Course Offerings
PUR 3000 - Principles of Public Relations
Catalog description:
The nature and role of public relations, activities of public relations professionals, major influences, which affect organizational behavior, the ethics and professional development of public relations professionals. This course is an overview of the functions, practices and growing application of public relations in private industry and the public sector. Emphasis is placed on planning, writing, and management functions, working with the media and developing effective public relations strategies. At the end of this course students should be capable of performing the following public relations activities: analyzing public relations problems and opportunities; understanding and developing concise and targeted public relations messages; understanding the terminology and theoretical concepts associated with public relations; track a complex issue and develop a strategy for managing it; conduct secondary research on corporate and agency activities.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 3500 - Public Relations Research
Catalog description:
The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction top and experience with social science research methods used in public relations practice. The focus is on using research for program management, planning, diagnosing and evaluating public relations programs and campaigns. Students use principles of scientific research to establish, monitor and evaluate communications programs; plan research, design surveys and experiments; conduct focus groups, content analysis, and participant observation research; interpret data using qualitative and statistical analysis and report research findings using advanced technologies.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Minimum grade of C in PUR 3000 and Statistics, junior standing
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 3801 - Public Relations Strategy
Catalog description:
The purpose of this course is to provide public relations students an opportunity to learn from case study analysis and to apply this knowledge to practical situations. Students will act and be treated as public relations management professionals required to identify, analyze, solve, write and present information in effective manner. At the end of this course, students should be able to identify how to integrate public relations as a management function into an overall organizational strategy; identify the public relations implications of management decisions; identify constituencies affected by management decisions; write a comprehensive communications strategy; support managerial decisions with public relations actions; and evaluate effectiveness of public relations activities.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Minimum grade of C in PUR 3500
Semesters this course is offered:
PUR 4100 - Public Relations Writing
Catalog description:
This course is intended to familiarize the student with the various forms of public relations writing and to develop competence in written communications. Emphasis will be on conducting research, establishing communications goals, executing the communications plan and evaluating the total communications effort. Students will prepare a complete media kit. Writing for public relations, copy dissemination, media use and media network design. Vehicles include internal and external media, print, electronic and audiovisual. Emphasis on research, fact-finding, audience analysis, message design, copy tests, selection of communication channels and targeting key publics.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Minimum grade of C in PUR 3000 and in JOU 3101, proficiency in word processing
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4103 - Public Relations Visual Communication
Catalog description:
This course is a detailed exercise in preparing printed material of the types produced by public relations departments: art, typography, layout, design, production and printing. Emphasis is placed on dealing with budgeted or sponsored publications for internal and external audiences. Diversity of publics is emphasized. Management's viewpoint on, reasons for, and "state-of-the-art" of such publications are included. Utilization of the elements of print communication as components for overall public relations strategy; with special attention given to style, form and production techniques of a magazine format publications; some exposure to video news magazines.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: JOU 3101 and PUR 3801
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4203 - Ethics and Professional Responsibility
Catalog description:
This course is about ethics and professional responsibility in public relations. The instructional goals are (1) to enhance the student's awareness of the ethical responsibilities of the public relations professional; (2) to increase the student's ability to identify the moral dimensions of issues that arise in the practice of public relations; (3) to enhance the student's ability to employ reason as a tool for dealing with moral issues; (4) to provide students the knowledge and skills necessary to reach and justify ethical decisions; and (5) to elicit a sense of personal and professional responsibility.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: PUR 3500
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring
PUR 4404C - International Public Relations
Catalog description:
An analysis of the impact of international activities on the public relations function.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: PUR 3000
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring
PUR 4410 - Principles of Fund Raising
Catalog description:
This three-credit course deals with the public relations specialization of fund raising – the high demand, low supply occupation unique to the charitable nonprofit subsector.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: PUR 3000 and PUR 3500
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring
PUR 4800 - Public Relations Campaigns
Catalog description:
This course is designed to help develop and refine critical thinking on the part of the student in selecting, creating and applying tools, techniques and principles of public relations to a variety of managerial cases and problem situations. Use of real-life cases studies, tracking of current public relations issues, and creation of a full-scale public relations plan for an actual "client" are planned. This course is for those students close to graduation, who have mastered most or all of the skills courses and are ready to apply themselves to a genuine public relations problem. Students will utilizing the principles and techniques of public relations to analyze case studies, track current public relations issues, and create public relations campaigns.
Credits: 3
Prerequisites: Minimum grade of C in PUR 3000, PUR 3801, PUR 4100 and PUR 4103; senior standing in the College of Journalism and Communications
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4905 - Individual Problems
Catalog description:
Students and the instructor concerned will choose a problem or project which will give the student actual experience in his or her major field.
Credits: 1 to 3
Prerequisites: At least 10 hours of professional courses and approval of the department chair and instructor.
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4932 - Special Study
Catalog description:
Variable content, providing opportunity for advanced study in the principles, processes and effects of public relations.
Credits: 1 to 3
Prerequisites: Permission of the instructor. May be repeated for a total of 6 hours.
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4933 - Seminar: Issues in Public Relations
Catalog description:
This course is a seminar. By definition, it is a course based on analysis and discussion. In this class, we will thoroughly examine the trends, policies, principles and ethics of the public relations profession. This course is an upper level elective designed to prepare students to make the transition into the professional practice by providing a framework for critical decision making. At the end of this course, students should be able to: understand the role of ethics in daily public relations activities; understand the need for ethical decision-making in public relations management and strategy; analyze the factors that influence ethics; answer challenging questions regarding ethical decision making in public relations; raise issues of ethics to be addressed by the profession.
Credits: 2
Prerequisites: Open only to seniors in public relations near graduation, or approval of instructor.
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring
PUR 4940 - Public Relations Internship
Catalog description:
The internship is one of the most valuable educational experiences you will undertake as part of the training at the University of Florida. This course allows you to work in a professional setting for academic credit. You are expected to perform duties as assigned by your employer, report to your instructor the progress you are making, maintain a portfolio of materials you have written or designed, and provide to the instructor a final report outlining specific internship activities and accomplishments within the context of organization's goals. At the end of this course, students should be able to: effectively function as a member of a management team in a professional environment; complete professional level work under deadline; explain the relationship between public relations department and other staff, read an organizational chart; write, edit, create materials of professional quality; explain how the public relations function works within the organization; explain how specific activities of the internships supported the overall strategic plans of the organization.
Credits: 1 to 3
Prerequisites: Minimum of 9 hours of professional courses earned (including JOU 3101) and a 2.5 grade point average. Must have advance approval from academic adviser, department and college offices to receive credit. May be repeated with change of assignment up to a maximum of 3 credits.
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
PUR 4949 - Co-Op Work Experience
Catalog description:
Practical co-op work experience relating to public relations under approved business, institutional or governmental supervision.
Credits: 1
Prerequisites: Minimum of 10 hours professional courses earned and a 2.7 GPA. Must have advance approval from academic adviser, department and college offices to receive credit. May be repeated with changed work program upon departmental approval.
Semesters this course is offered: Fall, Spring, Summer
†† indicates the course may be taken on an S-U basis.
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