When I began my public relations major at the start of this year, I was a bit nervous (to say the least). I had made the leap in blindly changing from marketing, with fingers crossed that I would thrive within the PR sphere. Little did I know, I was making a decision that I would thank myself for time and again over the months to come.
AMB264, or Public Relations Techniques, was my first experience with PR writing. We were briefed at the beginning of the semester by real-world clients, in this case the Australian Cervical Cancer Foundation (ACCF) and the Ronald McDonald House South-East Queensland. Throughout the semester we were taught public relations writing methods, including how to write media releases, speeches, backgrounders, blog posts and a variety of other techniques. The assessment pieces allowed us to create collateral directly relating to our chosen client and their brief (in my case, ACCF).
We were motivated by the knowledge that the best performing students would have their work sent to the clients at the end of the semester. What an amazing opportunity! This was the first subject I had taken in my three years at QUT where I could really see the potential increase in my portfolio and employability. I enjoyed writing each week with the knowledge that I was assisting my client in reaching out to their target public. The teaching staff were amazing and truly impressed upon us the value of writing techniques (and grammar skills!).
In the holidays following Semester 1 I received the much-anticipated email. My work was to be sent to the client! This subject has opened up a world of opportunity for me. Since that first email, I have received emails about internships (and of course the offer to write this blog post!). On Wednesday, a morning tea was held for students who performed outstanding work in AMB264 where we had another opportunity to interact with our clients and received certificates to go in our portfolio.
I can’t stress enough how fantastic this subject has been. I wasn’t sure if PR was for me, but AMB264 cemented in my mind that it is. If there is one subject I would recommend you to take advantage of, this is it. Even if your work isn’t sent to the client, you leave the subject having completed a campaign to a client brief which you can include in your portfolio. Don’t let this subject go to waste.
If this subject opened up all these opportunities for me, imagine what it can do for you!
