By Lexi Dykes
Public relations is everywhere and can be related to almost every area of study. Even in my Foundations of Human Health class (HSC160), I found a way to incorporate PR by analyzing how health journals and organizations promoted research and addressed the public. I find a way to relate PR to all my classes, especially those I take for my minor in hospitality management. I chose this minor because event planning is the aspect of PR I’m most interested in pursuing as a career. I know several other PR majors that have made this decision. However, there are hospitality classes that I think would be beneficial to all PR students. These classes include Introduction to Hospitality Management (FCFN105) or Customer Service (FCFN210).
The service industry accounts for 60 percent of the gross domestic product worldwide, and hospitality is one of the fastest growing industries. As the industry achieves growth and revenue, there will be a greater ability and need to hire PR professionals to do things like plan events, manage social media, address the press and manage customer and crisis communications. So we all have a good possibility of working in these industries or interacting with them. In PRSSA we’ve had several speakers from hotels and event venues talk about their careers. It’s important that PR majors are educated on these areas and how these facilities operate. PR professionals often have some roles in event planning, so it’s likely we will be asked to plan an event such as a press conference, convention, meeting or publicity event. These classes would help students majoring in PR be prepared for these tasks.
You may be thinking, are these classes really helpful or will it be another course I just get through because I have to. Well, in my customer service class, I’m doing a semester long target case study. As part of this project, we have to analyze the marketing principles and how they relate to a brand, company, hotel group, event or food service of our choosing. I chose to evaluate the IndyMega Adoption Event. I’ve already learned so much about the different aspects that go into planning an event like this. The final step of this project is to present a marketing strategy, which is directly related to what we all learn in class on marketing and strategic communication. In addition, the introductory class requires a job shadowing experience that allows students to get real-world experience.
The fact is, PR has many areas of concentration that we don’t think about every day, but future employers could expect us to do it all. It’s impossible for us to fully cover it all in the classes we are required to take. However, I think requiring or highly encouraging PR majors to take one of these courses would help educate them in an important area that is relevant and beneficial to their professional future.
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