One of the main benefits The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) markets to their members is networking opportunities, or the opportunity to “broaden your network.” The ability to meet people well networked within the business world can give an individual a huge upper hand on finding strong internships that then help foster improved job opportunities.
PRSSA nationally provides PRSA, the professional chapter of PRSSA, sponsor chapters that provide professional support and advice to the student chapters, as well as “Champions for PRSSA,” a group of professionals dedicated to supporting the education of students in public relations. PRSSA nationally also hosts a lot of opportunities on Twitter to help members gain followers and a larger network, as well as promoting internships and job opportunities via their Tweets.
One of PRSSA’s largest networking opportunities of the year is the National Conference. This past year it was held in Washington D.C. with over 1,000 PRSSA students attending and a multitude of communication professionals to hear speak and network with.
“I left with 35 other students cards and contact information, as well as email addresses and personal interaction with over 10 business professionals,” Eleanor Solomon PRSSA Treasurer, said. “Talk about the king of networking opportunities and an invaluable experience.”
On a more local level, St. Edward’s PRSSA chapter is following suit by offering networking opportunities to their members and surrounding area PRSSA students (Texas State and University of Texas). St. Edward’s PRSSA chapter has been busy this spring planning their “Mix, Mingle, and Make Connections,” networking mixer.
The executive board kicked off planning with a morning breakfast meeting at Torchie’s Tacos, a local taco joint. They spent several hours brainstorming locations, ideas, who to invite, and a names for the event. The board members wanted an event where their members would have an opportunity to meet Austin area professionals for internship and job opportunities, while in a fun social environment.
“We wanted to provide our members locally, what PRSSA offers nationally in terms of networking opportunities,” Veronica Adamick, President of PRSSA, said. “Using all of our professional contacts in Austin and bringing them together for students to meet, we felt was fulfilling those networking needs.”
The executive board presented in the next weeks meeting their ideas, allowing the other members to help brainstorm and have input on the planning. After several more planning meetings and joining with Texas State PRSSA to get more student and professional attendance, they had decided on a name for the event, a location, and a time.
The next steps were to create an official invite for the professionals, generate social media buzz, and create a physical advertisement to be posted around campus.
“Luckily we have board members who are great at delegating tasks, planning, and getting things done, Issa Galvan PRSSA event planner, said. “We had someone in charge of the advertisement, someone with social media, and someone with writing the letter, it was perfect.”
