Comments on: “Only graduates from a top university need apply”

By: kevin read

kevin read — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 17:50:17 +0000

It is work experience that tends to be the key to getting your foot into the world of PR. Where you do your degree or in what subject is far less relevant.

As someone who regularly organises internships for students from around the world I am often very surprised that we do not receive more unsolicted approaches.

In last twelve months I have done talks for students at a range of Universities, ranging from Greenwich to the Oxford Union. My advice tends to be the same. Make personal contact, sell yourself and don’t be afraid to be persistent.

If anyone is looking for work experience in a leading PR consutancy 2009 let me know

By: Will

Will — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 12:07:04 +0000

It’s true of advertising as well. I went to Exeter, which is another red brick University, graduated with a first, and had no work experience, so didn’t get a look in.

For what it’s worth, I think Alex & Alain at PR & Comms network do a good job in educating potential grads, and I run Adgrads, which is aimed at helping graduates when they want to get into advertising.

For those complaining about work experience keeping them out of the industry, go and get some. I didn’t have a chance to get any at University (mummy and daddy couldn’t pay for it, sadly, and I didn’t live in London), so I worked at home to get the cash to come to London and do some.

It pays off, honestly – hunger is all important in any comms discipline, as someone’s said above.

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 20:27:39 +0000

I realise this is an old post now but I’m a little annoyed at your post. I just graduated from Durham Uni, a top 10 university and I am really struggling to find a job in PR simply because I haven’t get a year in the business under my belt. By Virtue of the fact that I went to a ‘prestigious’ university which didn’t offer PR as a degree I haven’t been able to spend the year in industry which seems to come as standard in PR degrees and I’m blocked out ‘graduate’ jobs because they assume a graduate did that year in industry. Last year, while I was still at uni, I went to an assessment day at a PR company where we went around a table announcing what university and degree we took, 3 out of the 12 of us were from ‘red bricks’ and we all got jeered for going to ‘real universities’ by the others at the table, the prejudice goes the other way too

By: Sindhu

Sindhu — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 14:39:39 +0000

I completed my degree in 1997 at North Riding College in Scarborough which at that time was affiliated to the University of York. My degree was in Sociology and Religious Studies and it has helped me to understand the world and how people react and why.

This coupled with attending a state school have provided me with the ability to get on and work with people. To me these sort of skills are essential in the PR world. Companies taking a blinkered view will miss out on the variety of people that they will need over the next few years.

By: Steve Davis

Steve Davis — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 01:05:42 +0000

What surprises me the most with this approach to recruitment is that the company is robbing itself of the rough diamonds and the naturally gifted, let alone a whole raft of good solid would-be PR practicioners.
In fact, they are missing an opportunity to discover some good people who might just bring a refreshing and disruptive perspective to their organisation.
I would love to have this company as my competitor!
Ironically, the other great bastion of mother England’s conservatism, Wimbledon, still offers wildcards to allow in the characters who have failed to qualify via orthodox channels.

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 09:58:44 +0000

Following up my sarcastic comment from yesterday: I did my PR Bachelor at a quite crappy German university. (The time in Sunderland was in fact my most valuable Bachelor year.) After graduating I got the opportunity to start a Master course in media management at quite a top uni in Germany (at least if you can believe the rankings). I can only say: It makes a huge difference, at least for me personally. I have to work a lot harder now, but it pays of with an amazing learning curve. (And this is not only the Bachelor/Master gap – I know how hard the undergraduates are working here as well.)

Anyway, from my point of view this does not matter at all for working in PR. I would never consider myself a better PR person now, just because I’m working on an ICA paper. It’s rather the other way round: I became a lot geekier than I was before – certainly not a helpful strength in PR. All these methodology and research skills, all the theoretical background knowledge – does it really help in PR practice? I would say: no. It helps a lot if you want to become a researcher or a scientist though. Are you sure the agency was looking for a PR practicioner?

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:45:25 +0000

I wish I had learned something useful in my PR degree. If so I wouldn’t need to do another one on top now…

By: robin

robin — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:07:20 +0000

I don’t think you even necessarily need a degree to work in PR. I’ve worked with some great PR gurus who didn’t have one – Claire Walker, the founder of Firefly, left school when she was 18, for example. [I do have one, just so you know I'm not biased]. As you say, it’s all about what you are doing now, not what you learnt at uni. When I recruit, industry experience is ten times more important than academic qualifications.

By: Stephen

Stephen — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:44:00 +0000

@Dan The point I’m trying to make though is that it doesn’t really matter where you start from … it’s where you end up at.

Wow! I’m sounding so poignant lately.

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:39:59 +0000

@Stephen well that’s not got anything to do with it, has it? He went to Edinburgh University after all…