How would be a PR institute run by PR professsionals from the industry itself? Check out the Hindu’s story on the City School of Social and Managerial Sciences, and PRSI beginning a one-year postgraduate diploma course in Corporate Communications and Public Relations Management from August.

According to the news report, the diploma programme aims at producing more quality PR professionals by giving candidates academic and hands-on training. The programme covers various aspects of PR management, including communication theory and application in related professions, PR principles and practices, characteristics of various media, media relations and communication skills (both written and visual). Students will be asked to do a project and undergo internship in a leading organisation.

Now how different would this be from other PR institutes? Would there be a hands-on training, like making students actually issue press releases about PRSI, about the institute or anything else to the media? Compiling media lists? Making PR plans? Conducting media audits? Guest lecturers from PR agencies? etc.

PRSI has been long associated with PR education. This is what it had to say-

As early as 1975 the Chapter, in affiliation with the University og Madras, we introduced the 3-year full-time B.A. (Public Relations) course. Every student, who completed this course, has proved his worth in the field of Public Relations. Four batches of students completed the course since its inception. When this course was discontinued by the University, a one year part-time Post- graduate Diploma in Public Relations was started by the PRSI Chennai Chapter and twelve batches have since passed out. Each batch had, among others, PR and Management professionals from the Public and Private Sector, two Deputy Inspector Generals of Police on its rolls.

We also helped the Kothari Academy for women organise the one year part-time Postgraduate Diploma in Public Relations for 3 years. At the express request of Southern Railway, South Eastern Railway and Integral Coach Factory, we organised two 45-day Full-time Diploma Courses in Public Relations exclusively for their Public Relations personnel.In collaboration with the National Institute for Management Studies, a part-time one year Postgraduate Course in Public Relations was organised at Karnataka Sangha School, Chennai. Since 1998, the one year part-time Postgraduate Diploma in Public Relations offered by the PRSI Chennai Chapter was successfully converted to a one year Distance Education course. An MoU was signed between PRSI CHENNAI Chapter and CITY SCHOOL OF MANAGERIAL SCIENCES (a division of Campus Abroad) on 13th December, 2004 for conducting PG Diploma in Public Relations. The first batch passed out in 2005.

Contact detail of City School of Social and Managerial Sciences is Vijaya Complex, 2nd Floor,Annanagar (W), Chennai 600101. Phone: +91-44-26153030/ 26150303, Email: info@city-schools.com

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