College of Communication and Information
School of Media and Journalism
www.kent.edu/mdj

About This Program

A public relations major can take you from corporate boardrooms and creative agencies to sports arenas, the halls of Congress, global nonprofits, hospitals, fashion runways and beyond. You can even work from home as a community advocate, consultant or social media influencer. Coursework focuses on developing writing, critical thinking and digital, social media and visual communication skills, as well as analytics and strategic multimedia storytelling. You’ll graduate with a grounding in the practice of responsible advocacy and a firm grasp of inclusive communication. Read more...

Contact Information

• Emily Metzgar | mdj@kent.edu |
  330-672-2572
• Speak with an Advisor
• Chat with an Admissions Counselor

Program Delivery

• Delivery:
  • In person
• Location:
  • Kent Campus

Examples of Possible Careers and Salaries*

Additional Careers

• Community Advocate
• Communications Managers and Crisis Communication Managers
• Content Creators
• Digital communication managers
• Influencer Marketers
• Government Relations/Public Affairs Managers
• Publicists
• Social Media Managers, Analysts, Content Specialists
• Sports public relations coordinators
• Web/Digital Content Producer

Accreditation

Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC); Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) - Certification in Education for Public Relations

^{* Source of occupation titles and labor data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook. Data comprises projected percent change in employment over the next 10 years; nation-wide employment numbers; and the yearly median wage at which half of the workers in the occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less.}

Admission Requirements

The university affirmatively strives to provide educational opportunities and access to students with varied backgrounds, those with special talents and adult students.

First-Year Students on the Kent Campus: First-year admission policy on the Kent Campus is selective. Admission decisions are based upon cumulative grade point average, strength of high school college preparatory curriculum and grade trends. Students not admissible to the Kent Campus may be administratively referred to one of the seven regional campuses to begin their college coursework. For more information, visit the admissions website for first-year students.

First-Year Students on the Regional Campuses: First-year admission to Kent State’s campuses at Ashtabula, East Liverpool, Geauga, Salem, Stark, Trumbull and Tuscarawas, as well as the Twinsburg Academic Center, is open to anyone with a high school diploma or its equivalent. For more information on admissions, contact the Regional Campuses admissions offices.

International Students: All international students must provide proof of proficiency of the English language (unless they meet specific exceptions) through the submission of an English language proficiency test score or by completing English language classes at Kent State’s English as a Second Language Center before entering their program. For more information, visit the admissions website for international students.

Former Students: Former Kent State students who have not attended another institution since Kent State and were not academically dismissed will complete the re-enrollment process through the Financial, Billing and Enrollment Center. Former students who attended another college or university since leaving Kent State must apply for admissions as a transfer or post-undergraduate student.

Transfer Students: Students who attended an educational institution after graduating from high school or earning their GED must apply as transfer students. For more information, visit the admissions website for transfer students.

Admission policies for undergraduate students may be found in the University Catalog's Academic Policies.

Students may be required to meet certain criteria to progress in their program. Any progression requirements will be listed on the program's Coursework tab

Current Kent State Students: Active Kent State students who wish to change their major to Public Relations must have a minimum 2.000 overall GPA to be admitted.

Program Requirements

Major Requirements

¹

Students transferring credit from another institution may apply a maximum of 12 credit hours of transfer coursework toward their major requirements per the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications guidelines.

²

A minimum C grade must be earned to fulfill the writing-intensive requirement. If course is not being used to fulfill the writing-intensive requirement, a minimum C- grade must be earned.

³

If students complete the American Civic Literacy requirement by taking HIST 12061, the course will apply to the Kent Core Humanities category. If they complete it with POL 10101, the course will apply to the Kent Core Social Sciences category.

⁴

A maximum of 4 credit hours of Physical Activity, Wellness and Sport (PWS) courses may be applied toward the degree program. For students interested in developing a global perspective, foreign language courses or any of the following general elective courses are recommended: ANTH 18210, ANTH 48245, COMM 35852, GEOG 22040, MCLS 20091, MUS 22121, PACS 32030, PACS 32040, PH 10002, POL 10500.

Progression Requirements

• No grade lower than a C- in a MDJ course will be counted toward graduation or as a prerequisite for a subsequent class.

Graduation Requirements

Roadmap

This roadmap is a recommended semester-by-semester plan of study for this program. Students will work with their advisor to develop a sequence based on their academic goals and history. Courses designated as critical (!) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation.

University Requirements

All students in a bachelor's degree program at Kent State University must complete the following university requirements for graduation.

NOTE: University requirements may be fulfilled in this program by specific course requirements. Please see Program Requirements for details.

Kent Core Requirements

Program Learning Outcomes

Graduates of this program will be able to:

1. Explain global and cross-cultural influences in public relations practice and help drive diversity and inclusion as true organizational values and convey those values to internal and external publics.
2. Critically analyze data and trends and conduct research to inform strategic planning, support organizational objectives and measure return on investment.
3. Create strategic communication products and compose clear, concise writing that conveys meaningful content across a variety of genres and platforms. 
4. Function as ethical, responsible advocates who advance the public interest and serve as the conscience of an organization.
5. Act as strategic planners with a solid grounding in reputation management, risk and crisis based on public relations and communication theory and who serve as critical and independent thinkers, from research to implementation to evaluation.

Transfer Students to the School of Media and Journalism

Students transferring credit from another institution may apply a maximum of 12 credit hours of transfer coursework toward their major requirements per the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC) accreditation guidelines.

Full Description

The Bachelor of Science degree in Public Relations can take students from corporate boardrooms and creative agencies to sports arenas, the halls of Congress, global nonprofits, hospitals, fashion runways and beyond. Graduates even work from home as a community advocate, consultant or social media influencer.

Kent State boasts the only public relations program in Ohio that is both certified by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and accredited by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC). Kent State’s chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and its members consistently win awards at national conferences, placing the chapter in the top tier nationwide.

Coursework in the Public Relations major focuses on developing skills in writing, critical thinking, digital, social media and visual communication; as well as analytics and strategic multimedia storytelling. Classes routinely involve researching, creating and presenting a public relations plan for real clients. Students learn to deliver messages through social media, websites, podcasts, videos, press releases and other media tools, events, public policy and more. Students build a strong portfolio through hands-on learning opportunities, including two student agencies, a required professional internship and public relations campus jobs. They graduate with a grounding in the practice of responsible advocacy and a firm grasp of inclusive-communication practices.

Students may apply early to the following master's degree programs and double count 9 credit hours of graduate courses toward both degree programs. See the Combined Bachelor's/Master's Degree Program Policy in the University Catalog for more information.

• Master of Arts degree in Communication Studies
• Master of Arts degree in Visual Communication Design
• Master of Library Information Science degree in Library and Information Science
• Master of Science degree in Emerging Media and Technology
• Master of Science degree in Health Informatics
• Master of Science degree in Knowledge Management
• Master of Science degree in User Experience