Bachelors of Public Relations

Program Overview

The Bachelor of Public Relations program at Franklin College, housed within the prestigious Pulliam School of Journalism, is a dynamic and hands-on program designed to cultivate creative, strategic, and ethical communicators. It provides students with a blend of traditional public relations education and cutting-edge training in emerging media skills. The program's core objective is to prepare students to ethically and effectively build and maintain relationships with target audiences for businesses, government agencies, and non-profit organizations. It emphasizes "learning by doing," ensuring students gain a wealth of real-world experience before graduation, priming them to excel in this exciting, fast-paced, and evolving field.

Curriculum: The Public Relations curriculum at Franklin College is comprehensive, blending foundational practices like strategic communication planning, media relations, and crisis communications with emerging digital media and communications skills. Students learn the crucial role of writing across various platforms, including social media posts, news releases, website copy, and speeches. Coursework also includes practical training in graphic design, digital photography, and videography to equip students with multimedia storytelling capabilities. The curriculum is built from national recommendations of the Commission on Public Relations Education, ensuring its relevance and adherence to industry best practices. Students culminate their studies by preparing a professional portfolio—in both print and digital formats—to showcase their breadth of experience.

Research Focus: The Public Relations program at Franklin College incorporates a strong emphasis on research methods and evaluation, crucial for effective PR campaigns. Students are introduced to the vital role research plays in the field, including various measurement tools and methodologies for gathering and analyzing data. They review both classic and modern public relations case studies to understand the application of research in real-world scenarios. Students learn to conduct public relations research to better understand the steps involved in creating action-driven campaigns and reputation management strategies. This focus ensures graduates can ethically and strategically approach public relations challenges with data-informed insights.

Industry Engagement: Industry engagement is a cornerstone of the Public Relations program, ensuring students gain invaluable real-world experience. Every public relations major at Franklin College completes at least one professional internship, with many students completing two or more. These internships provide hands-on experience at diverse organizations, including PR agencies (e.g., Hirons, Borshoff, Dittoe Public Relations), sports teams (e.g., Indianapolis Colts, Indiana Pacers), major businesses (e.g., Kroger, consulting firms), government agencies (e.g., Office of the Mayor of Indianapolis, Indiana Department of Homeland Security), and non-profits (e.g., The Julian Center, Girls Inc.). Additionally, public relations majors frequently attend conferences, workshops, and seminars, and participate in community and national crisis drills, practicing crisis communications in real-time, further solidifying their practical skills and professional network.

Global Perspective: Franklin College strongly encourages its students, including those in Public Relations, to cultivate a global perspective through a variety of study abroad and immersive experiences. While specific Public Relations-focused programs abroad are not always exclusively detailed, students have opportunities such as studying French media in Paris or attending conferences for women in advertising in New York City, which can offer international or broad industry exposure. The college's Office of Global Education facilitates month-long Immersive Term study away courses and semester or year-long programs at partner universities. These global engagements allow Public Relations students to gain an understanding of diverse cultures, international communication practices, and the global nature of public relations, preparing them for careers in an interconnected world.