By Kinsey Cote
As many of us know, the public relations industry is a highly competitive place. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), people with public relations (PR) degrees compete for jobs against people who have related degrees in fields such as communications, social sciences and business. From day one of PR major-related classes, professors preach taking the initiative to put in the hard work and gain relevant experience before graduation. As I approach my graduation date this upcoming May, here are a few ways I’ve made myself stand out from other students prior to entering the PR industry and what I recommend other students also do.
Professional Writing Experience
As a PR student, early in your major-related classes you are required to take Intro to Journalism and News Reporting and Writing 1. You may not realize it yet, but these classes are helping you to build a solid foundation for PR writing– so pay attention! With just these journalism classes under your belt, you have the opportunity to gain professional writing experience which will help you in the long run.
With just a little bit of experience doing journalistic work from my classes, I approached the Statesboro Herald, a newspaper in Statesboro, about potentially doing an internship with them. They don’t necessarily do internships but if you have a strong base and they see potential, you could be presented with the opportunity to write a few stories for them like I was. By doing this, I was able to gain more hands-on experience writing and I now have six published stories. Now as I begin to interview for employment post-graduation, employers have told me that my experience working as a journalist with a newspaper has put me ahead of other applicants and something they often don’t see.
Internships
I highly recommend applying for and completing at least one internship for PR. Although doing an internship for free seems discouraging, I would credit it for opening a lot of doors for me and helping me to excel in the application of what we are learning in school. I wouldn’t say that other PR students couldn’t find paying internships, but they are hard to come by.
For my specific internship, I interned (for free and remotely) with Little Dog Agency which is a full-service marketing, advertising and public relations agency based in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. I spent roughly eight weeks of my summer with them and I learned so much about social media marketing and PR. Although an unpaid internship may seem discouraging, you have the opportunity to learn a lot. Additionally, the Office of Career and Professional Development at Georgia Southern University offers internship scholarships to offset costs if you can’t afford to do an internship for free!
Relevant Experience
With internship experience, doors swing open for entry level PR positions that do not require a degree. Following my internship I applied for a position as marketing and public relations assistant with Campus Recreation and Intramurals (CRI) at Georgia Southern University. I think it was divine intervention the timing of me completing my internship and seeing the post that CRI was hiring. This position with CRI has helped me to gain more experience doing email newsletters, copywriting, graphic design, photography and so much more!
Pro tip: Most entities within Georgia Southern University have some variation of public relations assistant positions and they look great on resumes.
Join PRSSA
I may be a little biased now that I am the outgoing director of internal communication for Georgia Southern’s Chapter of PRSSA, but I would highly recommend joining. I was originally a student who didn’t find the appeal of joining a campus organization because I always said I was too busy. Since joining last fall, I see all that it offers and recommend it with the highest regard to PR students.
PRSSA offers so many opportunities for professional growth and networking while pursuing your PR degree. Plus, if you are a busy student with a job (or multiple like me), PRSSA only meets every other Wednesday at 6 p.m. If you are interested in learning more about PRSSA, email President Amy Katonak at ak16978@georgiasouthern.edu! We would be happy for you to join!
Put Yourself Out There
This was by far the most challenging thing I have done. To put myself out there, I created a LinkedIn where other people could see my work and I could post about my achievements. Although it may seem strange to connect with people you don’t know, it is a great way to open the door to conversations with PR professionals in the industry. The best thing I ever did was reach out to people at companies I wanted to work for and to people who have jobs I hope to one day have. You never know what putting yourself out there and taking a chance will lead to!
References:
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025). Occupational Outlook Handbook: Public Relations Specialist. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/media-and-communication/public-relations-specialists.htm#tab-4