Next generation of PR professionals not ready for social media ?
Last week I received a confirmation on something I feared all along; the next generation of PR practitioners, currently in their last year PR or Communications studies, are probably not ready to apply social media tools in the context of business communications.
Why do I think this ?
For several reasons:
- Although most students use some of the tools on a regular basis (Facebook, MySpace, blogs...) it is more often in a "play" context than a "work context".
- Several teachers told me that they simply do not have the time to cover online communications or online PR in their courses.
- Others said they can not incorporate "social media" in their curriculum simply because it is not on the official program.
- Several Professors told me that they have no experience with these new tools themselves, so how could they teach the topic ?
- At some universities and PR schools, incorporating social media in the day to day teaching environment is an IT nightmare.
Now, this is not based on any scientific research, but it is the general feeling I have from talking to both students and teacher from European as well as American universities.
We would think that the "generation born on the web" would grasp the power of social media in the context of business communications much faster that most of us "traditional PROs" but this is simply not the case.
As long as social media like wikis and blogs are not used on a regular basis in the context of studying PR or business communications it will be impossible for us business communicators to hire new people with experience. It is not simply a matter of hiring a young PR graduate to "get the skills" needed...
Applying social media in the context of online business communications is different and both academics and the PR industry need to work together to ensure that we can hire the people we'll need in the future.
What do you think ? Let me know. Your input is more than welcome.
Pieter
in Conferences/Events, Training
|
3 Comments
View Printer Friendly Version
Email Article to Friend
Reader Comments (3)
Due to this conclusion I feel particularly encouraged to defend my degree course called “Online-Journalism”. I have visited the “University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt” in Germany since 2005 – therefore I’m in the sixth semester and I’ve chosen the PR minor. I would like to enumerate five „counter-arguments“. I hope they might add a positive impression to your negative one. (Please excuse my german-english)
Concerning 1: The kontaktfrequenz (young, but we have still two terms before us) is the first rebutting evidence. It’s a common blog written by a fellow student and me. Apart from that, as online journalism students we have been confronted with social media since beginning of study. On one hand, for this term we concern ourselves in a lecture with the possibilities of the Web 2.0. On the other hand, for the practical project we (students and professor) communicate by Google Sites, Mr Wong & Co and “feed” a blog called PR-Fundsachen - a common blog of the PR students to topics around PR, classical media and the Internet. Additionally, we provide a concept for an internal, international communication platform for our project partner, the Software AG. The list could be continued.
Concerning 2: There’s always time for that – thanks to our professors. Both for the obligation, and for the “freestyle” (new suggestions and further questions). It is even essential for our course of studies.
Concerning 3: Briefly checked off: For the PR-students in the main study it is part of the study order and the lectures. In the seventh term we will occupy with Twitter, Friendfeed and „friends“ in detail.
Concerning 4: Sounds logical. But why don’t they become active? It’s not like that they couldn’t change that, is it? Our professor Thomas Pleil has blogged since 2006, has „twittered“ since 2007 and has used „friendfeed“ since this year. And he always does its best to bring these things home to his students.
Concerning 5: I’ve got nothing to complain about. Beamer, laptops, internet access, motivated students and motivated professors – does it need more to become “media social”? ;)
I'm afraid you're right. And looking at the curriculum of the college where I lecture myself, this is not something that is about to change overnight, despite some efforts on a personal basis by a number of colleagues. :-(
On the other hand, my guess is that the insights are slowly seeping in, so hopefully in due course...
BTW: what 'triggered' the confirmation you mention?
I quite agree with your conclusion even if I feel that it is evolving by now. As I see the cursus programs of the faculty where I study in Corporate Communication, it seems that there is a move to teach a bit more over social web and even simply web communication.
But as you say, I don't think it is enough if we want students like me to embrace the social web stuff. It takes time to discover these tools, and this should be rewarded or simply taken into account during the evaluation of the student, just as an incentive for him to practice in this direction.
Anyway, when I look to my brothers and sisters who are 8 years younger than I, I think that they are the social web generation as they use a blog since they were 10. We maybe have only to wait a half generation to get into the true web-born children generation...