Letter to Cousin

January 19, 2009


Dear Heidi,

In the past we have talked about our careers plans for life. The more I am learning about my field the more intrigued I become, I wanted to tell you more about Public Relations (PR) and the field that I am falling in love with. Here at Utah State University the PR department is apart of the journalism department. So starting off my studies I got to learn more about journalism and the media that surrounds us. I’ve learned a lot, have gained a greater respect for journalists and have been able to increase my writing skills. Now I am in my introduction PR class and my PR writing class. Already I have learned a lot, in my introduction class I’ve learned more about what I can do with my degree and all the area’s I can work in. In my PR writing class I’m learning more how to improve my writing skills relating to PR.

Once I graduate and go into the world trying to find a job I will be faced with many different opportunities. I can work in almost any major corporation, work for the government, do free lance PR, with this many opportunities it is making it hard for me to decide where I would want to work exactly. A PR consultant’s job is to communicate information from the organization to the public and the other way around. They also keep the organization in the know, of everything going on in the world that will affect them. We deal with the media, writing press releases letting them know when something is happening, and we are the voice of the company to the media.

With all my options for jobs I am currently thinking of working for the government, meaning that I would be a PR consultant for politicians. I would help them with their involvement with the community, how the public feels about them and help them try to get their thoughts to the public. If they are throwing an event or having a meeting they would like the public to attend to, I would gather information about the event, the politicians goals, who to address and how to relay the information to the public. One of the best ways to relay information to the community is through the local media, news papers and the broadcasted news. With my connections with the local news I would help to place our information properly so the public will get the information and respond to it.

The Public Relations field is intriguing to me, I love helping people and with this job I can help people on both sides. I enjoy making connections, meeting new people and networking for organizations. School is wonderful; increasing my knowledge on the career I want is fantastic. I will be happy in my later years working where I want to, using the skills I have while doing the thing I love. Have a good day.

~ Amber