. Corporate Communication 6. Ethics 7. Integrated Marketing Communications
I will try to give a detailed outline of these subjects later.
Rajiv Harjai (rajiv.harjai@hotmail.com)
