Programs

PRSA Nashville offers members professional development opportunities for networking and growth through meetings, seminars, accreditation and recognition.

Accreditation

What is Accreditation? A voluntary certification program for public relations professionals, administered by the Public Relations Society of America.

What is the Purpose of Accreditation? The purpose is to unify and advance the profession by identifying those who have demonstrated broad knowledge, experience and professional judgement in the field. The program seeks to improve public relations practice. The designation Accredited in Public Relations (APR) signifies a high professional level of experience and competence.

Why Become Accredited? Personal growth, the opportunity to gain knowledge while preparing for the test, to show career initiative — all are reasons to become accredited. Increasingly, job listings are specifying APR preferred. APR is a symbol of professionalism. It demonstrates that individuals have the knowledge, ethics, and experience that set them apart. It also demonstrates that they care about their own profession, and that they are dedicated to enhancing their own personal abilities.

For Additional Information About Accreditation: Visit the national PRSA web site at www.prsa.org to find out about eligibility requirements, testing dates, what to expect from the exam, much more.

Who Do I Contact to Become Accredited? Tom Adkinson, APR the Accreditation Co-Chair for PRSA Nashville. Tom can be reached at 615-341-3640, or by e-mail at tadkinson@bohanideas.com.

Young Professionals

About Young Professionals
Are you looking to network with other young public relations professionals? Do you find yourself wanting to bounce ideas off your peers?

The Nashville PRSA Chapter has an active young professionals group, and we hope you will become involved. This group is designed to be an affordable resource to young PR practitioners in the Middle Tennessee area. We get together during the year to meet new people, discuss trends in the PR sector, and hone our PR skills. Don't miss these opportunities to network with other up-and-coming public relations professionals!

**We define young professionals as individuals who have been in the public relations industry for less than 10 years. Students are welcome at all events.

Get YP News
Join the young professionals e-mail distribution list: PRSAyoungprofessionals-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Contact Us
If you have questions or ideas, please contact the young professionals chair:
Steve Horton
T: 615-248-8202
E: shorton@kvbpr.com

Student Relations

Nashville PRSA is dedicated to helping advance the education and professional development of public relations students. We offer the following outreach programs to students involved in the PRSSA chapters at Middle Tennessee State University, Lipscomb University and Austin Peay State University.

PRSA Luncheon Sponsors

Nashville PRSA will sponsor a student for the first PRSA luncheon that he/she attends. This involves paying for the cost of the student’s lunch and having a member sit with them during the program if possible. Attending a PRSA luncheon is an invaluable networking and learning experience for students. Subsequent lunches are $30 for students.

Internship Directory

If your company or organization has established an internship program for public relations students, we can help you publicize the internship in our internship directory. This service is only available to PRSA member companies. The directory will be distributed to local universities.

FOR PRSA MEMBERS ONLY

Any PRSA member who is interested in participating in one or more of these programs should contact Meredith Webb at girl_next_door980@hotmail.com.

Student Relations News & Events

“Landing That First Job”
By Heather Schablik, Account Executive
Katcher Vaughn & Bailey Public Relations 

Senior year of college is definitely the most stressful. In addition to the normal tests and papers that define college education, there seems to be an ominous cloud of uncertainty hovering on the horizon – the real world. And as the days and weeks tick away and graduation grows closer, you lose count of the number of times you hear the question “What are you doing after graduation?”

As much as everyone would love to hear there is one no-fail approach toward getting a job after graduation, the fact remains that such a trick is non-existent. For most college graduates, the thought of finding that perfect job is like finding a needle in a haystack. However, there are some basic rules that, when followed, can make the job search process a little less painful.

1. Start early –The best advice is to start early. No employer is going to penalize you for showing initiative and getting your name in front of them before anyone else. This is definitely a case in which the early birds land the best jobs.
2. Put your best foot forward . . . on paper. Every PR student has, at some point in his or her educational career, created a resume for a class or internship. Now is the time to take that resume and perfect it. Have a teacher or past employer critique it, and be prepared for some constructive criticism. Resumes aren’t just documentations of past jobs and GPAs – they are a first impression which can determine whether or not you get called in for an interview. Also, prepare a portfolio with writing samples that you can present to potential employers. A resume can speak volumes, but writing samples go even further. In the PR field, the thing that differentiates the good candidates from the great ones is their writing skills.
3. Practice makes perfect – This rule applies to many aspects of the job search. First, if you have the opportunity to do an internship take it. If you have the opportunity to do two or three, even better. If you have the chance to do a couple in different areas of PR, perfect! Internships give you valuable hands-on experience that you cannot get anywhere else. Also, almost all universities have a career placement center – take advantage of the mock interviews they offer. I’ve yet to meet anyone who has had the perfect interview the first time they walked into an office, so get that “dress rehearsal” out of the way before you ever step foot in the door.
4. Do your homework –Unfortunately, homework doesn’t end when you graduate. Before you go into an interview, research the company and learn as much as you can about them – when they were founded, who the management team is, what their corporate mission is, and some of their clients or more notable projects. Also, have at least two good questions prepared ahead of time to ask them, and make sure they reflect the research you’ve done.
5. Don’t give up – There is nothing more frustrating than interviewing for a job, thinking it went really well, and finding out that you didn’t get it. Best advice on how to handle the situation? Talk to the interviewer and ask for constructive criticism – what did they like, what didn’t they like, why did they choose the person they hired. Be prepared to hear both positives and negatives about yourself. Most employers will be impressed you even thought to ask. Next step – don’t give up. Learn from the experience and use that knowledge in your next interview.

There are no easy solutions to bridging the gap between the classroom and the office, and as the public relations major grows in popularity across the nation, so does the competition for entry-level positions. Just remember to be prepared and be yourself, and the rest is going to fall into place. In the meantime, take advantage of every opportunity to get experience through internships, PRSSA or other extracurricular activities. When it comes down to comparing two PR graduates, you want to be the one that shines through as the most qualified one.

Heather Buckner graduated in May 2001 and joined Katcher Vaughn & Bailey upon graduation. Katcher Vaughn & Bailey Communications is a full-service public relations firm specializing in media relations, corporate communications, public affairs and issues management.

Speakers Bureau

The Nashville Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) offers experienced speakers on various public relations topics to area business, civic and nonprofit organizations.

Participants in PRSA’s Speakers Bureau, each of whom have at least 10 years of professional experience in public relations, are available to speak at no cost to local organizations on topics including:

• Ethics in Today’s Workplace
• Community Involvement: Its Impact on your Reputation and Bottom Line
• Effectively Communicating Change to Internal Audiences
• How Organizations can Work Effectively with Media
• Diversity and Getting Ahead of Workplace Issues
• Preventing Problems in Public Relations Campaigns
• Using Special Events to Tell Your Story

As part of our service to the community, we want to help business, civic and nonprofit groups in an area in which they may not have existing resources,” explained Teresa Corlew, APR, president of the Nashville PRSA Chapter.  “We’re happy to provide seasoned professionals within our chapter to any group interested in learning more about the various functions of public relations and how to best incorporate those functions in their organization or business.”

Anyone interested in learning more about the PRSA Speakers Bureau can call Susan Hart, APR, at 642-0800.