Comms agency Romano Beck launches PR course after university graduates fall short

This idea is incredibly exclusionary and classist, and makes Romano Beck seem a bit out of touch. Only the most privileged of university students would be able to pay the $1500 fee for this course. It will further the divide between those who can afford to “get ahead” by working unpaid internships and obtaining expensive PR degrees, and those who can’t.

Diversity leads to innovation. Gatekeeping like this leads to stale and unoriginal ideas coming from the same like-minded people. Ideally, Romano Beck would nurture young talent within their workforce and not expect people to pay $1500 for the slim chance of working in PR.

The idea that university graduates should be expected to fork out $1,500 (on top of exorbitant university fees) for a minimum wage, entry level role is absurd. Most PR graduates will be expected to work excessive amounts of overtime on a salary that is laughable, just to meet the mentioned “workload expectations”. Organisations should be investing in their employees with proper, extensive training programs, not some 12-week ‘money making scheme’. Train your new employees, nurture their abilities and watch your business prosper.

It is a shame new graduates are going to have to pay for the on-the-job training companies used to provide as a matter of course. I’d prefer to see this marketed to companies that don’t have the depth in-house to train up their new PR grads, rather than shifting this cost back to the individual who isn’t yet earning an income.

Hiring a new graduate is an investment: it takes time and money to train up new talent, but that investment is richly rewarded in the fresh ideas, positive energy and cultural impact created.

Great initiative!

What a great initiative. Unfortunately traditional Australian higher education is woefully inadequate and does not prepare undergraduates for roles in the real world.

This is ridiculous… I thought they were providing a PR course for students out of goodwill for the industry, turns out they see it as a money-making opportunity. Disgraceful and distasteful.

What they should be doing is creating a Partnership with a University whom they think “fits their mold”. Internships would be on offer to the best and brightest (whom would be interviewed) which would lead to eventual full time employment. By the way – the course appears to be all online…….

I’m all for providing new grads with the opportunity to develop their skills with practical learning, however this whole initiative stinks of something that has been cooked up by the privileged few.

What uni student has $1,500 to spare for the *chance* to become more hireable? Especially now, when young adults are known to be bearing the brunt of a widening intergenerational wealth gap.

Put simply, this is a cash grab under the guise of ‘mentorship’. Why not launch this initiative with the offer of a few scholarships? At least then you might get some diversity in there.

As the chairperson of the Public Relations Institute of Australia’s national education committee I feel obliged to respond to some of the assertion that have been made in the article above, effectively implying that Australian public relations degrees fail to prepare graduates adequately.

The role of universities is much broader than preparing graduates for their first job – or to ensure they “hit the ground running”. Indeed, the role of university education is often confused with what is being offered at a VET level. TAFEs and higher education institutions play important, but nevertheless very different roles in public relations education. TAFE courses are typically more practical and focussed on technical skills. In contrast, university degrees are designed to prepare career ready graduates, with an appreciation for lifelong learning and critical thinking skills that will enable them to adapt to a rapidly changing industry, new challenges and in most cases multiple careers.

Programs accredited by the Public Relations Institute of Australia are aligned with the Institute’s professional skills framework, as well as the Australian capability framework. The regular re-accreditation review is rigorous, conducted by peers in academia and industry and emphasises work integrated learning, as well as the need for an active industry advisory group. To provide an example, students enrolled in our program at Curtin work with real life clients in most of their units, they collaborate with international peers from 15 countries on a global campaign and they complete a compulsory industry placement. However, they also encouraged to critically engage with content related to ethics, measurement and evaluation and emerging professional challenges.

I believe that our course is “practical and usable”, but I also acknowledge that not all the skills and knowledge gained throughout a three+ year degree will necessarily be drawn on in that first graduate position. Instead, career ready graduates will have the skills to contribute to our dynamic, continuously evolving industry over decades to come, well beyond a focus on personalities and social media platforms.

As someone who learned “on the job”, I am sure Romano can appreciate the crucial role employers play in the training and continuous professional development of their staff. Starting a new job can be stressful and challenging – especially for graduates with limited prior professional experience. That’s why mentoring and career planning are crucial tools in supporting emerging professionals. As some of the earlier comments have noted: expecting recent graduates to pay $1,495 for a transition program would be prohibitive and result in a less diverse – indeed increasingly elitist – workforce. Instead, I believe we need more employers to recognise graduates as an investment and to step up to proactively support early career professionals in their transition to full time work.

Here’s the difference between a publicist and PR professional. A PR pro would see the challenges of gauging grads for money in the worst recession in living memory and think better of it. A publicist sees an opportunity for coverage and thinks coverage, not brand reputation. Maybe you should rename your course…

Where to begin?

I guess firstly, positioning a firm that doesn’t actually have a profile as some sort of thought or opinion leader in the field strikes me as somewhat ‘delusional’.

The sentiment that “University graduates can sometimes have delusions of grandeur” seems particularly patronising, especially from a firm who supposedly knows better.

Secondly, to release a statement with literal typos, speaks for itself.

Thirdly (and referencing the points above) – the double defensive arm-cross? From “one of the most influential communications agency in the country”. Seriously.

Fourthly (?), this fee? From this company? Is this really acceptable?

Finally, for a firm to profess to “offer students ‘back to basics’ lessons on media relations” when such lessons are so sorely needed at said firm…

This all surely warrants further investigation from those who know better.

Dr Mumbo, over to you…

I support what others have said here – this feels predatory. There is no ‘education system’ that can fully prepare people for the work environment – which is why we have grad programs.

Focus on building a strong grad program that pays people while providing on the job learning opps with the support and guidance to get them through. In 6 months to a year they’ll be further ahead than this course can ever provide and also have money in their pocket.

And for people looking to get into the industry reach out to the CEO, MD, the GM and the head of HR at the agency that inspires you. Let them know you are keen to work with them and would appreciate even a 30 minute chat about opportunities. You’ll be surprised how many people will back that passion early on in your career. The most powerful thing you can do in your career is working at an agency that is leading the industry.

Honestly, if you’re young and looking a job in PR take it from the people on this forum – don’t do this program!

This is going to create an elitist workforce with a total lack of diversity, original thinking or true mentorship. The fact they think recent grads can pay $1,500 shows the are totally out of touch with reality. The language they use makes me fear for any juniors who have ever worked there. “University graduates can sometimes have delusions of grandeur,” and discouraging initiative and drive saying they must walk before they run. “Written in their language” (totally patronising).

This is going to create an elitist workforce with a total lack of diversity, original thinking or true mentorship. The fact they think recent grads can pay $1,500 shows the are totally out of touch with reality. The language they use makes me fear for any juniors who have ever worked there. “University graduates can sometimes have delusions of grandeur,” and discouraging initiative and drive saying they must walk before they run. “Written in their language” (totally patronising). I am glad in my formative years as a PR junior none of my seniors had such a superiority complex like these two.

An elitist agency, with a client list full of WAGs and Instagram ‘stars’, run by two people hellbent on perpetuating the idea that success is getting your name on an event list or a box of goodies sent to your door to share with your followers.

I agree with those above who point to the flawed premise of the training on offer. I am one of the first graduates of a communication degree in Australia and today, after 40 years, I still use the skills and insights I gained through my specialist PR education.
In my experience, no one decries a university education more than those who don’t have one. To proclaim a lack of formal PR education as a something to be proud of is short-sighted and reflects poorly on our profession. Relying on “street smarts” just doesn’t cut it and never has. Perhaps it’s time for these so-called educators to go back to basics and back to the books themselves before peddling their wares to the uninitiated.

Perhaps a more robust curriculum might be useful rather than “The information in the course is practical, usable and written in their language, with the aim of making RBU Education students stand out from the crowd. It’s the mentor we would have wanted growing up in PR.” What does this even mean?

The unspoken elephant that is sitting quietly in the corner of the room is that PR agency’s have always found new Uni graduates to be wholly unprepared for the workforce. Don’t blame the graduates. If we are really honest, the fault lies equally between the industry and the Universities. Just compare the learning outcomes of the Communications degrees currently available and you’ll notice there are very few core industry competencies shared between them. Each course writer has prepared their syllabus independently (and then the coursework has evolved over time) and not surprisingly, they differ widely. Why? Up until the PRIA’s Professional Framework document, there was no agreed, written industry position on what skills, knowledge and attributes needed to be taught to create a ‘competent comms professional’. I doubt the majority of readers even know that document exists so therein continues the issue. PR is an industry that has lost control of its definition (e.g. spinners, flacks, publicists, lobbyists, strategists, community managers, press secretaries, influencers…) because it has never had consensus on its identity. So how are universities (or VET providers) ever going to meet that expectation?

A good idea. PR is full of fossils who are completely out of touch with today’s media landscape. The more we can foster talent at the ground level the better.