Sunday, January 15, 2012

The Future is BRIGHT!

In our current economy, it seems as though no matter what degree you have decided to pursue, you may have a problem with receiving a job after graduating. Hearing the horror stories from recent graduates certainly doesn’t help to ease the worries of students in school at the moment.  So, what do PR students have to look forward to?

As many of us have heard and even read from different sources, the job market in communications and other fields is steadily dropping. Gone are the days where students would leave school and have the task of selecting from a bevy of job offers.

In an article on journalism.org, we find that “just 55.5% of 2009 journalism and communication graduates with a bachelor degree were able to find full-time work within a year of leaving school” (University of Georgia’s “Annual Survey of Journalism and Mass Communication Graduates”). This number is of course not for all students in all states, but it does give an example of what Communication students are up against. 

Last week, I was having a discussion with my mother about how things were when she was my age (20); she told me that everywhere you went people were happy to hire recent college graduates. Now recent graduates are happy to get work just about anywhere.

Now, with all that being said (sorry if I scared you), where does that leave us PR students? In our camp we are fortunate enough to have this little thing called “Social Media”. As I took to the web looking for information and opinions on the forecast for current PR students, social media seemed to ring a bell with most, as being a great tool to leverage employment. Shyla Mouser of The Perfect Image PR had this to say, "The future of PR for students is limitless! There are so many advances in technology and social media. They just need to jump in, internship after internship.”

Shyla makes a great point. With the way that the PR industry is evolving, there are a multitude of opportunities available within our field, and more will present themselves in the future.
Another great thing about our profession that I admire, is that there are a large number of industries to work in. Shyla’s advice is that PR students should explore all of the options available. “Learning from all aspects of PR whether it is non-profit, fashion, or music will be beneficial until you find your niche.”

Aliah Davis-McHenry of Aliah PR also gave some advice in the form of greatly inspiring words. “The future is bright for PR. We must all stay motivated, optimistic, and driven as PR is dynamic and the need increases."

So, although the future seems bleak at the moment, we must look past all the bad media coverage our futures are receiving and work our PR magic to ensure we are doing all we can to shine!

“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.”

Robert Collier


Special Thanks to:

Aliah Davis-McHenry
Founder of PR-Diva.com and Aliah PR, Nonprofit Manager, Social Media Lover, Speaker, Fashionista, Writer, Foodie & Photographer. Aliah Public Relations is a NJ-based boutique public relations and events management firm specializing in small businesses, nonprofit organizations, and associations.
Twitter: @AliahPR
Website: www.aliahpr.com

Shyla Mouser

Founder of The Perfect Image PR. The Perfect Image PR, LLC is a public relations firm that offers comprehensive publicity planning catered to your needs and goals. She specializes in getting the buzz out and creating "The Perfect Image" for her clients.
Twitter: @PublicistShyla
Website: www.perfectipr.com

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