What PR Students Should Be Thankful For

Alas, another year has come and gone, and Thanksgiving is upon us. Our firm consists completely of college students, so years spent at university seem to cycle quicker than others. As we all do around this time of year, we step back and acknowledge how thankful we are for the goodness in our lives: our families, our friends, our peers, our safety, etc.

I wanted to touch on some of the things that our firm is thankful for, specifically within the industry of public relations. If it weren’t for most of these, our jobs would be incredibly boring, difficult, and hey, maybe even non-existent.

PR Programs — This is one thing I noticed when I attended the PRSSA Chapter President Leadership Rally in Phoenix/Scottsdale, AZ: not all universities even have PR programs. There are many students that want to go into PR that study strategic communications, advertising, general communications, or journalism.  Although students in these programs will be fine going into the PR field, it’s reassuring and beneficial for us that can focus primarily on public relations, the field we all love. Don’t take our PR program for granted!

PR Technology — As we all complete numerous internships throughout our college experience, I have to say, I don’t know what I would do without some of the awesome technology that has been developed for the PR industry. Specifically in research and analytics, project management, and media relations, technology has transformed the PR world for the better. Databases like Cision for media contacts, advanced analytics provided by Google, Facebook, and other social sites, and project management software such as Basecamp (which is what we use here at GrandPR), have made this field a little less hectic to work in. Just a little.

Networking — Networking is something that we love to hate and hate to love. Working and studying public relations, we are constantly talking, interacting, and communicating, so sometimes that networking event after class or your internship sounds like the worst possible plan for a Thursday night. GO. We all know that once you’re there and you meet a bunch of important people, you won’t regret it. Be thankful for networking opportunities provided by your internships, school, peers and mentors. All of these people are looking out for your future.

Beneficial Internships — Internships are crucial during our time here in university. Bluntly, employers won’t hire you without a lot of pre-graduation experience (sometimes even without post-grad experience). With that being said, we all have internships, some good and some bad. Be thankful for those good ones because, I can say from experience, the bad ones definitely make you appreciate the good.

A Changing & Progressive Industry — One of the reasons I love public relations as much as I do is because the industry changes constantly. With the attention span of a kid in a candy store, I can appreciate the constant advancements PR has influenced in technology, business, and for the common good. It seems that every month there is a new social networking site and a new database for PR pros to use in communicating to audiences. Debatable, but I think PR is one of the most consistently changing fields to work in, which suits some people more than others, including myself.

PRSSA & PRSA — Lastly, I think it is important to give a Thanksgiving shout out to all of our friends and mentors in PRSSA and PRSA. Without these people and organizations, the field wouldn’t be where it is today. The constant feel of community, endless resources and opportunities, and a seemingly endless network of pros, PRSSA and PRSA have made the field of PR a very welcoming industry, full of perks and benefits. Be thankful for your local PRSA chapter and your university’s chapter of PRSSA. If your school doesn’t have a chapter…start one.

Tyler is a senior advertising and public relations student at Grand Valley State University. He serves as President of GVSU Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and works as the Creative Director for GrandPR, the student-run firm on campus. This past summer he interned with the 834 Design and Marketing team as an Integrated Marketing Communications Intern and currently he is the Public Relations Intern at Lambert, Edwards & Associates. Check out his personal blog and portfolio at www.tylerlehner.com.