10 pieces of advice to a new PR student

Looking back and reflecting I had four great, fun, memorable, challenging, and life-changing years at Georgia College & State University. I am so happy with the major and minor I chose and learned so much as a PR concentration and I discovered a lot about myself too. Here are the top ten lessons I learned during my days as a PR student that I would share with a new PR student:

10. Get a planner and use it- Organization and punctuality are so crucial in PR. I relied on my planner to keep me on track for group meetings, deadlines, events and reminders.

9. Learn to delegate jobs- When working on an event it is always awkward when you have to tell your peers what to do, but gain their respect and delegate jobs in a respectful way. I was guilty of overwhelming myself with tasks when I cold have divided some of the work.

8. Network- There are so many opportunities for networking these days. I love talking with people and making a connection with them. You never know when you can help them out one day or they could be a future employer of yours!

7. Be aware of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)- Once I learned the concept of CSR it is a topic of interest for me and I am now more aware of how companies are acting responsible.

6. Make and effort to get real world experience-The GCSU mass comm department requires students to do 3 practicums, which is such a great learning experience. The more you put into your practicum the more you get out of it.

5. Learn to plan a successful event- Personally I enjoy event planning because I love or organization, details and working hard on something and seeing it come together so beautifully. As a PR student of Ging's I learned how to plan events from the best!

4. Create a campaign and campaign book- I had no idea what all a campaign entailed until my group and I had to implement one and put together a campaign booklet. It is quite the process but I learned so much through doing it.

3. Learn how to write a press release- The more you write the easier writing press releases will become. I know my writing skills improved over my four years and it was because I got a lot of practice

2. Become a social media enthusiast- Learn how to really tweet and use a blog for PR. At first I didn't understand the purpose of Twitter or a blog, I just liked facebook, but now that I know how to use them for my benefit I see that social media is such a large part of PR.

1. Never stop learning- With the ever changing business of PR I know how important it is to stay sharp on my skills, current events and trends. Take any opportunity to learn something new. Life is too short just to wonder or be in the dark about something....so ask or research to find the answers to your questions. There are so many helpful resources in front of us as college students so take advantage of them!

College is awesome so soak it up and take lots of pictures!!!

Corporate Social Responsibility- Philip Morris

Corporate Social Responsibility has always interested in me and after researching Phillip Morris' efforts to act socially I am impressed with their their initiatives even though I am do not support their product, I do support their CSR programs.

Philip Morris is the largest cigarette manufacturer in the United States. Their brands include Marlboro, Parliament, Virginia Slims, Basic and L&M. Since their product is addictive and causes a multitude of health problems, Philip Morris realizes the importance of Corporate Social Responsibility. On the PM website there is plenty of information on what they are doing to be socially responsible and I will highlight five of their seven initiatives: help reduce underage tobacco use, support cessation, invest in communities, reduce environmental impact and engage with business partners.

The effort I found most interesting was their initiative to prevent underage tobacco use and the creation the Youth Tobacco Prevention Department. The department focuses on three areas; parent communication, grant programs and youth access prevention. PM creates and provided resources for parents that assist them in talking to their kids about not using tobacco products. The grant programs of PM provide grants to schools, school districts and youth-serving organizations to support positive youth development and healthy alternatives for kids. PM also supports the “We Card” program in efforts to reduce underage tobacco use.

I think PM's take on CSR is summed up perfectly in this statement on their website, “There are some who believe that a company that makes a dangerous product cannot be responsible. We believe that responsibility is defined not only by the products a company makes but also the actions it takes.”

Check out their responsibility page here for more information on all 7 of their initiatives!