Isn't public sector PR a bit boring?

About halfway through her first year studying PR at Leeds Met the realisation dawned on ALICE EDMOND...

I didn't want to work in a PR consultancy. Before then I don't think I'd really considered all the different options, but when I did I decided I wanted to work in-house, in the public sector. My reasons? The range of work, the unpredictability, but most of all the feeling that what I'm doing is worthwhile.

A job in the public sector isn't second rate in any way. I didn't take my placement in a housing association, as some people suppose, because I'd been unsuccessful in getting a place in a consultancy or in the private sector. It was my first choice and I'm happy to be working in the public sector.

I'm not the only one. Bianca Graham, a recent placement student in the press and PR team at Hertfordshire Constabulary (who wrote about her experiences in Behind the Spin issue 10) says: "I had absolutely no idea what to expect from working in the public sector, but I'm loving every minute of it."

Unfortunately, this kind of positive feedback doesn't appear to be reaching students. Steph Brockbank, placements tutor at Leeds Met, describes the typical process: "Students start off wanting to work for a big-name consultancy because they think it'll look better on their CV, but after writing off and going to unsuccessful interviews they get disillusioned and start to apply for positions in-house."

I think the reluctance of students to work in the public sector is mostly due to their perceptions of the jobs available and the idea that they'll be offered a lower salary.

People's perceptions of PR are imaginative to say the least. Any PR student will know that most people think that all their degree will qualify them to do is organise celebrity parties or hand out flyers outside nightclubs. In reality, of course, neither of these activities is on the syllabus and neither 'careers' have ever interested me, or most of my fellow students, in the slightest.

Perceptions of PR in the public sector are just as wide of the mark, in my experience. Uninspiring colleagues, a dingy office, long hours and a tedious workload to name but a few.

The work I do isn't dull or boring. There are some tasks that don't fill me with enthusiasm, like scanning the local newspaper every day for coverage. Yet the wide range of projects I'm able to get involved in far outweigh the tedious ones. Every week I embark on an array of projects, including writing press releases, articles and editorials, designing posters, leaflets, flyers and adverts, organising events, taking photographs, compiling internal and external newsletters and publications, and updating the Trust's web and Intranet sites.

I'm not suggesting that working in a consultancy offers a narrower range of tasks or is any less exiting or demanding. I just want to make the point that working in a non-profit organisation isnÕt the dull, dreary existence I'd been led to believe it might be.

As for the 'dingy offices', the building I work in could compete with any corporate head office. Another stereotype out of the window! I'm based in Telford, at the newly-built headquarters building. The reception area isn't what you'd expect from a housing association: transparent glass lifts on the right, two curved open balconies in the centre, and a contemporary circular boardroom to the left. I work in a modern, open plan office - I couldn't possibly ask for a better working environment.

Another thing that inevitably discourages students from the public sector is the salary. You'll often get paid more for working in a consultancy or in the private sector but the public sector has its perks too: great discounts on all sorts of products and services for one. In addition, the recent PR Week salary survey revealed that public sector press assistants and press officers' salaries have seen fairly major increases in the past year. So things are looking up. Whether this is enough to encourage PR graduates to the public sector remains to be seen.

So, is PR in the public sector a bit boring? I'm biased, but I'd have to say "No". I'm sure it isn't for everyone since you have to have a certain level of empathy with the social aims of the organisation you work for, whether it be a charity, a care trust, the emergency services or a local authority. It also requires determination and a positive outlook, and perhaps most importantly, an understanding of what public relations in the public sector is about and what it is not about. No celebrity parties for me then.

• ALICE EDMONDS is a final year Leeds Met student who spent her placement year in the communications and marketing team at The Wrekin Housing Trust in Shropshire
  

Comments

[Katri Kerem]

I happened to read this post while searching the Internet for materials on public sector PR. I was wondering if there are any relevant academic (or at least not hard sell) articles about the field? I did not find anything in the journal databases I can access and internet search provides mostly matches to agencies.

[David Burton]

It is the evening before my interview with a local public sector organisation for a placement in the PR and communications department and I have been inspired by your article. I have interviews lined up with private organisations also but your view from the inside of public sector has helped my decision, pending their response, greatly.