Before college, I was convinced I would be an elementary school teacher. While this dream shifted after changing my major, I still had a love for education that wouldn’t go away. So, I decided to find a way to pair this passion with what I did best: communicate.
Lucky for me, I found my internship at Spring Garden Academy in North Philadelphia after my sophomore year of college. For half of my internship, I made social media posts, drafted newsletters, and created event posters to display in the community. Unlike many other PR internships, though, I was also doing a lot outside of the typical job description. I found myself in front of the classroom, organizing preschool enrollment and handling school drop-offs.
I was not taking the traditional path of a PR student. Many of my peers had very different experiences on their LinkedIn profiles. At first, I wondered if starting my PR career in such an odd way would look too strange on my resume. With time, though, I can trace many of my PR endeavors to this first experience.
My days of helping parents fill out enrollment forms for their kids and watching my favorite students graduate have made me a better communicator because I found value in building meaningful relationships at work.
I see so much of my old internship in what I do now at a PR agency in the city. Sure, my time at the school was handing out lunches and writing emails to parents, but it was also about telling the right story. It was marketing ourselves as a safe and fun space. It was showing people they could trust us.
In a way, isn’t that what PR is, too? Our jobs are to show people we care about them and their success. We build long-lasting relationships so they will continue to entrust us with the future of their company. Because of our school enrollment campaigns, I know how to craft the right messages at my new job. I will be able to foster the best client relationships because I learned to meet each student and family where they were.
Teaching actually kickstarted my PR career in a way other experiences would not have.
So, don’t be too scared to change your major halfway through college or take the opportunity in a different industry. The non-traditional starts can be the ones that teach you more than you expect. PR can also be found in any industry. Whether you find yourself in education, sports, or technology – every business and organization can benefit from a strategic communication professional.
If you had told me four years ago I would find my love for PR in a school basement, I would have never believed you. Now, anything I create in the future is because Spring Garden Academy gave me a solid foundation to stand on.
Margo Haas, Account Associate
prowl-pr.com 