What Should a PR Major Minor In?
For some people, picking a major and minor is a piece of cake. For others, it’s like deciding what to name their new-born child. At EMU, public relations is a major that requires a supporting minor. The question is, what of the 140 minors at EMU fits best with public relations? Each of the following are possible minor selections that are very compatible with public relations.
Communications: Communications and public relations are often considered equal, however in reality, public relations is a track within in the broader field of communications. Perusing a minor in communications is profitable to a PR major because it teaches the general foundations of communication. People communicate in a wide variety of ways and a communications minor would provide an understanding to these concepts for PR professional.
Marketing: The differences between public relations and marketing are very limited, so minoring in marketing would help distinguish that difference. Often in a workplace setting, the public relations team and marketing team overlap or are a single team that produces both digital and descriptive content for the organization. Understanding and having marketing skills would give a PR professional an edge in many working environments.
Journalism: A major aspect of public relations is connecting with journalists. Minoring in journalism would help a PR major gain the skills, experiences, and a further understanding of a journalist's job. Not only that, there is an extensive writing component in the field of public relations. Studying journalism would help PR majors to hone their writing skills even more so they can produce the effective content they need in their work.
Creative Writing: In most public relations job descriptions, a requirement for the job is that the applicant has strong writing skills. Public relations is a writing-intensive field, so minoring in creative writing is another way for PR majors to develop advanced writing skills. Creative writing is also a more casual form of writing which is beneficial for blogs, social media, brochures, and advertisement.
Graphic Communication: Like graphic design, graphic communication focuses on the visual concepts a company uses to share their product. Public relations and graphics teams often work together to produce content. Having an understanding of the skills needed to produce graphics can help produce more impactful work. This knowledge may also be beneficial when working in a smaller firm with fewer resources.
Business Management: Business management allows for a PR major to have an understanding of how businesses function. Having knowledge about economics, accounting, or management can help a PR major provide more beneficial content to an organization. Public relations is just one branch of a working company, so having an understanding of how the other branches work would be attractive to employers.
While there are maIn most public relations job descriptions, a requirement for the job is that the applicant has strong writing skills. Public relations is a writing-intensive field, so minoring in creative writing is another way for PR majors to develop advanced writing skills. Creative writing is also a more casual form of writing which is beneficial for blogs, social media, brochures, and advertisement.
References:
https://tbsmo.com/marketing/8-minors-that-complement-public-relations-major/
